John Berton

John Andrew Berton Jr. is an award-winning computer graphics animator and visual effects supervisor. His most recent project is "Charlotte's Web".

Education and early career

Berton holds a B.A. in Communications and Film from Denison University, where he was also a writer-performer for a small radio comedy troupe called Pith. After a brief stint as a disc jockey, he joined the acclaimed Computer Graphics Research Group (CGRG) computer graphics program at Ohio State University, later known as ACCAD (The Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design). [cite web
last = Carlson
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title = Part 6: The development of OSG
work = History of CGRG/ACCAD at The Ohio State University
publisher = Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design, Ohio State University
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url = http://accad.osu.edu/~waynec/history/ACCAD-overview/overview6.html
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accessdate = 2006-12-18 ] There he earned an M.A. in Art Education/Computer Graphics. This led to artistic and experimental work at Cranston/Csuri Productions, an Ohio-based early CG company founded in 1981.

In 1986 Berton joined Mental Images, a software company that also had a production division to help develop their renderer. Together with Rolf Herken, Axel Dirksen, Hans-Christian Hege, Robert Hödicke, Wolfgang Krüger, Ulrich Weinberg and Roger Wilson, he created an animated film (also called "mental images" [cite web
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title = Prix Ars Electronica
work = mental images movie
publisher = mental images
date = 1987
url = http://www.aec.at/en/archives/prix_archive/prix_projekt.asp?iProjectID=2406
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accessdate = 2008-06-28 ] ) that was well received at SIGGRAPH, NICOGRAPH and Prix Ars Electronica. [cite web
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title = Alumni: John Andrew Berton Jr.
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accessdate = 2006-12-18 ]

ILM work

Many of Berton's best known films were made during his tenure at Industrial Light and Magic, which began in 1990. These include ' (1991) and ' (also 1991), "The Mummy" (1999), and "Men in Black II" (2002), among others. By 1992 he was a cg department manager, by 1997 a digital effects supervisor, and in 1998 a visual effects supervisor. Many of the films on which Berton worked have received awards and nominations in visual effects categories, including the 1991 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for "Terminator 2: Judgment Day", the 1993 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for "Jurassic Park", and a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for "The Mask".cite web
last =
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title = John Berton
work = The Mummy video site
publisher = Universal Studios
date = 1999
url = http://www.mummyvideo.com/bhs/berton.html
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accessdate = 2006-12-18 ] Berton's last film for ILM was "Men in Black II", in which he also had a cameo role as an alien postal worker. He has also appeared as himself in several programs and featurettes about computer graphics.

After ILM

Since leaving ILM, Berton has been digital effects supervisor on "I, Robot" (2004) and visual effects supervisor on the aforementioned "Charlotte's Web". Producer Jordan Kerner explains that Berton was hired for "Charlotte's Web" because the filmmakers needed someone "who had been involved with field that had a tremendous amount of fully 3-D, computer-generated characters who have to convey thoughts and emotions." The film's visual effects were produced by five different companies, but it was Berton, according to Kerner, who "drew those elements together." [cite web
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title = Filming in "Radiant" Victoria Australia
work = : About the Film. Charlotte's Web Movie official site
publisher = Walden Media / Paramount Pictures
date = 2006-12-15
url = http://www.charlotteswebmovie.com/
format = Macromedia Flash
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accessdate = 2006-12-18 ]

Awards

Berton's personal awards include the Monitor Award for Best Computer Graphics Animation on the 1984 Super Bowl, the Nicograph Grand Prize for Computer Animation for the short film "Snoot and Muttly", and an Honorable Mention from Prix Ars Electronica for "Mental Images".

Personal

John Berton lives in California with his wife Susan and his two children, Kiersten and Nathan.

References

External links