Draft:Leonardo Cruciano

Leonardo Cruciano (Bari, 30 June 1974) is an Italian special effects artist, winner of two David di Donatello Awards, known for his activity in the film and television industry, in fashion and contemporary art, and founder of the special and visual effects production company Makinarium. In November 2023 he announced the foundation of Imaginari Factory, a new special and visual effects production company.

Early life
After his artistic studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bari, he approached the study of cinematographic language, hyperrealism and visual perception, also studying animation, but, above all, special make-up and special effects.

In these years he worked his way through a long apprenticeship as a set designer, painter, sculptor, illustrator, until he reached Cinecittà. Here Cruciano began working in national and international productions of TV series such as Rome by Michael Apted and Borgia on HBO, television commercials for Fox and in several Italian and foreign films, including Nine by Rob Marshall, Miracle at Sant'Anna by Spike Lee, Nefertari by Hugh Hudson, Shadow by Federico Zampaglione and Imago Mortis by Stefano Bessoni.

Career
In 2015, he founded the special and visual effects production company Makinarium, with Nicola Sganga and Angelo Poggito, to create the special and visual effects of Tale of Tales by Matteo Garrone.

Cruciano brings to Makinarium the ability to integrate the various departments of effects and visual staging, in a continuous exchange of ideas between artists, technicians and different subjects. Makinarium thus becomes an international reality that follows its own personal vision of realistic, concrete and at the same time pictorial effects.

From 2015 to 2019 Leonardo Cruciano collaborates with various directors including Ridley Scott, Michael Bay, George Clooney, Paolo Sorrentino, Niccolò Ammaniti, Danny Boyle, and Ben Stiller. In these years he worked on Tomb Raider, Ben Hur, Zoolander 2, Wonderwell, All the Money in the World.

In 2016 Cruciano won two David di Donatello Awards, for Digital Effects and Makeup, for Tale of Tales.

In 2017 Cruciano collaborated with the designer Alessandro Michele, creating hyper-realistic props for the Gucci fashion show.

In 2018 Leonardo Cruciano created the exhibition Persona with Michele, at the Curia Iulia in the Archaeological Park of the Colosseum, through which Gucci pays homage to the cinematographic work of Cruciano and Makinarium.

In 2019 Cruciano inaugurated the art exhibition The Mechanics of Monsters – from Carlo Rambaldi to Makinarium, at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome, curated by Claudio Libero Pisano. The exhibition traces the career of the Oscar winner, then arriving at the new era of special effects, represented by Makinarium that worked on the restoration of Rambaldi's works.

In November 2019 Cruciano was chosen in the final five of the Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Award for Best Special Make-Up Effects in a Feature-Length Motion Picture, in the Feature Length Picture – Best Special Make-Up Effects category, for the film 6 Underground by director Micheal Bay.

In 2022 Cruciano collaborated on the creation of Archèus - Labirinto Mozart, an immersive installation by Damiano Michieletto, a special project of the Historical Archive of Contemporary Arts (ASAC) exhibited at Forte Marghera in Venice.

In April 2022 Leonardo Cruciano created the Venice Pavilion, entitled Alloro, on the occasion of the 59th Venice Art Biennale.

In October 2022 Leonardo Cruciano exhibits a hyper-realistic installation Piero Pelù / Marat, depicting the singer Piero Pelù, at the MIC - Interactive Museum of Cinema in Milan. The work is created "using one of the dummy reproductions of the rocker used in the black comedy I Cassamortari (2021) and taking inspiration from the famous painting by Jacques-Louis David The Death of Marat (1793)."

In 2023 Cruciano announced the foundation of Imaginari Factory, his new special and visual effects production company.

Awards
Two David di Donatello


 * 2016 (61st): for Best Makeup for Tale of Tales (2015), shared with Gino Tamagnini, Valter Casotto, Luigi D'Andrea
 * 2016 (61st): for Best Digital Effects for Tale of Tales (2015), as Makinariu