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John Stears is a Actor, Special Effects Supervisor and Special Effects Coordinator British born on 25 august 1934 at Uxbridge (United-kingdom)

John Stears

John Stears
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Nationality United-kingdom
Birth 25 august 1934 at Uxbridge (United-kingdom)
Death 28 june 1999 (at 64 years) at Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles (USA)

John Stears (25 August 1934 - 28 June 1999) was a British two-time Academy Award winning special effects expert, who created James Bond's lethal Aston Martin DB5, Luke Skywalker's Landspeeder, the Jedi Knights' lightsabers, the endearing robots R2-D2 and C-3PO as well as a host of other movie gadgets and special effects.

Biography

John Stears en 1934 à Uxbridge près de Londres en Angleterre, passe son enfance dans le quartier voisin d'Ickenham, puis étudie l'art au Harrow College of Art, et la technologie à la Southall Technical School de Londres. Pilote d'avion durant son service national, il commence sa carrière comme dessinateur de la Royal Air Force britannique, comme fabricant de maquettes géantes dans un bureau d'architecture, puis comme créateur d'effets spéciaux pour le cinéma au début des années 1960.









En 1977







Avec son Landspeeder de Luke Skywalker (1977)







Avec R2-D2 (1977)







Sabres laser (Star Wars)





Il entame sa longue collaboration à la saga de films James Bond, en tant que responsable-directeur des effets spéciaux, avec le premier James Bond 007 contre Dr No de 1962. Il créé entre autres de très nombreux effets spéciaux et objets divers, dont en particulier la célèbre Aston Martin DB5 007 pour Goldfinger (1964) (première voiture à gadget de la série 007 de la section « Q » recherche et développement du MI6 de l'Empire britannique)...

Apres avoir fondé sa propre entreprise en 1970, le réalisateur-scénariste-producteur George Lucas (grand amateur de James Bond) le recrute en 1976 pour sa saga de film Star Wars, en tant que directeur spécial de la production et des effets mécaniques, pour laquelle il créé entre autres les sabres laser des Jedi, les robots R2-D2 et C-3PO, l'étoile de la mort, le Landspeeder de Luke Skywalker, ou des effets spéciaux de combat aérien avec John Dykstra...

Après avoir vécu une grande partie de sa vie à Beaconsfield en Angleterre (ou il élève du bétail), il vend sa maison en 1993 au chanteur Ozzy Osbourne, et s'installe à Pacific Palisades (Los Angeles) en Californie. Il disparaît le 28 juin 1999, à l'age de 64 ans, victime d'une hémorragie cérébrale, au Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center de Los Angeles.

Best films

The Mask of Zorro
The Mask of Zorro
(1998)
(Special Effects Coordinator) Thunderball
Thunderball
(1965)
(Special Effects) Goldfinger
Goldfinger
(1964)
(Special Effects) The Man with the Golden Gun
The Man with the Golden Gun
(1974)
(Special Effects) From Russia with Love
From Russia with Love
(1963)
(Special Effects) Outland
Outland
(1981)
(Special Effects)

Usually with

Albert R. Broccoli
Albert R. Broccoli
(7 films)
Harry Saltzman
Harry Saltzman
(5 films)
Peter Hunt
Peter Hunt
(6 films)
Richard Maibaum
Richard Maibaum
(5 films)
John Barry
John Barry
(5 films)
Source : Wikidata

Filmography of John Stears (15 films)

Display filmography as list

Actor

Visual effects

The Bounty
The Bounty (1984)
, 2h12
Directed by Roger Donaldson
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Action, Adventure, Historical
Themes Seafaring films, Transport films
Actors Mel Gibson, Anthony Hopkins, Laurence Olivier, Edward Fox, Daniel Day-Lewis, Liam Neeson
Roles Special Effects Supervisor
Rating69% 3.4972453.4972453.4972453.4972453.497245
The film is set as flashbacks from the court martial at Greenwich of Commanding Lieutenant William Bligh (Anthony Hopkins) for the loss of HMS Bounty to mutineers led by his friend Fletcher Christian (Mel Gibson) during its expedition to Tahiti to gather breadfruit pods for transplantation in the Caribbean.

Team

The Mask of Zorro
The Mask of Zorro (1998)
, 2h16
Directed by Martin Campbell
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Thriller, Comedy, Action, Adventure, Romance, Western
Themes Films about slavery, Medical-themed films, Prison films, Films about racism, Superhero films, Films about disabilities, Heist films, Personne sourde ou muette, Zorro
Actors Antonio Banderas, Anthony Hopkins, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Stuart Wilson, Matt Letscher, L. Q. Jones
Roles Special Effects Coordinator
Rating67% 3.397793.397793.397793.397793.39779
In 1821, Don Diego De La Vega (Anthony Hopkins) fights against the Spanish in the Mexican War of Independence as Zorro, a mysterious swordsman who defends the Mexican peasants and commoners of Las Californias. Don Rafael Montero (Stuart Wilson), the governor of the region, learns of De La Vega's alter ego, and attempts to arrest him. De La Vega's wife is killed during the scuffle. Montero imprisons De La Vega and takes his infant daughter, Eléna, as his own. Twenty years later Montero returns to California as a civilian, alongside Eléna (Catherine Zeta Jones), who has grown into a beautiful woman. Montero's reappearance coincides with De La Vega's escape from prison. He encounters a thief, Alejandro Murrieta (Antonio Banderas), who, as a child, once did Zorro a favor. De La Vega decides that fate has brought them together, and agrees to make Alejandro his protégé, grooming him to be the new Zorro. Murrieta agrees to undergo De La Vega's training regimen in order to be able to take revenge on Captain Harrison Love (Matt Letscher), Montero's right-hand man, who was responsible for killing Murrieta's brother, Joaquin.
Babylon 5: The Gathering
Babylon 5: The Gathering (1993)
, 1h29
Origin USA
Genres Science fiction, Action, Adventure
Themes Space adventure films, Films set in the future, Space opera
Actors Michael O'Hare, Tamlyn Tomita, Jerry Doyle, Mira Furlan, John Fleck, Peter Jurasik
Roles Special Effects Coordinator
Rating65% 3.2976353.2976353.2976353.2976353.297635
In the earth year 2257, a multitude of humans and non-humans gather deep in neutral space at a new station, Babylon 5, which has recently become operational. Babylon 5 was built as a neutral venue for discussing and resolving issues between the five major spacefaring races of the galaxy, the humans, Narn, Centauri, Minbari and Vorlons. Commander Jeffrey Sinclair is in overall charge of the station.
Turkey Shoot
Turkey Shoot (1982)
, 1h33
Directed by Brian Trenchard-Smith
Origin Australie
Genres Drama, Science fiction, Thriller, Action, Horror
Themes Political films, Dystopian films
Actors Steve Railsback, Olivia Hussey, Michael Craig, Carmen Duncan, Roger Ward, Lynda Stoner
Roles Special Effects
Rating58% 2.945752.945752.945752.945752.94575
In the totalitarian near future, "social deviants" are sent to prison camps for re-education and behaviour modification. The new arrivals at Camp 47 are Chris Walters (Olivia Hussey), a shopkeeper accused of helping a rebel; Rita Daniels (Lynda Stoner), a suspected sex worker; and Paul Anders (Steve Railsback), a dissident who has escaped from several other camps. After suffering brutal treatment at the hands of Camp Master Charles Thatcher (Michael Craig) and his chief enforcer, Ritter (Roger Ward), the prisoners accept a deadly deal. They will be human prey in a "turkey shoot", which Thatcher has organised for Secretary Mallory (Noel Ferrier), and VIPs Jennifer (Carmen Duncan) and Tito (Michael Petrovich). If they can evade the heavily armed guests in the surrounding jungle until sundown, Chris, Rita and Paul will be set free. As the "turkey shoot" progresses, the tables are turned, and the prisoners become the hunters, culminating in a free-for-all slaughter terminated by a government napalm airstrike.
Outland
Outland (1981)
, 1h52
Directed by Peter Hyams
Origin USA
Genres Science fiction, Action, Adventure, Crime
Themes Space adventure films, Dans l'espace, Films set in the future, Space opera
Actors Sean Connery, Peter Boyle, Frances Sternhagen, James Sikking, Kika Markham, Steven Berkoff
Roles Special Effects
Rating65% 3.2981553.2981553.2981553.2981553.298155
In the future, Federal Marshal William O'Niel (Sean Connery) is assigned to a tour of duty at the titanium ore mining outpost 'Con-Am 27' operated by the company Conglomerates Amalgamated, on the Jovian moon of Io.
One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing
One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing (1975)
, 1h40
Directed by Robert Stevenson, Art Stevens, Wolfgang Reitherman, John Lounsbery
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Thriller, Comedy, Action, Adventure
Themes Films about animals, Dinosaur films, Spy films, La préhistoire, Animaux préhistoriques, Children's films
Actors Peter Ustinov, Helen Hayes, Clive Revill, Derek Nimmo, Percy Herbert, Hugh Burden
Roles Special Effects
Rating58% 2.949962.949962.949962.949962.94996
Escaping from China with a microfilm of the formula for the mysterious "Lotus X", Lord Southmere, a Queen's Messenger, is chased by a group of Chinese spies.
The Man with the Golden Gun
The Man with the Golden Gun (1974)
, 2h5
Directed by Guy Hamilton
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Thriller, Action, Adventure, Spy
Themes Films about children, Spy films, Films about terrorism
Actors Roger Moore, Christopher Lee, Britt Ekland, Maud Adams, Hervé Villechaize, James Cossins
Roles Special Effects
Rating66% 3.3474453.3474453.3474453.3474453.347445
In London, a golden bullet with James Bond's code "007" etched into its surface is received by MI6. It is believed that it was sent by famed assassin Francisco Scaramanga, who uses a golden gun, to intimidate the agent. Because of the perceived threat to the agent's life, M relieves Bond of a mission revolving around the work of a scientist named Gibson, thought to be in possession of information crucial to solving the energy crisis with solar power. Bond sets out unofficially to find Scaramanga.
O Lucky Man!
O Lucky Man! (1973)
, 3h3
Directed by Lindsay Anderson
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Fantasy, Musical
Actors Malcolm McDowell, Ralph Richardson, Rachel Roberts, Arthur Lowe, Helen Mirren, Graham Crowden
Roles Special Effects
Rating75% 3.794453.794453.794453.794453.79445
The film opens with a short fragment outside the plot but clearly related on repeated viewings. Grainy, black-and-white, and silent, a title "Once Upon a Time" leads to Latino labourers picking coffee beans while armed foremen push rudely between them. One worker (McDowell with black hair and moustache) pockets a few beans ("Coffee for the Breakfast Table") but is seen by a foreman. He is next seen before a fat Caucasian magistrate who loses some saliva as he removes his cigar only to say "Guilty." The foreman pulls his machete and lays it across the unfortunate laborer's wrists, bound to a wooden block, revealing that he is to lose his hands for the theft of a few beans. The machete lifts, descends, and we see McDowell draw back in a silent scream. The scene blacks out, the word NOW appears onscreen and expands quickly to fill it.
Theatre of Blood
Theatre of Blood (1973)
, 1h44
Directed by Douglas Hickox
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy, Horror comedy, Horror
Themes Serial killer films, Films based on plays, Films based on works by William Shakespeare, Comedy horror films
Actors Vincent Price, Diana Rigg, Ian Hendry, Harry Andrews, Rachael Stirling, Coral Browne
Roles Special Effects
Rating70% 3.5460453.5460453.5460453.5460453.546045
Shakespearean actor Edward Lionheart (Vincent Price) appears to have committed suicide by diving into the Thames, after being humiliated at an awards ceremony. But he has been secretly rescued by vagrants, who welcome him into their circle. Weakened by meths-addiction, they prove to be a docile crew, that he will use in a campaign of revenge on the drama-critics who failed to salute his genius.
Sitting Target
Sitting Target (1972)
, 1h33
Directed by Douglas Hickox
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Thriller, Action, Crime
Actors Oliver Reed, Jill St John, Ian McShane, Edward Woodward, Freddie Jones, Frank Finlay
Roles Special Effects
Rating65% 3.2943.2943.2943.2943.294
Harry Lomart, a convicted murderer, and Birdy Williams are convicts planning a breakout. Before the two men can abscond to another country, Lomart gets word that his wife Pat has been having an affair with another man and has become pregnant.
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)
, 2h24
Directed by Ken Hughes, Brian W. Cook
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Science fiction, Comedy, Musical theatre, Fantasy, Adventure, Musical
Themes Monde imaginaire, Films about music and musicians, Transport films, Films about automobiles, Aviation films, Musical films, Road movies, Children's films
Actors Dick Van Dyke, Sally Ann Howes, Adrian Hall, Lionel Jeffries, Gert Fröbe, Anna Quayle
Roles Special Effects
Rating68% 3.4492453.4492453.4492453.4492453.449245
Set in the 1910s, the story opens with a montage of European Grand Prix races in which a particular car appears to win every race. In the final race, the car swerves to avoid a girl and a dog, loses control, crashes, and catches fire, bringing its racing career to an end. The car ends up in an old garage in rural England, where two children, Jeremy and Jemima Potts, have grown fond of it. They are told by a junkman that he intends to buy the car from the garage owner for scrap. The children (who live with their widowed father Caractacus Potts, an eccentric inventor, and his equally peculiar father) implore their father to buy the car before the junkman does, but he does not have the money. While playing truant, they meet Truly Scrumptious, a beautiful upper class woman with her own motorcar. She brings them home to report their truancy to their father. Truly shows interest in Caractacus' odd inventions, but he is affronted by her insistence that his children should be in school.
Thunderball
Thunderball (1965)
, 2h4
Directed by Ricou Browning, Terence Young, Peter Hunt
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Thriller, Action, Adventure, Spy
Themes Films about children, Spy films, Seafaring films, Films about terrorism, Transport films, Underwater action films, Arme nucléaire
Actors Sean Connery, Claudine Auger, Adolfo Celi, Luciana Paluzzi, Rik Van Nutter, Desmond Llewelyn
Roles Special Effects
Rating68% 3.4482453.4482453.4482453.4482453.448245
James Bond—MI6 agent 007 and sometimes simply "007"—attends the funeral of Colonel Jacques Bouvar, a SPECTRE operative (Number 6). Bouvar is alive and disguised as his own widow, but Bond identifies him. Following him to a château, Bond fights and kills him, escaping using a jetpack and his Aston Martin DB5.
Goldfinger
Goldfinger (1964)
, 1h45
Directed by Michael G. Wilson, Guy Hamilton, Peter Hunt
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Thriller, Action, Adventure, Spy
Themes Films about children, Spy films, Films about terrorism
Actors Sean Connery, Gert Fröbe, Honor Blackman, Bernard Lee, Lois Maxwell, Harold Sakata
Roles Special Effects
Rating76% 3.8466253.8466253.8466253.8466253.846625
After destroying a drug laboratory in Latin America, James Bond—agent 007—travels to Miami Beach where he receives instructions from his superior, M, via CIA agent Felix Leiter to observe bullion dealer Auric Goldfinger, who is staying at the same hotel as Bond. The agent sees Goldfinger cheating at gin rummy and stops him by distracting his employee, Jill Masterson, and blackmailing Goldfinger into losing. Bond and Jill consummate their new relationship; however, Bond is subsequently knocked out by Goldfinger's Korean manservant Oddjob. When Bond regains consciousness, he finds Jill dead, covered in gold paint, having died from "epidermal suffocation".
From Russia with Love
From Russia with Love (1963)
, 1h55
Directed by Terence Young
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Thriller, Action, Adventure, Spy
Themes Films about children, Spy films, Politique, Films about terrorism, Transport films, Rail transport films, Political films, Film se déroulant dans un train
Actors Sean Connery, Pedro Armendáriz, Lotte Lenya, Robert Shaw, Anthony Dawson, Bernard Lee
Roles Special Effects
Rating72% 3.648013.648013.648013.648013.64801
SPECTRE's expert planner Kronsteen devises a plot to steal a Lektor cryptographic device from the Soviets and sell it back to them while exacting revenge on Bond for killing their agent Dr. No. The Spectre Number 1 puts ex-SMERSH operative and Number 3 Rosa Klebb in charge of the mission. Klebb recruits Donald "Red" Grant as an assassin, and Tatiana Romanova, a cipher clerk at the Soviet consulate in Istanbul, as an unwitting pawn, as Romanova thinks Klebb is still working for SMERSH.