Brian Johnson
Brian Johncock (born 29 June 1939) is a British designer and director of film and television special effects. He changed his surname to Johnson during the 1960s. Joining the team of special effects artist Les Bowie, Johnson started his career behind the scenes for Bowie Films on productions such as On the Buses, and for Hammer Films. He is known for his special effects work on TV series including Thunderbirds (1965–66) and films including Alien (1979), for which he received the 1980 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects (shared with H. R. Giger, Carlo Rambaldi, Dennis Ayling and Nick Allder). Previously, he had built miniature spacecraft models for Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey. Johnson's work on Space: 1999 influenced the effects of the Star Wars films of the 1970s and 1980s. Impressed by his work, George Lucas visited Johnson during the production of the TV series to offer him the role of effects supervisor for the 1977 film. Having already been commissioned for the second series of Space: 1999, Johnson was unable to accept at the time. He worked on the sequel, The Empire Strikes Back (1980), whose special effects were recognised in the form of a 1981 Special Achievement Academy Award (which Johnson shared with Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren and Bruce Nicholson).
2001: The Making of a Myth
(Self)
2001: Creating Kubrick’s Space Odyssey
(Himself)
Family Vanished
(Det. Flynn)
The Alien Legacy
(Self)
Filmed in Supermarionation
(Self)
Century 21 Slough
(Himself)
The Beast Within: Making Alien
(Self)
The Eagle Obsession
(Self)
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
(Brad Malone)
2001: A Space Odyssey
(Special Effects)
Alien
(Special Effects)
Aliens
(Special Effects)
The Empire Strikes Back
(Special Effects)
Space Truckers
(Special Effects)
Revenge of the Pink Panther
(Special Effects)
Slipstream
(Special Effects)
Into Infinity
(Special Effects)
Spies Like Us
(Special Effects)
Moon Zero Two
(Special Effects)
When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth
(Special Effects)
The NeverEnding Story
(Special Effects)
Taste the Blood of Dracula
(Special Effects)
Alien Attack
(Special Effects)
Journey Through the Black Sun
(Special Effects)
The Glitterball
(Special Effects)
Captain Clegg
(Special Effects Assistant)
Their Finest Hour
(Writer)
Caged Fury
(Stunts)
Highlander III: The Sorcerer
(Visual Effects Supervisor)
The Day the Earth Caught Fire
(Special Effects Assistant)
Thunderbirds 60th Anniversary Double Bill - Trapped in the Sky / Terror in New York City
(Special Effects Assistant)
The Crawling Eye
(Special Effects Assistant)
Quatermass 2
(Special Effects Assistant)
Countdown to Disaster
(Special Effects)
Prisoners in Space
(Special Effects)
Alien
(Special Effects Supervisor)
Slipstream
(Visual Effects Supervisor)
Space Truckers
(Visual Effects Supervisor)
Quatermass and the Pit
(Special Effects Assistant)
The Phantom of the Opera
(Special Effects)
The Kiss of the Vampire
(Special Effects Assistant)
First Men in the Moon
(Special Effects Assistant)
The Medusa Touch
(Special Effects Supervisor)
Dragonslayer
(Special Effects)
The Pirates of Penzance
(Special Effects Supervisor)
Space: 1999
(Visual Effects Director)
Thunderbirds
(Special Effects)