Petro Vlahos – the special effects pioneer credited with bringing blue-screen and green-screen technology to Hollywood in movies ranging from Ben-Hur to Mary Poppins – has died at the age of 96.

Ultimatte, the company that Vlahos founded during the 1970s, confirmed that its founder passed away on Sunday (February 10).

Vlahos  innovations continue to be used and developed by the television, film, computer games and advertising industries.

Petro Vlahos Dead

“Our industry has lost a giant,” Everett Burrell, senior visual effects supervisor at Los Angeles-based studio Look Effects told the BBC.

“It’s hard to even conceive of how we would do what we do without the amazing number of processes and techniques he pioneered. All visual effects professionals and movie fans owe him a debt of gratitude.”

Look Effects has built on Mr Vlahos’ achievements to create work for the movies Avatar, The Life of Pi and the upcoming Superman film, Man of Steel.
By UP