The father of stop motion photography, Ray Harryhausen, used his unique style of animated film monsters by photographing clay models, one film frame at a time, to create the illusion of live action. Sci-fi fans will remember his creative work in such classics as Jason and the Argonauts and The Class of the Titans. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Harryhausen has signed a deal with Mindfire Entertainment to create video games, new films and other product lines under the “Ray Harryhausen Presents” label.
The first projects in the hopper will be two films based in the familiar settings of Greek mythology, the genre Harryhausen is best known for. David Jaffe, of the God of War titles, has attributed much of the influence on his games from Harryhausen,s work in film.
Mark Altman, CEO of Mindfire, said of the video game projects, as told to GameSpot, “They’ll be very action-oriented and creature-centric, and the feeling is that this is a broader universe than just new films. It’s particularly important for all of us who are Harryhausen fans to expose him to a new generation and a new audience beyond just those who grew up with pictures he was involved with… It hearkens back to when we were growing up to put yourself in these movies–I don’t know if I want to be Harry Hamlin in Clash of the Titans, but if you could be the protagonist and fight these creatures, there’s a visceral thrill.”
So while much of the gaming community takes for granted the fluid motion and life-like computer generated characters and monsters in their games, before this was possible a genius named Ray Harryhausen thrilled movie going fans with monsters made from some clay models and a film camera.
Thanks Mr. Harryhausen. You,ve done well.
