The Wiz (film) certain we didn't use anything from it. They made a brilliant movie, and even though our concept is different – they're Kansas, we're New York; they're white, we're black, and the score and the books are totally different – we wanted to make sure that we never overlapped in any area." Michael Jackson, a former Motown star and close friend of Diana Ross was cast as the Scarecrow. By the start of development on "The Wiz" in 1977, he and his brothers The Jacksons, had left Motown for Epic Records, though Jackson had yet to make a solo album since
The Wiz (film) Norma Kamali. Albert Whitlock created the film's visual special effects, while Stan Winston served as the head makeup artist. Quincy Jones was the musical supervisor and music producer for the film. He later wrote that he initially did not want to work on the film, but did it as a favor to Lumet. The film production marked Jones' first time working with Jackson, and Jones would later produce three hit albums for Jackson: "Off the Wall", "Thriller" and "Bad". Jones recalled working with Jackson as one of his favorite experiences from "The Wiz", and spoke of Jackson's dedication to his