Joe Johnston

Joseph Eggleston "Joe" Johnston II (born May 13, 1950) is an American film director and former effects artist best known for such effects-driven movies as Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989), Jumanji (1995) and Jurassic Park III (2001). These movies include a number of period films such as The Rocketeer (1991), The Wolfman (2010), and Captain America: The First Avenger (2011). In 1999 Johnston won acclaim for the biographical drama October Sky.

Early life

Johnston was born in Austin, Texas, and attended California State University, Long Beach, and Pasadena's Art Center College of Design.

Career

Design and visual effects

Much of the work at the beginning of Johnston's screen career combined design and special effects. He began his career as a concept artist and effects technician on the first Star Wars film, directed by George Lucas, and was art director on one of the effects teams for the sequel. His association with Lucas would later prove fruitful, when he became one of four to win an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for Lucas and Steven Spielberg's film Raiders of the Lost Ark. Johnston continued to work on many films as an effects expert.