Background
Rygiel was born in Kenosha, Wisconsin to parents of Polish descent. His father was employed at American Motors in Kenosha.
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Jim Rygiel
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Education
Rygiel attended Saint Joseph Catholic High School in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee.
Career
He has worked on major feature films since 1984, including The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy and Godzilla. In 1980, he received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Otis Parsons School of Design (now called Otis College of Art and Design). Pacific Electric Pictures
Starting his career in 1980, Jim joined Pacific Electric Pictures, one of the earliest companies to employ computer animation for the advertising and film markets.
Digital Productions
In 1983, Jim"s work took him to Digital Productions where he began work on The Last Starfighter (1984), a film notable for its pioneering use of digital imaging in place of models.
Pacific Data Images and Metrolight
From 1987 to 1989, Jim supervised numerous projects while at visual effects companies Pacific Data Images (PDI) and Metrolight. Boss Film Studios
In 1989, Jim was asked to form and head a computer animation department at Boss Film Studios.
This department of one grew to over 75 animators and 100 support staff within a little more than a year, winning several awards, including a CLIO Award for the Geo Prism automobile commercial. While at Boss, Jim supervised many feature films, both as Digital Effects Supervisor and Visual Effects Supervisor.
His credits there include Starship Troopers, Species, Outbreak, Air Force One, The Scout, The Last Action Hero, Cliffhanger, Batman Returns, Alien III, and Ghost.
Post-Boss Films career
After Boss Films closure he went on to supervise The Parent Trap, Star Trek: Insurrection, Anna and the King, and 102 Dalmatians. Awards and nominations.
Achievements
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In 2002, Jim received the American Film Institute"s first American Film Institute Digital Effects Artist of the Year award, the Academy Award and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts award for Best Visual Effects for his work on The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. Jim is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as well as the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, and The British Academy of Film and Television Arts.
