What is the real story with Douglas Trumbull ?

In 1983 Trumbull finally got to direct a second major film, Brainstorm. The film was to be a showcase for a new film projection system called "Showscan". The Showscan process was ultimately not used due to budgetary reasons, and the film was overshadowed by the death of Natalie Wood during production. The film was finally released after a lengthy legal battle, and Trumbull decided to redirect his career away from traditional Hollywood projects.

Since that time, Trumbull has concentrated on developing technology for the exhibition industry and theme-park rides, such as the Back to the Future Ride at Universal Studios Theme Park.

Trumbull today is held in reverence as a pioneer of the optical and digital effects industry. He has been nominated for Academy Awards on five occasions and has received a lifetime achievement Oscar. The majority of the completed cinema projects that Trumbull has been associated with have come to be recognized as classics, gaining audiences over time. Brainstorm predicted the fascination of virtual reality while Silent Running reflected the emerging ecology movement of the early 1970s, and is today regarded as a science fiction classic.