special effects

Motion Pictures, Television.

unusual visual and sound effects beyond the range of normal photography or recording, as simulated fires or earthquakes, explosions, thunder and lightning, miniaturized or enlarged images, or other optical or electronic distortions.

[1940-45]

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Artificial visual or mechanical effects introduced into a movie or television show.

The earliest special effects were created through special camera lenses or through tricks such as projecting a moving background behind the actors. Greater flexibility came with the development of the optical printer, which made it possible to combine separate pieces of film and replace part of an image, thus allowing for effects such as characters flying through the air. Special effects have also been created mechanically on the set through the use of devices such as wires, explosives, and puppets and by building miniature models to simulate epic scenes such as battles. The growing use of computer animation and computer-generated imagery has produced increasingly elaborate and realistic visual effects. Though each movie studio formerly had its own special-effects department, effects are now created by private companies such as George Lucas's Industrial Light and Magic, formed to provide the revolutionary effects seen in Star Wars (1977) and later movies.

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