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Howard Berger was born in Los Angeles, CA, and grew up immersed in monster films. From an early age, he was fascinated by the creatures on screen and began exploring how they were made at age 8, inspired by Famous Monsters of Filmland Magazine. Supported by his parents, who encouraged his passion for makeup and monsters, Howard's interest deepened. At a sci-fi convention in LA, hearing his idol Rick Baker speak solidified his ambition. Influenced by Rick Baker, Stan Winston, Dick Smith, Rob Bottin, and others, Howard pursued a career as a special makeup effects artist for film and TV.
After high school, he started working at Stan Winston Studios on films such as PREDATOR, ALIENS, and PUMPKINHEAD, later joining Rick Baker on the Oscar-winning HARRY AND THE HENDERSONS.
Howard met fellow monster creators Greg Nicotero and Robert Kurtzman, and the three quickly became close friends, roommates, and eventually co-owners of KNB EFX GROUP, founded in 1988. Over the years, Howard and Greg worked with numerous acclaimed directors, actors, and films. In 2006, Howard won an Oscar for his makeup work on THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE and later received a nomination for his work on Sir Anthony Hopkins in HITCHCOCK.
Howard remains a key figure at KNB alongside Greg Nicotero and has expanded his role to include Makeup Department Head, beginning with Peter Berg's LONE SURVIVOR. Over the past decade, he has led the makeup department on more than a dozen films and television series.
He serves as a Governor of the Makeup Artists and Hair Stylists Branch at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Howard lives in Sherman Oaks with his artist wife Mirjam and has three grown children, each of whom has pursued their own dreams rather than following in his footsteps.
