Lawrence W. Butler (July 30, 1908 – October 19, 1988) was an American special effects artist, best known as the inventor of the bluescreening process.
[citation needed] What worked wonders for him was the innovative idea of introducing "blue-screen travelling matte process" in special effects, which he developed with his colleagues and implemented it in the Academy Award-winning film The Thief of Bagdad in 1940.
He went back to the United States and Hollywood after this film and was nominated for another Academy Award in 1942 for special effects for The Jungle Book.
After the end of World War II, he worked for Columbia Pictures on films such as Gilda, The Lady from Shanghai and The Caine Mutiny.
[1][better source needed] Butler won an Academy Award for Best Special Effects and was nominated for three more: