Contents Behind the Lines of 'Enemy Mine': Although Barry Longyear's futuristic story of survival and friendship in an unwelcoming environment seemed an ideal film property, the process of bringing Enemy Mine to the screen would prove anything but ideal. The need for intricate alien makeups, bizarre scenery and dogfighting spacecraft automatically earmarked the project as an especially challenging one - rendered even more so by the replacement of the original director in mid-production. Ultimately, however, the film would come together under the direction of Wolfgang Petersen who orchestrated both the demanding live-action shoot and an international assemblage of multitalented effects people. Article by Janine Pourroy

Der Trickfilm - A Survey of German Special Effects: During the opening years of the twentieth century, when the art of filmmaking was being developed on an international scale, the German cinema promptly established a sungular identity for itself - an identity shaped largely by the fact that its prime innovators seemed possessed by an insatiable fascination with the fantastic. Tasked with subjects ranging from epic fantasy to futuristic science fiction, German technicians were among the first to explore and exploit the magical capabilities of the motion picture camera. Article by Rolf Giesen

Fright Night: Writer-director Tom Holland conceived of Fright Night as a contemporary tribute to the traditional vampire film, complete with all affectations of the genre. But instead of employing the simplistic techniques of yore, Holland was determined to utilize state-of-the-art special effects to their fullest. Undaunted by a relatively meager budget, Holland and Columbia Pictures turned toRichard Edlund and Boss Film Corporation with a unique challenge to produce an array of high-quality illusions - everything from flying bats to snarling man-beasts - all for an unprecedented bargain price. Article by Jennifer Benidt and Janine Pourroy

Contents Poltergeist II: To Hell and Back: In 1982, all hell broke loose in the Freeling household. Steven Spielberg's production of Poltergeist recounted the chilling tale of a family turned upside-down by ghostly goings-on engineered and executed by Oscar-winner Richard Edlund and his visual effects team at Industrial Light & Magic. Now, four years later, Poltergeist II finds the beleaguered Freelings once again embroiled in a multidimensional melee - this time without producer Spielberg or Industrial Light & Magic, but with Edlund still at the visual effects helm. Faced with the challenge of surpassing his own previous efforts, Edlund and his Boss Film Corporation - comprised of many veterans from the earlier production - redefined the nature of supernatural filmmaking, bringing to life in the process an array of horrific new phantasms conceived by surrealist designer H.R. Giger. Article by Nora Lee and Janine Pourroy

Young Sherlock Holmes: Anything But Elementary: Heading the ranks of cinematic supersleuths for decades has been the constant, ever-brilliant epitome of logic and clever deduction - Sherlock Holmes. As the latest entry in the Holmesian film chronicles, Young Sherlock Holmes - directed by Barry Levinson for Amblin Productions - presents a portrait of the fledgling detective as a teenager obsessed by a string of baffling murders. Veteran physical effects expert Kit West, first-time animatronics supervisor Stephen Norrington and the cinemagicians at Industrial Light & Magic were called upon to create the film's innovative special effects - ranging from flying machines and murderous hatracks to bizarre hallucinations requiring high-tech computer graphics, go-motion puppet animation and sophisticated rod puppeteering. Article by Jody Duncan Shay

Contents Aliens: In the seven years since its release, Ridley Scott's Alien has endured as the quintessential science fiction horror film - a stylish thriller and box-office favorite that spawned a rash of forgettable clones but somehow defied legitimate efforts to generate a worthy sequel. A fresh approach was clearly in order, but that approach proved evasive until writer-director James Cameron was afforded the opportunity to develop his own scenaro - an action-packed roller coaster ride that succeeded admirably in retaining the essential elements of the original without being fettered by them. Despite a studio analyst's estimate that Cameron's Aliens script would cost $35 million, producer Gale Anne Hurd mounted the ambitious sequel in England - bringing it in for a remarkably frugal $18 million. Of crucial importance to the cost curtailment effort was the need to keep the film's extensive special effects from spiraling out of control. Striving for high-quality work with low-level technology, Cameron and Hurd assembled a team of professionals that included conceptual designers Syd Mead and Ron Cobb, production designer Peter Lamont, visual effects supervisors Robert Skotak and Dennis Skotak, postproduction supervisor Brian Johnson, alien effects creator Stan Winston and physical effects supervisor John Richardson. These and other effects artisans discuss in detail their work on the film and the time-pressured campaign to bring Aliens into being. Article by Don Shay

Contents The Fly: The Fly Papers: For almost thirty years, The Fly has held a cherished place in the hearts and minds of genre film enthusiasts; so the decision to remake it was not surprising. Only its essential premise, however, would be retained. Under the direction of David Cronenberg, the story became one of a scientist whose genes are scrambled with those of a common housefly producing a mutant form that evolves incessantly into something neither human nor insect. Discussing the film and its manifold complexities are director David Cronenberg, special makeup creator Chris Walas, video effects supervisor Lee Wilson and others. Article by Tim Lucas

Big Trouble in Little China: Putting Big Trouble into Little China: For Big Trouble in Little China - a sprawling fantasy-adventure set in an imaginary world under a Chinatown - director John Carpenter needed a special effects facility that could respond to the demands of a script that called for a wide range of makeup and creature effects as well as precision opticals and animation. Rising to the task was Richard Edlund and his Boss Film Corporation who collectively produced a 2000-year-old evil magician, a flying fleshball covered with eyes, several monsters and spirits of indeterminate origin, plus a vast array of lightning effects and other illusions. Article by Janine Pourroy

Short Circuit: Building the Body Electric: The Short Circuit script had everything - adventure, humor, warmth - and John Badham knew immediately that he wanted to direct it. All it needed for success was a very special lead player - a six-foot-tall robot with an engaging personality who could drive trucks, dance disco and chase butterflies. The task of producing this singular perfomer fell to robot construction supervisor Eric Allard, futurist designer Syd Mead, puppeteer Tony Urbano and physical effects coordinator Chuck Gaspar - all of whom discuss in detail the creation of a very unique Hollywood star. Article by Jody Duncan Shay