Ray Harryhausen Interviews: "A Look Behind The 7th Voyage of Sinbad” & "Jason and the Argonauts" SFX

As a lifelong fan of fantasy and mythology, it was no surprise that Ray Harryhausen, after several years of animating science fiction-based subjects (20 Million Years to Earth, It Came From Beneath the Sea, would turn to Tales from the Thousand and One Nights as a possible film project. In a departure from the previous screen adaptations that had concentrated on scantily dressed starlets as a box-office lure (Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, Arabian Nights, The Desert Hawk), Harryhausen's concept was to focus on the fantasy aspect instead. Producer Charles H. Schneer saw the potential of Harryhausen's idea and agreed to make SINBAD his next project. He commissioned Kenneth Kolb to write a screenplay and encouraged Harryhausen to experiment with combining stop-motion models, live actors, and process backgrounds on color film stock, rather than black-and-white. The effects wizard spent nearly a year perfecting the process he dubbed Dynamation.
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“It's an incredible cinematic adventure as the legendary Sinbad sets off on a dangerous journey to the mysterious Island of Colossus. His quest is to break the spell cast over his beloved princess by a diabolical magician. But before he can save her, Sinbad must battle an awesome collection of mythical monsters - the man-eating Cyclops, a saber-wielding skeleton, a ferocious two-headed bird called the Roc and a fire-breathing dragon. Starring Kerwin Mathews, Kathryn Grant, Torin Thatcher and highlighted by the stunning visual effects mastery of Ray Harryhausen.”
- Leonard Maltin

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I knew Ray very well in the last 15 years of his life, several years after this was made (he was my childhood hero; when other kids wanted to be Mickey Mantle, I wanted to be Ray Harryhausen) and he was the nicest, funniest, most unassuming genius you would ever want to meet. Thank you for posting this. "I couldn't believe it was the same movie I worked on", quoting Kerwin Mathews from this video, is a warm and well-intentioned running joke with us at the studio.