Matthew J. Yuricich (born January 19, 1923) is an American Academy Award-winning special effects artist. Yuricich won the 1976 Academy Special Achievement Award for visual effects in the movie Logan's Run. He was nominated for the best visual effects Oscar for his work on Close Encounters of the Third Kind in 1977.
He  worked in the movie industry since 1950 with 20th Century Fox, M.G.M. and Paramount Studios at matte artist.
His department heads were Fred Sersen at Fox, Warren Newcombe and Lee LeBlanc at MGM,and later Bob Hoag at MGM.
After he left MGM at early 70´s he worked freelance. Very often was recuited by Frank Van Der Veer, with  who he worked at Fox FX departement during the 50´s.
During the 80´s the worked at Richard Edlund "Boss Filsm" as Chief matte painter. He retired from matte painting at 1990.
Before becoming an award winning special effects artist, Yuricich received a Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio where he also played football.
 

Click on the image.
 
 

Click on the linked titles to see some samples of his work.

 - Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991) (matte artist)
 - Dances with Wolves (1990) (matte painting)
 - Monster Squad (1989)(matte art super)
 - Field of Dreams (1989) (matte artist)
 - Die Hard (1988) (chief matte artist: Boss)
 - Masters of the Universe (1987) (visual effects chief matte artist)
 - Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986) (chief matte artist)
 - Boy Who Could Fly, The (1986) (chief matte artist)
 - Solarbabies(1986) (Chief matte  paint)
 - Fright Night (1985) (chief matte artist)
 - “V” (tv series)(1984)
 - 2010 (1984)(Chief matte artist)
 - Ghostbusters(1984)(Chief matte artist)
 - Strange Brew (1983) (special photography unit matte artist)
 - Blade Runner (1982) (matte artist)
 - Yes, Giorgio (1982) (matte artist) (as Matthew J. Yuricich)
 - My Favorite Year (1982) (matte painter)
 - Last Chase, The (1981) (matte painter)
 - 1941 (1979) (matte painter)
 - China Syndrome, The (1979) (matte painting)
  - Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) (matte artist)
  - Logan's Run (1976) (matte painter)
  - Future World (1976) (matte painter)
  - Damnation alley (1976)(spec fotog effects)
  - The Wind and the Lion (1975) (matte artist)
  - Young Frankenstein (1974) (matte artist)
  - Towering  inferno (1974) (matte artists)
  - Soylent Green (1973) MGM (special photographic effects)
  - The Poseidon adventure (1972) ( matte painting)
  - Ice Station Zebra (1968) (matte artist ) MGM
  - The greatest story ever told (1965) MGM (matte assist)
  - The Prize (1963) MGM
  - The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1963) MGM
  - Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1962) MGM
  - Mutiny on the Bounty (1962) MGM
  - Atantis, the Lost Continent (1961)MGM (matte paintings)
  - Cimarron (1960) MGM
  - Ben Hur (1959)MGM (matte assist uncretited)
  - North by Northwest (1959) MGM (matte artist)
  - The world,  the flesh, and the devil (1959) MGM
  - Forbiden planet (1956) MGM (matte assist)
  - Untamed (1955) FOX
  - Seven brides for seven brothers ( 1954) MGM
  - Prince Valiant (1954) FOX
  - The robe (1953) (FOX
 
 
 

Thanks to Peter Cook and Rick  Rische for the pictures.

Starlog magazine.

Steven Spielberg : "Close Encounters of the Third Kind was a film that I didn't feel limited on at all, but it took a lot more individual creativity by matte artists and visual effects supervisors to get UFOs to look like UFOs, to get the mothership to look spectacular. It was a lot harder in those days. You earned your stripes by being inventive, by creating illusions. In the 1970s, matte painting was like French impressionism. When I saw my first matte painting in Close Encounters by Matthew Yuricich, I said, "This isn't done yet. Where are all the details?" And he said, "No, no, no - matte paintings are always impressionistic." Today, however, all matte paintings done on the computer are photo-realistic. So the pure art of fooling the eye, of misleading the eye, of controlling where the viewer looks and how much the viewer gets to see, those days are gone. That also makes me sad. "
 

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