Sci Fi Science

Top 10 Movie Special Effects
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No. 9 - Independence Day: Blowin' Up the White House

"We've always believed we weren't alone. On July 4, we'll wish we were."

Especially once we see the severe beat-down our White House gets.

We're sure you're probably aware that special effects sequences like this are typically done using a small (but very detailed) model of the real thing. In this case, the White House model was one-twelfth the actual size of our real White House, and nine cameras were used to accurately catch all the action. At the time (and to this day, in fact), the scene was so convincing that people often mistook it for the real thing (which they took full advantage of in their marketing campaign!), and frankly, scared the crap out of our grandmothers. Independence Day also had more miniatures than any other film of its time, making it most likely the creepiest set of all time. It sure did set a lot of records.