‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ Dominates Visual Effects Society Awards With 10 Nominations

“Avatar: Fire and Ash” dominated the Visual Effects Society awards with 10 nominations, including outstanding visual effects in a photoreal feature.

There is a three-way tie for top nominations in animation, with Netflix and Sony Pictures Animation’s “KPop Demon Hunters,” Disney and Pixar’s “Elio” and Disney’s “Zootopia 2” landing five nominations apiece.

In television, “Stranger Things,” “The Last of Us, “Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age” tied with four nominations each.

Last year, Eric Saindon, the VFX supervisor for “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” spoke with Variety about some of the effects work. He explained, technology-wise, fire was one of the hardest things to do properly in visual effects. “Every time you look at a fire, it could dance a little differently depending on the environment it’s in or burn a different color.” That meant that any scene with fire required them to ensure they were pushing the right amount of fuel and oxygen to get the fire right. “The scale of the embers gives the idea of size,” he said.

Rounding out the photoreal nominees are the teams from “F1: The Movie,” “Jurassic World: Rebirth,” “The Lost Bus” and “How To Train Your Dragon.”

Nominees were selected by VES members worldwide over the weekend via the Society’s Global Nomination Event, which hosted 46 in-person and 14 virtual judging panels. The 60 peer-led judging panels in seven worldwide regions – Asia, Europe, India, Oceania, and three in North America – show the Society’s global reach and engagement.

“Visual effects artists and producers are at the forefront of cinematic artistry and technological innovation, whether their work is being seen on the big screen in a movie theater, on the device in your pocket, or in a special venue setting,” said VES Board Chair, Kim Davidson. “We’re thrilled to celebrate all of this year’s nominees, and we’re grateful to our member volunteers from around the world who make our rigorous peer review process possible.”

“The next generation of creators is advancing visual storytelling through bold ideas, emotional depth, and technical craft,” said Diana Colella, Executive Vice President of Media & Entertainment at Autodesk, sponsor of the VES Student Award. “This year’s student film submissions showcase the creative vision and incredible skill of up-and-coming filmmakers and visual effects artists. Congratulations to all of the student nominees.”

Comedy duo Randy and Jason Sklar (the Sklar Brothers) will return to host the 24th Annual VES Awards for the second consecutive year.

This year’s special honorees will include acclaimed film producer Jerry Bruckheimer receiving the VES Lifetime Achievement Award, and Wētā Workshop co-founder and Chief Creative Officer Sir Richard Taylor receiving the VES Visionary Award.

The VES Awards will be held on Feb. 25 at The Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles.

Below is the full list of nominees for the 24th Annual VES Awards:

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

“F1: The Movie”
Ryan Tudhope
Nikeah Forde
Robert Harrington
Nicolas Chevallier
Keith Alfred Dawson

“Jurassic World: Rebirth”
David Vickery
Carlos Ciudad
Steve Aplin
Charmaine Chan
Neil Corbould, VES

“The Lost Bus”
Charlie Noble
Gavin Round
David Zaretti
Russell Bowen
Brandon K. McLaughlin

“Avatar: Fire and Ash”
Richard Baneham
Peter Litvack
Eric Saindon
Nicky Muir
Steve Ingram

“Dongji Rescue”
Tim Crosbie
Celeste Chen
Christian Sjöstedt
Lea Benjovitz

“A House of Dynamite”
Chris Harvey
Dione Wood
Jon Mitchell
Matthew Lane

“Warfare”
Simon Stanley-Clamp
Kaley Edwards
Andrew Kinnear
Samir Ansari
Ryan Conder

“Sinners”
Michael Ralla
James Alexander
Nick Marshall
Espen Nordahl
Donnie Dean

“After the Hunt”
Fabio Cerrito
Virginia Cefaly
Marco Fiorani Parenzi
Maura Manfredi

OUTSTANDING ANIMATION IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

“The Bad Guys 2”
Pierre Perifel
Damon Ross
Matt Baer
Benjamin Willis

“KPop Demon Hunters”
Joshua Beveridge
Jacky Priddle
Benjamin Hendricks
Clara Chan

“Zootopia 2”
Gregory Smith
Laurie Au
Marlon West
Shweta Viswanathan

“In Your Dreams”
Sacha Kapijimpanga
Carey Smith
Nicola Lavender
Steve Pilcher

“Elio”
Claudia Chung Sanii
Mary Alice Drumm
Harley Jessup
Dave Quirus

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE

Andor; “Who Are You?”
Mohen Leo
TJ Falls
Scott Pritchard
Olivier Beaulieu
Luke Murphy

It: Welcome to Derry; “Winter Fire”
Daryl Sawchuk
Steve Dellerson
Pier Lefebvre
Steven Tether
Darcy Callaghan

The Last of Us; “Through the Valley”
Alex Wang
Fiona Campbell Westgate
Nick Epstein
Philip Engström
Joel Whist

Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age; “The Big Freeze”
Russell Dodgson
Tracey Gibbons
Francois Dumoulin
Gavin McKenzie

Stranger Things; “Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up”
Betsy Paterson
Tessa Roehl
Michael Maher Jr.
Martin Hill

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE

Man vs Baby; “Chapter One”
Rob Duncan
Ashlee Turner
Jean-Nicolas Costa
Adrian Eugene Daniel Williams

The Residence; “The Fall of the House of Usher”
Seth Hill
Tesa Kubicek
John Nelson
Gabriel Vargas

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon; “Costa Da Morte”
Jao M’Changama
Justine Paynat-Sautivet
Sébastien Voisin
Xavier Allard
Pau Costa Moeller

Severance; “Hello, Ms. Cobel”
Eric Leven
Sean Findley
Brian Holligan
Radost Ridlen

Death By Lightning; “The Man from Ohio”
Rainer Gombos
Steve Kullback
Marko Ljubez
David Ramos

OUTSTANDING VISUAL ARTS IN A REAL-TIME PROJECT

“Ghost of Yōtei”
Jason Connell
Matt Vainio
Joanna Wang
Jasmin Patry

“Death Stranding 2: On the Beach”
Hideo Kojima
Yoji Shinkawa
Shota Hirasawa

“Doom: The Dark Ages”
Todd Boyce
Andrew Willis
Ian Malerich
Derek Best

“South of Midnight”
Ian Mac Gregor
Yasmeen Leclerc
Petro Kosariekov
Connor Bugni

“Battlefield 6”
Chris Bayol
Sean Tomek
Skye White
Jacob Bergman

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A COMMERCIAL

Coors Light; “Slow Monday”
Bruno Fukumothi
Ella Glazer
David Fleet
Martino Madeddu

BMW; “Heart of Joy | Meet Okto the Octopus”
Tom Raynor
Helen Tang
Jack Harris
Alex Kulikov

Virgin Media; “Trunk Trucker”
Sebastian Caldwell
Larisa Covaciu
Ben Cronin
Alex Grey

Columbia Sportswear; “Engineered for Whatever”
Kamen Markov
Alexia Paterson
David Lochhead
Henrique Campanha

Battlefield 6; “It’s Good to Be Back”
Michael Ralla
James Alexander
Brian Creasey
Luca Pelegatta

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A SPECIAL VENUE PROJECT

The Wizard of Oz at Sphere
Ben Grossmann
Tamara Watts Kent
Dr. Irfan Essa
Matt Dougan
Glenn Derry

Zootopia: Better Zoogether!
Rich Enders
Kirk Bodyfelt
Darin Hollings
Darren Simpson

Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment
Alan Woods
Maximilian McNair MacEwan
Jason Fox
Iris Chailloux

Disney Tales of Magic
Tim Lutkin
Patrick Aigouy
Adrien Mourey
Lydia Caplan

Stranger Things: Escape the Dark
Julien Héry
Antoine Sitruk
Simon Lecavalier
Martin Hesselink

OUTSTANDING CHARACTER IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

“A Minecraft Movie”; Queen Malgosha
Kevin Estey
Fabio Leporelli
Matteo Stirati
Nick Grace

“Lilo & Stitch”; Stitch
Matthew Shumway
Claus Pedersen
Xiying Zhai
Enrique Mateo-Sagasta

“Superman”; Krypto the Superdog
Loic Mireault
Martine Chartrand
Marianne Morency
Matthias Schoenegger

“Avatar: Fire and Ash”; Varang: Leader of the Ash Clan
Stephen Clee
Stuart Adcock
Keven Norris
Joseph Kim

OUTSTANDING CHARACTER IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

“Elio”; Ooooo the Liquid Supercomputer
Catherine Luo
Anna-Christine Lykkegaard
Ferdi Scheepers
Julian Teo

“Elio”; Glordon
Marco Burbano
Edgar Rodriguez
Ben Rush
Patrick Yu Wang

“Zootopia 2”; Gary De’Snake
Adam Green
Jennifer Stratton
Christoffer Pedersen
Jesse Erickson

“KPop Demon Hunters”; Rumi
Sophia (Seung Hee) Lee
Andrea Centeno
Marc Souliere
Joshua Beveridge

OUTSTANDING CHARACTER IN AN EPISODIC, COMMERCIAL, GAME CINEMATIC, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

It: Welcome to Derry; “The Thing in the Dark;” The Pickle Monster
Philip Harris-Genois
Pierric Danjou
Chloe Ostiguy
Jonathan Bourdua

It: Welcome to Derry; “Winter Fire;” Pennywise
Théo Perronard
Yan Morin-Dubuisson
Yan Detang
Jonathan Fleming-Bock

Stranger Things; “Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up;” Mindflayer
James Moore
Layne Howe
Shawn Warawa
Yoshihiro Harimoto

Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age; Female Smilodon
Alvise Avati
Marc-André Coulombe
Youen Leclerc
Andrea De Martis

OUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENT IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

“Tron: Ares”; Dillinger’s Grid City
Jared Michael
Noor Valibhoy
Cody Gramstad
Stefan Litterini

“The Lost Bus”; The Wildfires of Roe Road
Jamie Haydock
Francesco Ferraresi
Sergei Konorev
Frederick Vallee

“Avatar: Fire and Ash” Bridgehead Industrial City
Gianluca Pizzaia
Steve Bevins
Dziga Kaiser
Zsolt Máté

“The Lost Bus”; Feather River Canyon by the Pulga Bridge
David Schulz
Mareike Loges
Björn Markgraf
Philipp Hafellner

“The Gorge”; The Bodyweb
Daniel James Cox
Yosuke Inomata
Clint Rea
Gabriel Pires

OUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENT IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

“Zootopia 2”; Marsh Market
Limei Z. Hshieh
Alexander Nicholas Whang
Joshua Fry
Ryan DeYoung

“Elio”; The Communiverse
Steve Arguello
Christopher M. Burrows
Andy Lin
Laura Murphy

“KPop Demon Hunters;” Seoul
Rafael Lescano
Gunsik Kim
Tyquane Wright
Hee-Chel Nam

“The Bad Guys 2”; Cairo City
John J. Lee
Greg Hettinger
Mikael Genachte-Le Bail
Mayumi Shimokawa

OUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENT IN AN EPISODIC, COMMERCIAL, GAME CINEMATIC, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

Foundation; “A Song for the End of Everything;” Clarion Station
Sylvain Lesaint
Ilyes Boutemeur
Blake Dewoody
Benjamin Rojek

Andor; “Welcome to the Rebellion;” The Senate District
John O’Connell
Falk Boje
Hasan Ilhan
Kevin George

The Last of Us; Post-Apocalyptic Seattle
Romain Simonnet
Abraham Ibanez
David Desplat
Minguk Lee

The Residence; “Dial M for Murder;” The White House Exterior
Gabriel Vargas
Eric Schoellnast
Andrew Wilkins
Omer Gurkan

OUTSTANDING CG CINEMATOGRAPHY

“Zootopia 2”
Tyler Kupferer
Daniel Rice
Griselda Sastrawinata-Lemay

“Avatar: Fire and Ash”
Steve Deane
AJ Briones
Zachary Brake
Andrew Moffett

“Tron: Ares”
Jhon Alvarado
Michael Beaulieu
Jayden Beveridge
Hayley Kim

“KPop Demon Hunters”
Benjamin Hendricks
Gary H. Lee
Randolph Lizarda
Linh Mai Nguyen Chan

OUTSTANDING MODEL IN A PHOTOREAL OR ANIMATED PROJECT

“Mickey 17”; The Niflheim Spaceship
Bikas Panigrahi
Nikolai Razuev
Ajinkya Nitin Phokmare
Manoj Vijay Kamble

“Wicked: For Good”; Bison
Marco Chau
Giorgio Pennisi
Sowmya Ramakumar
Balazs Meszaros

“Avatar: Fire and Ash”; The Windtraders’ Gondola
Michael Smale
Sam Sharplin
Joe W. Churchill
Jacqi Dillon

“Superman”; The Fortress of Solitude
Crystal Bretz
Martin Pelissier
Klaudio Ladavac
Conner Wessinger

OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

“Avatar: Fire and Ash”; Simulating Pandora
Nicholas Illingworth
Sarah C. Farmer
James Robinson
Ryan Bowden

“Superman”; Metropolis City Destruction
Rick Hankins
Marcel Kern
Eric Hollands
Masoud Aziminajjar

“The Lost Bus”; Escape from Hell
Billy Copley
Mathieu Chardonnet
Chetan Patkar
David Schott

“Together”
Darcy George
Andrew Dunkerley
Ray Leung
Steve Oakley

OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

“In Your Dreams”
Stephanie McNair
Dmitiry Kolesnik
Stephen Paschke
David Sellares

“The Bad Guys 2”
Michael Losure
Landon Gray
Zachary Glynn
Steve Avoujageli

“Zootopia 2”
Sujil Sukumaran
Stuart Griese
Zoran Stojanoski
Paul Carman

“KPop Demon Hunters”
Filippo Maccari
Nikolaos Finizio
Daniel La Chapelle
Srdjan Milosevic

OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, GAME CINEMATIC, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

“Battlefield 6”
Björn Åkerstedt
Anders Egleus
Kasra Kalami
Craig Moroney

“The Last of Us”; “Through the Valley;” The Infected Horde
Duarte Victorino
Claudio Gonzalez
Andre Castelao
Igor Bondar

“Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age”; The Big Freeze
Edward Ferrysienanda
Kevin Christensen
Guy Schuleman
Kevin Tarpinian

“Stranger Things”; “Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up;” Assault on the Mindflayer
Michael Chrobak
Brandon James Fleet
Yasunobu Arahori
Hoi Ying Fung

OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN A FEATURE

“Avatar: Fire and Ash”; Bridgehead Industrial City
Ziad Shureih
Stefano Oggeri
Jaume Creus Costabella
Hugo Debat-Burkarth

“F1: The Movie”; Modern Race and POV Footage
Hugo Gauvreau
Chris Davies
Raushan Raj
Amaury Rospars

“Superman”; Fights and Metropolis City Destruction
Can Chang
Nicolas Caillier
Bryan Smeall
Elona Musha

“Avatar: Fire and Ash”; The Wind Traders, Bridgehead, Rivers and Ocean
Alex Klaricich
Gianfranco Sgura
Brad Floyd
Ari Ross

OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN AN EPISODE

The Residence; “Pilot”
Spencer Hecox
Gunnar Heiss
Alexander Greenberg
Eric Schoellnast

Stranger Things; “Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up;” The Abyss and Vecna’s Face
Ben Roberts
Rachel E. Herbert
Don Bradford
Ken Lam

The Last of Us; “Through the Valley;” A Storm of Ice, Fire and Flesh
Tobias Wiesner
Mark Julien
Owen Longstaff
Brendan Naylor

Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age
Puff Pisanwalerd
Jean-Baptiste Noyau
Marion Nove-Josserand
Sue Nelson

OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN A COMMERCIAL

Disney; “Best Christmas Ever”
Hudson Martins
Luke Warpus
Jinhui Wang
Alex Miller

BMW; “Heart of Joy | Meet Okto the Octopus”
Alex Kulikov
Jack Harris
Adam Chabane
Nicola Borsari

Virgin Media; “Trunk Trucker”
Alex Grey
Sebastian Caldwell
Nicola Borsari
Giacomo Cavaletti

Genesis; “No Old Ideas”
Greg McKneally
Christian Block
Alberto Pizzocchero
Alessandro Granella

OUTSTANDING SPECIAL (PRACTICAL) EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL PROJECT

Gen V; “Bags”
Hudson Kenny
Curtis Carlson
John Koyama
Bruno Larizza

Andor; “Who Are You?”
Luke Murphy
Dean Ford
Jody Eltham
Darrell Guyon

EMERGING TECHNOLOGY AWARD

“Win or Lose”; Detached Facial Features
David Munier
Ana Gabriela Lacaze
Jonathan Page
Anna-Christine Lykkegaard

“Mickey 17”; REVIZE
John Bastian
Ben Ward
Thomas Rowntree
Robert Beveridge

“Avatar: Fire and Ash”; BodyOpt
Christoph Sprenger
Tobias Mack
Florian Fernandez
Niall Ryan

“Elio”; Real-Time High Fidelity Animation System Using Signed Distance Functions
Andrew Butts
Trent Crow
Anna-Christine Lykkegaard
Catherine Luo

“Avatar: Fire and Ash”; Kora Fire Toolset
Alexey Dmitrievich Stomakhin
John Edholm
Murali Ramachari
Aleksandr Isakov

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A STUDENT PROJECT

“Au Delà des Mots”
Antoine Barbannaud
Leandro Leijnen
Timothé Vergught
Mathis De Sauvecanne

“Flying From War”
Ciara Borgards

“Two Kings”
Eliot Hervier Blondel
Mathieu Keraudran
Adrian Delmotte
Jonas Lopez Del Castillo

“Azimuth”
Thomas Teisseire
Cassandre Cinier
Martin Bluy
Mathis Giraudeau

“A Sparrow’s Song”
Tobias Eckerlin
Vincent Maurer
Elias Weber
Lilli-Luisa Heckmann