Founded in January 1995 by Mark Siminoff and Kirk Young, SIMulation has taken the San Francisco Bay Area by storm. Providing special effects and fabrication for the local film and theatre industries. Their biographies can be found below:
Mark Siminoff:
Mark Siminoff's interest in special effects was sparked at age nine when he saw Star Wars - the highly successful film whose astounding special effects were directed by John Dykstra. Coincidentally, Siminoff's first employment in special effects 13 years later was at Dykstra's firm: Apogee Productions.
A graduate of University California, Santa Barbara, Siminoff majored in film production and spent the summer after his graduation as a Disney intern. Moving directly to Apogee, Siminoff worked on Michael Jackson's Black or White, Columbia Studios' The Pickle, and several TV commercials including Duracell Batteries, Nike, Pillsbury, and Citibank. The gunnery and radio control mechanisms for NightRider 2OlO were also crafted by Siminoff as was the unusual weapon used in Critters, parts 3 and 4.
When Dykstra closed Apogee, Siminoff went to Stetson Visual Services where he was model maker and pyrotechnician for Warner Brothers' On Deadly Ground. His work on that film was highly admired by Peter Chesney, president of Image Engineering, who invited Siminoff to join Image as shop foreman. There, Siminoff applied his talents to such notable films as The Hudsucker Proxy, Mother's Boys, Acapulco Heat, and WaterWorld. In addition, his work at Image included model work for a several TV commercials (including Nissan and Mercedes Benz) and the Turner Broadcasting made-for-TV movie Amelia Earheart, The Final Flight.
After working on WaterWorld for fifteen months, and with ten years of high level experience to his credit, Siminoff moved back to the San Francisco Bay Area where he founded Simulation Special Effects, LLC. with the sole intention of supporting the Northern California film industry. Shortly after opening his doors, he was generating a host of new credits including a Korean film The Project (the largest television production to come out of Asia), Thrill (an NBC movie of the week), Ground Rules (a low-budget feature-length film), Metro (a Disney film starring Eddy Murphy), Lying Eyes (an NBC movie of the week), corporate videos for Sun and Hitachi and the 1996 JOEY award winner Something About You (best music video).
As an adjunct to Siminoff's film work, he developed a unique motion capture "suit" called ANIMATION WEAR, worn by actors and animators which sends positional data to computers. With the use of Simulation's motion capture technology, animation firms can instantly convert digital positional data to digital image data whereby images on the screen move responsively to images on the stage.
Siminoff holds a California Pyrotechnic license and is a member of IATSE Locals 44 and 134. His dynamic talents include model making, mechanical effects, radio control, atmospheric effects (wind, smoke, rain, fire) and pyrotechnics, AND directing a special effects crew. He also finds the time to volunteer at Los Gatos High School teaching related night courses and speaks regularly at local high school and corporate seminars about his career and love of special effects.
Kirk Young:
Kirk Young has always had a fascination with machined parts and detailed workmanship. His interest in what could be done with metals became the force that drove him into fabrication and design of components for automobiles, race cars, motorcycles, and bicycles. After designing and building his own bicycle, Young opened Speedcraft Fabrication In 1992 and specialized in custom components and prototypes for a wide range of manufacturers in Silicon Valley- His interests in CAD design and CNC machining brought new technologies to Speedcraft and further, expanded his knowledge and his capabilities.
Young pursued an education in machining and mechanical assemblies. His special talents include: mechanical design, TIG and MIG Welding, pneumatics, hydraulics, and high tolerance machining using a wide array of materials including titanium, aluminum, magnesium, steel, and plastics. Young's interest in mechanical effects, especially in the area of automotive modifications, brought him closer to the work Siminoff was doing at Simulation Special Effects. In 1995, Young joined Mark Siminoff at Simulation as full partner, coupling the two great talents.
Young's film credits include The Project (a Korean film
and the largest television production to come out of Asia), Thrill (an NBC
movie of the week), Metro (a Disney film starring Eddy Murphy, slated for
release in January 1997) Lying Eyes (an NBC movie of the week), corporate
videos for Sun and Hitachi. and the 1996 JOEY award winner Something About
You (best music video).