Shane Mahan

Shane Patrick Mahan (born 1964) is an American special effects artist and creature designer and puppeteer and producer known for his work in special effects, creature concept design and for creating the bodysuits and effects for the characters in Avengers, Iron Man in the 2008 film of the same name. and several other award winning and Oscar nominated movies including Pacific Rim and recently live action Disney Jungle Book

Mahan was born and raised in Greenville, Michigan. After graduating from Greenville High School in 1981 he left for Hollywood. His first job was with Stan Winston Studios as a crew member working on The Terminator in 1983. There he worked as a creature effects supervisor until becoming one of the co-owners in 2007.

Mahan and his design team made the special suits worn by Robert Downey, Jr. in the film Iron Man. They also designed the suit for Iron Man which was ten feet tall, weighed 800lbs and required 5 operators to puppeteer. Besides several other nominations, Mahan and his team were nominated for the 2008 Academy Award for 'Best Achievement in Visual Effects' for Iron Man. The team was hired as concept artists by James Cameron for his film Avatar. This was special for Mahan as his first special effects credits were for the film The Terminator.

Mahan worked for Stan Winston Studios until the death of Stan Winston in 2008 when he and three other veterans of the company, Lindsay MacGowan, J. Alan Scott and John Rosengrant, incorporated Legacy Effects, a character design, make-up and animatronic studio, so named in honor of the late Winston's legacy and lifelong achievements.

Awards & nominations

• 1997, nominated for a Saturn Award for 'Best Make-Up' for The Island of Dr. Moreau
• 2002, nominated for Hollywood Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist Guild Award for 'Best Special Makeup Effects' for The Day the World Ended
• 2002, nominated for Hollywood Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist Guild Award for 'Best Special Makeup Effects' for How to Make a Monster
• 2002, won Hollywood Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist Guild Award for 'Best Special Makeup Effects' for Mermaid Chronicles Part 1: She Creature
• 2008, nominated for Satellite Award for 'Best Visual Effect', for Iron Man
• 2008, nominated for an Academy Award for 'Best Achievement in Visual Effects' for Iron Man
• 2009, nominated for a BAFTA Award for 'Best Special Visual Effects' for Iron Man
• 2009, nominated for a Saturn Award for 'Best Special Effects' for Iron Man

Special effects

• The Terminator (1984)
• The Vindicator (1986)
• Aliens (1986)
• Predator (1987)
• The Monster Squad (1987)
• Alien Nation (1988)
• Leviathan (1989)
• Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
• Jurassic Park(1993)
• Interview with the Vampire (1994)
• Congo (1995)
• The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)
• Creature (1998) (TV)
• Instinct (1999)
• Inspector Gadget (1999)
• Galaxy Quest (1999)
• What Lies Beneath (2000)
• Pearl Harbor (2001)
• Artificial Intelligence: AI (2001)
• Earth vs. the Spider (2001) (TV)
• Mermaid Chronicles Part 1: She Creature (2001) (TV)
• Teenage Caveman (2002) (TV)
• Big Fish (2003)
• Constantine (2005)
• War of the Worlds (2005)
• Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)
• Eight Below (2006)
• Skinwalkers (2006)
• The Deaths of Ian Stone (2007)
• Nosebleed (2008)
• Iron Man (2008)
• Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
• G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009)
• Avatar (2009)
• Passion Play (2010)

Puppeteer

• A Gnome Named Gnorm (1990)
• Predator 2 (1990)
• Jurassic Park (1993)
• T2 3-D: Battle Across Time (1996)
• The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)
• Inspector Gadget (1999)
• What Lies Beneath (2000)
• Because of Winn-Dixie (2005)
• Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)
• Eight Below (2006)

Make-up

• Chiller (1985) (TV)
• Batman Returns (1992)
• The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996)
• Wrong Turn (2003/I)
• Constantine (2005)
• Smile (2005/I)
• Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)
• Fur (2006)