Kit West

Kit West (6 February 1936 – 17 April 2016) was a British special effects artist who was most known for his work in Raiders of the Lost Ark, Return of the Jedi and Dune.

Kit West
Born	(1936-02-06)6 February 1936 London, England
Died	17 April 2016(2016-04-17) (aged 80) England
Nationality	British
Occupation	Special effects artist
Notable work	Raiders of the Lost Ark, Return of the Jedi

Early life

Born in London, his early films were government and military training films produced by Realist Film Unit.^[1] He served two years in the British Army, where he gained experience in pyrotechnics.^[2]

Oscar history

All these were for Best Visual Effects.

• 1981 Academy Awards-Raiders of the Lost Ark, award shared with Richard Edlund, Joe Johnston and Bruce Nicholson. Won the Oscar.^[3]
• 1985 Academy Awards-Young Sherlock Holmes, nomination shared with David W. Allen, John R. Ellis and Dennis Muren. Lost to Cocoon.^[4]
• 1996 Academy Awards-Dragonheart, nomination shared with Scott Squires, James Straus and Phil Tippett. Lost to Independence Day.^[5]

BAFTA award

• 1983–Return of the Jedi-for Best Special Effects-Won, shared with Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren and Ken Ralston.^[6]

Death

West died on 17 April 2016^[7] and was cremated at Mortlake Crematorium.^[8]

References

1. Mike Barnes (20 April 2016). "Kit West Dead: 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' Visual Effects Artist Was 80". The Hollywood Reporter.
2. "Kit West profile". Kit-west-spfx.com. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
3. "The 54th Academy Awards (1982) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
4. "The 58th Academy Awards (1986) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
5. "The 69th Academy Awards (1997) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. 5 October 2014. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
6. "BAFTA Awards". Awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
7. "Kit West, CGI expert – obituary". The Daily Telegraph. 8 May 2016. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
8. Ben Weich (30 April 2016). "Oscar-winning special effects guru and East Sheen native Kit West dies aged 80". Richmond and Twickenham Times. Retrieved 11 June 2016.

External links

• Kit West at IMDb