The first is to familiarise the public with the extraordinary talent of the studio artists who work in the shadow of famous actors and directors. They are costume designers, set builders, prosthetic and make-up artists, special effects modellers, and animatronic technicians. They are the people who create magical castles for ‘The Lord of the Rings’, enormous spaceships for ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’, strange creatures for ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Blade Runner’, lifelike gorillas for ‘Planet of the Apes’, bizarre weapons for ‘Men in Black’, or the prostheses that transform Robin Williams into Mrs Doubtfire. Visiting our permanent collections is a fascinating way for the public to discover the tricks, techniques and incredible work that goes on in special effects studios.
The museum’s second mission is to offer film studios, film museums, directors and collectors a restoration workshop that can breathe new life into film props that have broken or deteriorated over time. Dozens of rare items like a Xenomorph from Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s ‘Alien: Resurrection’, miniatures from Wes Anderson’s ‘Fantastic Mr Fox’, helicopters from ‘Cliffhanger’ and James Bond films, and the Spinner from ‘Blade Runner’ have been completely restored and are now on display in our museum.