Books about special effects for both stage and screen. The books handle different subjects like pyrotechnics. Atmosphere Effects and weather such as sun, rain, snow, fog, haze and mist. Levitation and flying effects. Illusions, magic and transformation effects, CGI and break-a-way gags. As well as scenic effects, props, SFX-makeup, sound and light effects and costumes. Some books also tell stories about how special effects were created in different eras and examples from productions and films where they have been used.
Note – Some types of special effects such as pyrotechnics and for example flying people should only be done by professionals.
Introduction to Show Control
Connecting Entertainment Control Systems for Live Shows
By John Huntington
Ever wonder what actually happens behind the scenes of a major live show? John Huntington has spent four decades making that magic happen – and now he’s showing you how.
From the Metropolitan Opera to Radio City Music Hall, from the Tribeca Film Festival to major concert tours, Huntington has worked on just about every kind of live event you can name. He’s also spent over twenty years in the classroom as a professor at City Tech (CUNY), so he knows exactly how to explain this stuff without losing you.
This book pulls back the curtain on real-world production. No theory for theory’s sake. Just clear, practical answers to what works, what doesn’t, and why.
Huntington is a member of IATSE Local #1, holds a NYS Class B Laser Operator’s license, and serves as a Subject Matter Expert for the ESTA ETCP Entertainment Electrician program. He’s written dozens of articles for Lighting and Sound America, Live Design, and Theatre Crafts, plus over a thousand posts on his blog, ControlGeek.net.
Whether you’re a student, a working technician, or just hungry to learn how bold performances come to life, this book hands you four decades of hard-won experience.
Learn what really happens behind the scenes of a live show – from someone who’s done it all.
John Huntington has spent over three decades working on concerts, films, and major productions at venues like the Metropolitan Opera, Radio City Music Hall, and the Tribeca Film Festival. In this book, he pulls back the curtain to explain exactly how bold performances come to life in real-world settings.
Drawing from his experience as a professor, an IATSE Local #1 member, and an ETCP-certified trainer, Huntington delivers clear, practical knowledge you won’t find in a textbook. No fluff. Just hard-won insight from someone who’s been in the trenches.
Whether you’re a student, a technician, or a seasoned industry pro, this book shows you what goes into making the magic happen.
“Special Effect How It Is Done In Hollywood” is a great book for anyone interested in learning about how special effects are made for Hollywood movies. It’s helpful for professionals, students, and hobbyists who want to learn about creating amazing real-time and mechanical effects for their projects.
It’s a useful resource for anyone wanting to learn more about the craft of movie magic.
The books includes many charts, diagrams and photos depicting the craft of special effects. Technical procedures are based on the author’s thirty-four years of experience on major motion pictures, as well as knowledge acquired from other masters.
Content subjects include discussions on rigging, atmospheric effects, break-a-way gags, pyrotechnics, fire, chemicals and motion picture terminology.
This is a great book that explains all the different aspects of stage effects.
“Create Your Own Stage Effects” is part of a popular series of books that help you make your own special effects for the stage. It’s especially helpful for people who are just starting out or working on a small scale. The book covers a lot of different topics, like lighting, sound, costumes, set design, projection, makeup, properties, pyrotechnics, and more.
It also talks about how to create different settings, like historical or futuristic ones. The book gives you step-by-step instructions and safety tips for making the effects, and it also talks about how to save money without sacrificing quality.
The book also covers the history of stage effects from the beginning of theater.
It’s a good resource for students or people who are new to this field, and it’s also a helpful teaching aid.
This title introduces newcomers and beginners to the world of special effects for stage and theater. It describes all types of special effects including pyrotechnic, smoke and lighting effects, projections, noise machines, etc. It also places emphasis on the safe storage, handling and use of pyrotechnics.
Ever wondered how Harry Potter flew in that quidditch game?
Ever puzzled over King Kong swatting down airplanes?
Ever tried to figure out how Spider-Man swung from building to building?
It’s all done with special effects – a combination of optical and digital effects, miniature photography and animation, pyrotechnics, animatronics, and even sound effects. Special Effects: The History and Technique offers a comprehensive history of movie magic, along with detailed technical explanations and diagrams.
Packed with over 500 photographs and profiles of industry pioneers such as George Lucas, James Cameron, and Robert Zemeckis, this book is sure to appeal to movie fans of all ages.
From A Trip to the Moon to X-Men 3, from The Lost World to War of the Worlds, and from the 1933 King Kong to the 2005 King Kong, this stunning book reveals the magic behind the special effects in a variety of films.
The book covers:
The History of Special Effects
Optical Effects
Models
Animation
Matte Techniques
Make-Up
Physical Effects
Sound
This book is very thorough and covers a wide range of special effects used in movies. It has lots of technical detail and is full of illustrations.
“Secrets of Hollywood Special Effects” is the definitive guide to special effects techniques, designed for professionals, students, and anyone interested in learning about the field.
The book covers a wide range of effects, including chemical reactions, pyrotechnics, weapon effects, levitation, and weather simulations, and is written by an experienced expert in the field.
The book focuses on safety and stresses the importance of practicing and preparing before attempting any special effects.
With over 200 illustrations and diagrams, the book provides a thorough understanding of all aspects of special effects, and also includes case studies and an inside look at the production of “The Fisher King.”
If you’re interested in learning about traditional special effects techniques or want to find out how specific effects were achieved, this book is a must-have. It should be a part of your collection.
The Technique of Special Effects of Cinematography
Fourth Edition
By Raymond Fielding
This excellent book offers a behind-the-scenes look at professional visual effects in the film industry. Special effects are used to create the illusion of larger-than-life situations and imaginary worlds, and were originally used to save money in film production. Today, special effects films are among the most popular in the industry.
A book that covers miniatures and models, matte paintings, optical printing, rear projection, and more.
“Creating Special Effects for TV and Video” is a practical guide to the techniques used in TV production, including stop motion. This updated third edition covers a wide range of special effects in an easy-to-understand format, with clear illustrations and photographs to support the explanations.
Some subjects in the book are pyrotechnics, weather effects and atmosphere effects like smoke, mist, steam, fog, snow, wind, rain, dust, cobwebs and storms. The books also covers filming miniatures for action sequences and car crashes.
Combine practical advice, technical know-how and professional skills
Contain only the essential information you need to know
Act as ‘on-the-job guides’ for everyday use
Bernard Wilkie is a freelance consultant, director, and writer who spent 25 years creating special effects for BBC TV, where he rose to become the manager of one of the largest and most specialized visual effects units in the world.
An excellent resource for anyone looking to learn about special effects in television and video.
Special Effects with Fire & Smoke; A Technical Manual (Theater)
By Theater Effects Inc.
For professional use only.
This is one of the definitive manuals regarding the use of fire and smoke special effects live on stage. Special Effects with Fire & Smoke; A Technical Manualcontains 10 years of research. Long out of print, this book provides 10 chapters, 127 pages, and dozens of illustrations. It includes the secret of the Ninja Exploding Smoke Bomb, proper use of flashpaper and other flash products, how to make flashpots, and so forth. The book assumes the reader possesses and will use standard safety protocols when using fire and related special effects. Get it while you can!
This comb bound baronial sized book should be on the bookshelf of every magician, prop artist, SFX technician and technical theatre director.
Effects for the Theatre includes topics such as scenic effects, special effects, sound effects and lighting effects. Scenic effects are covered by Joe Aveline, special effects by Esquire Jauchem, sound effects by John Leonard and lighting effects by Graham Walne. This description may be from another edition of this product. Out of print and can be difficult to find.
Special Effects: New Histories, Theories, Contexts
By Dan North, Bob Rehak and Michael S. Duffy
As blockbusters employ ever greater numbers of dazzling visual effects and digital illusions, this book explores the material roots and stylistic practices of special effects and their makers.
Gathering leading voices in cinema and new media studies, this comprehensive anthology moves beyond questions of spectacle
to examine special effects from the earliest years of cinema, via experimental film and the Golden Age of Hollywood, to our
contemporary transmedia landscape. In Special Effects: New Histories, Theories, Contexts you can read about prosthetic makeup effects, slime, blood effects, mirrors, stop motion and more!
Wide-ranging and accessible, the book illuminates and interrogates the vast array of techniques film has used throughout its history to conjure spectacular images, mediate bodies, map worlds and make meanings. With examples from Jurassic Park, Star Wars, Ghostbusters and Gremlins.
From top hats to top secrets, Magic and Illusion in the Movies is a celebration of illusion technology and mechanisms of trickery through a genre-crossing selection of films.
Heroes, villains, spies, con-men, and madmen, magicians all, have utilized complex constructs and trickery in thrilling cinematic adventures from the earliest days of cinema to the present.
Current blockbusters such as Spider-Man: Far from Home and the Mission: Impossible series feature amazing acts of deception, often appearing far-fetched, that are in fact surprisingly close to today’s technology. Along with the James Bond saga, classics such as The Wizard of Oz, Nightmare Alley, and The Sting are joined by a host of other movies superficially seeming to be very different, yet proving there is more than meets the eye.
Note – More a book about stories about different special effects makers and productions than a “how to make book”
The book delves into the history of magic, exploring ancient temple tricks and the art of conjuring.
It also discusses the use of scientific principles in creating illusions, such as optics, mechanics, sound, and electricity. With a focus on elaborate tricks and illusions performed by famous magicians like Robert-Houdin and Dr. Lynn, the book offers a unique insight into the world of magic.
Additionally, it covers topics like ventriloquism, shadowgraphy, mental magic, and automata, providing a well-rounded view of the art form. The book also includes chapters on theatrical science, photographic diversions, and the projection of moving pictures, showcasing the diverse range of magical techniques and effects.
With contributions from renowned authors like Henry Ridgely Evans and a bibliography of works on natural magic, Magic is a valuable resource for both aspiring magicians and enthusiasts of the art magique.
Note – Old book. But many techniques and technical solutions are still relevant.
Stage effects: How to make and work themcovers how to create different effects for theater and stage. Among other things, wind, different sound effects live backstage, snow, collapsible chairs, traps and trap doors, ships at sea and burning buildings.
Note – Old book. But many techniques and technical solutions are still relevant and it is exciting to read how they solved different effects in the past.
Shakespeare’s Theatres and the Effects of Performance (The Arden Shakespeare Library) Reprint Edition
By Farah Karim-Cooper (Editor) and Tiffany Stern (Editor)
How did Elizabethan and Jacobean acting companies create their visual and aural effects? What materials were available to them and how did they influence staging and writing? What impact did the sensations of theatre have on early modern audiences? How did the construction of the playhouses contribute to technological innovations in the theatre? What effect might these innovations have had on the writing of plays?
Shakespeare’s Theatres and The Effects of Performance is a landmark collection of essays by leading international scholars addressing these and other questions to create a unique and comprehensive overview of the practicalities and realities of the theatre in the early modern period.
Do you know of any books that should be on this list? We'd love to hear from you - get in touch! We're always looking to expand our collection with books covering makeup artists, monster makers, special effects, prop making, stagecraft, and more.
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