Neil Krepela

American special effects artist and cinematographer

Neil Joseph Krepela (born April 1947 in Omaha, Nebraska) is an American special effects artist and cinematographer.

He was nominated for two Academy Awards for Best Special Effects.

Life

Neil Krepela was born in 1947 as son of Carl Charles Krepela (1905–1964) and Ruth Clarissa Krepela (Goodall, 1911–1983).^[1]^[2]

Krepelas father, who was an amateur photographer, sparked his interest in photography. When Krepela served in the US Navy, he started to photograph the places, he visited.^[3] He studied at the University of Nebraska and the Laney College. He later moved to the San Francisco Bay Area and started to shoot his own 16 mm films.^[3]

Krepela began his career in the movie industry in the 1970s. Richard Edlund engaged him as matte painting photographer for The Empire Strikes Back. Krepela worked at Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) on films such as Raiders of the Lost Ark, Dragonslayer, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Poltergeist, The Dark Crystal und Return of the Jedi. He later worked for Edlund's Boss Film Studios.

Krepela is married to Cristine Ackel and has two children from this marriage (born 2001, 2007).^[2] He has another daughter (born 1982) from his previous marriage.^[2]

Selected filmography

1980: The Empire Strikes Back
1981: Raiders of the Lost Ark
1981: Dragonslayer
1982: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
1982: Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
1982: Poltergeist
1982: The Dark Crystal
1983: Return of the Jedi
1983: The American Snitch
1984: Ghostbusters
1984: 2010: The Year We Make Contact
1985: Fright Night
1986: Desert Bloom
1986: Poltergeist II: The Other Side
1986: Legal Eagles
1986: Big Trouble in Little China
1986: The Boy Who Could Fly
1986: Solarbabies
1987: Masters of the Universe
1987: The Monster Squad
1987: Date with an Angel
1988: Big Top Pee-wee
1988: Vibes
1989: Fletch Lives
1989–1995: Tales from the Crypt (TV series, 5 episodes)
1990: Solar Crisis
1992: Batman Returns
1993: Cliffhanger
1993: Last Action Hero
1994: True Lies
1994: The Scout
1994: The Specialist
1995: Outbreak
1995: Heat
1996: Multiplicity
2000: Dinosaur
2000: The Fantasticks
2002: Scooby-Doo
2003: Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
2007: Meet the Robinsons
2008: City of Ember

Award nominations

1985: nominated for an Academy Award for Best Special Effects, together with Richard Edlund, George Jenson and Mark Stetson for 2010: The Year We Make Contact^[4]
1994: nominated for an Academy Award for Best Special Effects, together with John Richardson, John Bruno und Pamela Easley for Cliffhanger^[5]

References

^ Krepela Family – Fifteenth Generation. In: krepela.us, access date 15 January 2021.
^ ^a ^b ^c Krepela Family – Sixteenth Generation. In: krepela.us, access date 15 January 2021.
^ ^a ^b ASC Close-Up: Neil Krepela. In: ascmag.com, 27 February 2018.
^ The 57th Academy Awards 1985. In: oscars.org, access date 15 January 2021.
^ The 66th Academy Awards 1994. In: oscars.org, access date 15 January 2021.