Phil Tippett, the legendary visual effects artist behind some of Hollywood's most iconic creature work, has closed his Berkeley, California studio after nearly four decades in operation.
The closure follows a bankruptcy filing, according to reporting from multiple outlets including Cartoon Brew, TheWrap, and Berkeleyside. As part of the shutdown, Tippett Studio held a fire sale this past weekend, offering memorabilia, movie props, and other items from decades of film work to the public.
Tippett is widely known for his contributions to the original Star Wars trilogy and his groundbreaking stop-motion and creature effects work across numerous major Hollywood productions. His studio had been a fixture in the Berkeley area for close to 40 years.
The closure marks the end of an era for practical and visual effects work in the Bay Area. TheWrap described the event as Tippett making "a lot of painful decisions" as the studio wound down operations.
The fire sale drew attention from fans of genre filmmaking, with props and pieces of film history made available to buyers before the studio fully shuttered.
