Biography

Stacy Bissell is an American visual effects producer and Director of Production at Industrial Light & Magic (ILM). She began her career at ILM in 2006, joining as a production assistant on Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007). Bissell earned a BA in Film and Sociology from Vassar College (2001–2005). She has also been active in volunteer work as a Board Member of the Gorlin Syndrome Alliance since March 2019, supporting health initiatives. Over the ensuing years, Bissell progressed through increasingly responsible roles within ILM's production departments, contributing to the visual effects of a broad range of high‑profile films. Her early credits include work as a production assistant and coordinator on The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008), Speed Racer (2008), and WALL‑E (2008), before advancing to visual effects coordination on major studio projects such as Star Trek (2009), Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009), Harry Potter and the Half‑Blood Prince (2009), Avatar (2009), and Rango (2011). As her career developed, Bissell took on production leadership roles on larger franchise films. She served as a visual effects associate producer on Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015), and later as visual effects producer on its sequels, Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi (2017) and Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019). Her credits also extend to television, where she served as a visual effects producer on The Mandalorian Season 2 (2020) and Obi‑Wan Kenobi (2022). Bissell's work on Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019) was part of the team nominated for a Visual Effects Society (VES) Award for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature, alongside colleagues Roger Guyett and Patrick Tubach. Additionally, WALL‑E (2008), on which she served in a production coordination capacity, received a Gold Derby Film Award nomination for Visual Effects shared with Edward Hirsh. Bissell's career at ILM includes multiple leadership roles: she has been Director of Production since December 2022, Executive Producer since May 2022, Senior VFX Producer from March 2021 to May 2022, VFX Producer from September 2018 to March 2021, VFX Associate Producer from June 2016 to September 2018, VFX Production Manager from October 2012 to June 2016, and earlier roles including VFX Associate Production Manager (2009–2010), VFX Production Coordinator (2007–2009), and VFX Production Assistant (2006–2007). She also worked outside ILM as Production Manager at CinderBiter (2011–2012), Dr. D Studios (2010–2011), and as Special Projects Coordinator at Too Far (2005–2006).

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