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A Trip to the Moon
Gross: Unknown
The director George Melies is known for being one of the first special effects innovators. This movie uses all sorts of special effects, including matte paintings and miniatures. Although it was made before the era of Hollywood, it is too important to leave out of this timeline -
Star Wars
Gross: $220M
People must have been amazed when the first Star Wars came out. This movie was full of impressive technical achievements and innovations in special effects. The space battles looked so realistic because spaceships were miniatures. -
The Empire Strikes Back
Gross: $290M
The exterior of the icy planet Hoth was a miniature set. Like the first Star Wars, spaceships were usually miniatures as well. -
Blade Runner
Gross: $27M
Special effects innovator Douglas Trumbull worked on the amazing effects in this movie. The flying police "spinners" were miniatures, as well as the futuristic cityscape seen in the opening shot of the film, which was shrouded in smoke to give the illusion of depth. The pyramid-shaped buildings shown in that scene were even built in multiple sizes, with differing amounts of detail. -
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Gross: $377M
The entire Lord of the Rings trilogy used miniatures extensively. Many locations in the movies were constructed as miniatures. For example, the city of Minas Tirith was a 14-foot tall, 30-foot wide miniature.
