Biography
Neal Scanlan, born in Britain, began his career at nineteen as a Stop Motion Designer for Cosgrove Hall’s production of 'Wind in the Willows' (1981). Three years later, he moved to London and started his work in animatronics on Walt Disney’s 'Return to Oz' (1984). Collaborating with designer Lyle Conway, he freelanced as Chief Mechanical Designer on films like Dennis Potter’s 'Dream Child' (1984), Jim Henson’s 'Labyrinth' (1985), and the 1986 Oscar-nominated film adaptation of 'Little Shop of Horrors'. Neal was a founding member of the Jim Henson Creature Shop, where he spent eight successful years, initially as Animatronics Supervisor and later as Creative Supervisor. His direct contributions include projects such as 'The Storyteller' (1987), 'Witches' (1988), 'Greek Myths' (1989), 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1 & 2' (1988 & 1990), and 'Dinosaurs' (1991). Following the success of Kennedy Miller’s 'Babe' (1993), Neal and his Henson Creature Shop team provided animatronic effects for Walt Disney’s '101 Dalmatians' (1995), special make-up effects for Anthony Minghella’s Academy Award-winning 'The English Patient' (1994), and numerous television commercials. In 1996, Neal left the Jim Henson Organisation to establish the Neal Scanlan Studio. Its first major project was 'Babe: Pig in the City', which earned a BAFTA nomination for Visual Effects. Over the next decade, the studio built a strong reputation for design and innovation, contributing to feature films, TV shows, and commercials. In 2011, Neal closed the studio to explore interests beyond the film industry, but his focus shifted when he was invited to lead the creature and makeup effects department for the new Star Wars series. 'The Force Awakens', released on December 18, 2015, achieved record-breaking success. Neal continued to work on the Skywalker Saga and spin-offs 'Rogue One' and 'Solo', as well as other projects like 'Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom'. With the rise of TV productions, Neal has recently contributed to Disney+ series including 'Andor' and 'Willow'. He also advised on the pre-production of 'Wednesday' regarding the Thing character, recommending a performer instead of an animatronic, an idea embraced by Tim Burton. Neal is currently engaged in several exciting projects slated for release over the coming years.
4 wins and 20 nominations
