Stan Winston is the man behind the dinosaurs; the creator of the ultimate vampire look; the winner of several Emmy and Academy awards. Only the second special effects artist to be honored with a star on Hollywood's Walk of the Stars, Winston put the special in F/X, but his is not a name easily recognized by those who are not film buffs. Best known for his effects work on such blockbusters as Aliens, Terminator 2, Batman Returns, Jurassic Park, and Interview with a Vampire, Winston has, at various points in his career, also been known as a makeup artist, producer, director, and a puppeteer.

Dubbed the "foremost creator of creatures in the world" by Hugo Perez in a Science Fiction Weekly interview, Winston is co-founder of Digital Domain, one of the biggest companies in computer graphics special effects. He is, as Perez commented, "the go-to guy" for such...