The long gestating Tristar Pictures project will be produced by Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, and Lisa Henson, with Brian Henson executive producing; Eggers will pen the script with writing partner Sjn.

Hundreds of creative businesses and projects across the UK are set to receive government funding, marking the first step of the Governments Sector Plan for the creative industries.Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy brought together more than 250 creative businesses and cultural leaders at the The Glasshouse International Centre for Music in Gateshead earlier this month. Starting with a 60 million package of government support, investments include start-up video game studios, grassroots music venues, and creative businesses to boost British music and film exports. Nandy also announced that shorter apprenticeships will be available from August 2025.Our 60 million funding boost will support creative and cultural organizations across the UK to turbocharge growth by transforming local venues, creating jobs, supporting businesses and spreading opportunity across the country, said Nandy. But this is by no means the limit of our ambitions, which is why the creative industries are at the heart of the forthcoming Industrial Strategy and will continue to play a key part in this Governments Plan for Change.The 60 million package includes 40 million in funding over the next financial year with a further 16.3 million for the Create Growth Programme, 2.5 million for the Supporting Grassroots Music Fund, 5.5 million for the UK Games Fund, 1.6 million for the Music Export Growth Scheme, and 7 million for the UK Global Screen Fund. Four cultural projects receiving 16.2 million from the Cultural Development Fund include The Centre for Writing, Glassworks, Harmony Works, and The Tropicana.The recently held Summit aimed to identify key barriers currently holding back the sectors growth potential so that groundwork can be laid for the publication of the full Creative Industries Sector Plan in the spring.Priority regions for Creative Industries are the North East, Greater Manchester, Liverpool City Region, West Yorkshire, West Midlands, Greater London, West of England, South Wales, Glasgow, Edinburgh-Dundee corridor, and Belfast. Additional funding will be provided as part of the Spending Review to six Mayoral Combined Authorities.The British Business Bank, which supports 17.4 billion of finance to over 64,000 smaller businesses, has committed to increase its support for creative businesses to access the finance they need to grow.Our number one mission is to grow the economy, and our creative industries are a British success story with a big part to play, said Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves. Building on our plans to boost our AI sector, this is another step as we go further and faster to deliver growth so we can put more money in peoples pockets.The Culture Secretary and Foreign Secretary David Lammy also confirmed the membership of a new Soft Power Council, which will act as an advisory board to the UK Government. Members include former rower and chair of UK Sport Katherine Grainger, former athlete and television presenter Baroness Grey-Thompson, and V&A director Tristram Hunt.Soft power is fundamental to the UKs impact and reputation around the world, said Lammy. I am often struck by the enormous love and respect which our music, sport and educational institutions generate on every continent. But we have not taken a sufficiently strategic approach to these huge assets as a country. Harnessing soft power effectively can help to build relationships, deepen trust, enhance our security and drive economic growth.Source: Animation UK Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologistL'Wrenbrings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

Following this mornings announcement of the nominations for the 97th Academy Awards (set forMarch 2), filmmakers involved with four of the five films nominated for Best Visual Effects have contacted AWN with their reactions.Lets have a look at how some of the industrys leading artists are taking the great newsNominees for Best Visual Effects Alien: Romulus - Eric Barba, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser, Daniel Macarin and Shane MahanWe are incredibly proud to have our teams work on the third act ofAlien: Romulusrecognized by the Academy. We worked closely with director Fede lvarez to build on the franchises history and bring audiences closer to the rings of a planet than ever before. We hope this nomination inspires the next generation of VFX artists and sci-fi space film fans.-- Daniel Macarin, Wt FX VFX Supervisor Better Man - Luke Millar, David Clayton, Keith Herft and Peter StubbsWe are extremely honoured thatBetter Manis nominated for Best Visual Effects at the 2025 Academy Awards. The film represents an insane amount of work and talent from the artists, production and support staff here at Wt FX and we are humbled that these efforts have been recognised by our peers. It was truly such a fantastic project to be a part of and the work is something that I will always be incredibly proud of.-- Luke Millar, VFX Supervisor Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes - Erik Winquist, Stephen Unterfranz, Paul Story and Rodney BurkeWe were thrilled to wake up to the good news this morning.It is an honour getting to represent the more than a thousand artists, developers, production, and support crew who worked their magic for over a year on Kingdom. Collaborating with Wes Ball and 20th Century on this was a delight and it's so satisfying to see our work recognised by the Academy. We're looking forward to celebrating this past year of cinema on March 2nd.-- Erik Winquist, VFX Supervisor Wicked- Pablo Helman, Jonathan Fawkner, David Shirk and Paul CorbouldHaving our filmmaking peers and partners recognizing the craft, creativity and innovation of our team like this is an amazing way to start the year. Jonathan [Fawkner] and his team really pulled out all the stops when it came to conjuring the magic of Shiz University, so a huge congratulations to every single artist, producer and technologist who helped breathe life into Wicked and craft the film's gravity-defying VFX.-- Fiona Walkinshaw, Framestores Chief Executive Officer, Film & Episodic Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.

Adobe has announced new innovations designed to empower filmmakers at all levels, as well as an additional $5M investment in the Adobe Film & TV Fund to support underrepresented creators and filmmakers in finding career opportunities. Additionally, The Adobe Foundation is supporting the Los Angeles creative communities impacted by the recent wildfires with a $1 million charitable grant.Were passionate about empowering filmmakers to tell their stories and realize their creative vision, said Ashley Still, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Adobe Creative Cloud. These innovations will bring time savings and career support so they can focus on inspiring and captivating audiences worldwide.Adobe and the Adobe Foundation announced its expansion of the Adobe Film & TV Fund, committing an additional $5M in 2025 to support new opportunities in careeradvancement. Group Effort Initiative (GEI) will join the Adobe Film & TV Fund, offering mentorship, training and career programs for the next generation of editors, marketers and creatives. Premiere Pros latest updates help filmmakers easily identify content within shots, find footage faster, and go global in seconds. The latest features include:Media Intelligence & Search Panel: A new AI-powered Media Intelligence and Search Panel in Premiere Pro (beta) automatically recognize clip content, including objects, locations, camera angles or metadata like shoot date or camera type. Editors can type in the clip type needed into the new Search Panel and let Media Intelligence do the rest.Caption Translation: Premiere Pro (beta) offers native caption translation in 17 languages.New After Effects innovations provide motion professionals with highly requested performanceimprovements, including:Improved Caching: All computers that meet the minimum specifications will be able to play back their entire composition the moment its cached.Improved HDR Support: Accurately import, monitor and export high dynamic range content, resulting in brighter and more vivid motion design work.Frame.io also expanded support for Camera to Cloud (C2C) support for Canon. Customers can now automatically upload and access high-quality footage directly from Canon EOS C80 and EOS C400 cameras in Frame.io. C2C automatically uploads media as its captured, eliminating the need for manual file transfers. This seamless integration provides instant access to media and enabling real-time collaboration through Frame.ios powerful creative management tools.Source: Adobe Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologistL'Wrenbrings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

Execs 20-year career began at Lucasfilm/ILM; has worked on a diverse range of projects, from Star Wars to campaigns and collaborations with Ferrari, Lady Gaga, and the U.S. Department of Defense.

Nominations for the 97th Academy Awards were announced this morning, via a livestream from the Academys Samuel Goldwyn Theater hosted by Rachel Sennott and Bowen Yang. Voting for the winners by active Academy members runs February 11-18; the 97th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 2, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 200 territories worldwide.Among the animated films in the mix, The Wild Robot garnered three nominations including Best Animated Feature and Best Score, while Flow was nominated for Best Animated Feature as well as Best International Feature. Inside Out 2, Memoir of a Snail, and Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most FowlOn the VFX front, Wicked was nominated in 10 categories including Best Visual Effects, Best Production Design, and Best Feature, while Dune: Part Two scored five noms including Best Visual Effects and Best Production Design. Alien: Romulus, Better Man, and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes were also nominated for Best Visual Effects.Nominees for Best Animated Short Film are Beautiful Men, In the Shadow of the Cypress, Magic Candies, Wander to Wonder, Yuck!.Congratulations to all the nominees!See the full list of nominations for the 97th Academy Awards below:Nominations for the 97th Academy AwardsPerformance by an actor in a leading roleAdrien Brody in The BrutalistTimothe Chalamet in A Complete UnknownColman Domingo in Sing SingRalph Fiennes in ConclaveSebastian Stan in The ApprenticePerformance by an actor in a supporting roleYura Borisov in AnoraKieran Culkin in A Real PainEdward Norton in A Complete UnknownGuy Pearce in The BrutalistJeremy Strong in The ApprenticePerformance by an actress in a leading roleCynthia Erivo in WickedKarla Sofa Gascn in Emilia PrezMikey Madison in AnoraDemi Moore in The SubstanceFernanda Torres in I'm Still HerePerformance by an actress in a supporting roleMonica Barbaro in A Complete UnknownAriana Grande in WickedFelicity Jones in The BrutalistIsabella Rossellini in ConclaveZoe Saldaa in Emilia PrezBest animated feature film of the yearFlow - Nominees to be determinedInside Out 2 - Kelsey Mann and Mark NielsenMemoir of a Snail - Adam Elliot and Liz KearneyWallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl - Nominees to be determinedThe Wild Robot - Chris Sanders and Jeff HermannAchievement in cinematographyThe Brutalist - Lol CrawleyDune: Part Two - Greig FraserEmilia Prez - Paul GuilhaumeMaria - Ed LachmanNosferatu - Jarin BlaschkeAchievement in costume designA Complete Unknown - Arianne PhillipsConclave - Lisy ChristlGladiator II - Janty Yates and Dave CrossmanNosferatu - Linda MuirWicked - Paul TazewellAchievement in directingAnora - Sean BakerThe Brutalist - Brady CorbetA Complete Unknown - James MangoldEmilia Prez - Jacques AudiardThe Substance - Coralie FargeatBest documentary feature filmBlack Box Diaries - Shiori Ito, Eric Nyari and Hanna AqvilinNo Other Land - Basel Adra, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal and Yuval AbrahamPorcelain War - Brendan Bellomo, Slava Leontyev, Aniela Sidorska and Paula DuPre' PesmenSoundtrack to a Coup d'Etat - Johan Grimonprez, Daan Milius and Rmi GrelletySugarcane - Nominees to be determinedBest documentary short filmDeath by Numbers - Kim A. Snyder and Janique L. RobillardI Am Ready, Warden - Smriti Mundhra and Maya GnypIncident - Bill Morrison and Jamie KalvenInstruments of a Beating Heart - Ema Ryan Yamazaki and Eric NyariThe Only Girl in the Orchestra - Molly OBrien and Lisa RemingtonAchievement in film editingAnora - Sean BakerThe Brutalist - David JancsoConclave - Nick EmersonEmilia Prez - Juliette WelflingWicked Myron KersteinBest international feature film of the yearBrazil - I'm Still HereDenmark - The Girl with the NeedleFrance - Emilia PrezGermany - The Seed of the Sacred FigLatvia - FlowAchievement in makeup and hairstylingA Different Man - Mike Marino, David Presto and Crystal JuradoEmilia Prez - Julia Floch Carbonel, Emmanuel Janvier and Jean-Christophe SpadacciniNosferatu - David White, Traci Loader and Suzanne Stokes-MuntonThe Substance - Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stphanie Guillon and Marilyne ScarselliWicked - Frances Hannon, Laura Blount and Sarah NuthAchievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)The Brutalist - Daniel BlumbergConclave - Volker BertelmannEmilia Prez - Clment Ducol and CamilleWicked - John Powell and Stephen SchwartzThe Wild Robot - Kris BowersAchievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)El Mal from Emilia Prez; Music by Clment Ducol and Camille; Lyric by Clment Ducol, Camille and Jacques AudiardThe Journey from The Six Triple Eight; Music and Lyric by Diane WarrenLike A Bird from Sing Sing; Music and Lyric by Abraham Alexander and Adrian QuesadaMi Camino from Emilia Prez; Music and Lyric by Camille and Clment DucolNever Too Late from Elton John: Never Too Late; Music and Lyric by Elton John, Brandi Carlile, Andrew Watt and Bernie TaupinBest motion picture of the yearAnora - Alex Coco, Samantha Quan and Sean Baker, ProducersThe Brutalist - Nominees to be determinedA Complete Unknown - Fred Berger, James Mangold and Alex Heineman, ProducersConclave - Tessa Ross, Juliette Howell and Michael A. Jackman, ProducersDune: Part Two - Mary Parent, Cale Boyter, Tanya Lapointe and Denis Villeneuve, ProducersEmilia Prez - Nominees to be determinedI'm Still Here - Nominees to be determinedNickel Boys - Nominees to be determinedThe Substance - Nominees to be determinedWicked - Marc Platt, ProducerAchievement in production designThe Brutalist - Production Design: Judy Becker; Set Decoration: Patricia CucciaConclave - Production Design: Suzie Davies; Set Decoration: Cynthia SleiterDune: Part Two - Production Design: Patrice Vermette; Set Decoration: Shane VieauNosferatu - Production Design: Craig Lathrop; Set Decoration: Beatrice BrentnerovWicked - Production Design: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Lee SandalesBest animated short filmBeautiful Men - Nicolas Keppens and Brecht Van ElslandeIn the Shadow of the Cypress - Shirin Sohani and Hossein MolayemiMagic Candies - Daisuke Nishio and Takashi WashioWander to Wonder - Nina Gantz and Stienette BosklopperYuck! - Loc Espuche and Juliette MarquetBest live action short filmA Lien - Sam Cutler-Kreutz and David Cutler-KreutzAnuja - Adam J. Graves and Suchitra MattaiI'm Not a Robot - Victoria Warmerdam and TrentThe Last Ranger - Cindy Lee and Darwin ShawThe Man Who Could Not Remain Silent - Neboja Slijepevi and Danijel PekAchievement in soundA Complete Unknown - Tod A. Maitland, Donald Sylvester, Ted Caplan, Paul Massey and David GiammarcoDune: Part Two - Gareth John, Richard King, Ron Bartlett and Doug HemphillEmilia Prez - Erwan Kerzanet, Aymeric Devoldre, Maxence Dussre, Cyril Holtz and Niels BarlettaWicked - Simon Hayes, Nancy Nugent Title, Jack Dolman, Andy Nelson and John MarquisThe Wild Robot - Randy Thom, Brian Chumney, Gary A. Rizzo and Leff LeffertsAchievement in visual effectsAlien: Romulus - Eric Barba, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser, Daniel Macarin and Shane MahanBetter Man - Luke Millar, David Clayton, Keith Herft and Peter StubbsDune: Part Two - Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe and Gerd NefzerKingdom of the Planet of the Apes - Erik Winquist, Stephen Unterfranz, Paul Story and Rodney BurkeWicked - Pablo Helman, Jonathan Fawkner, David Shirk and Paul CorbouldAdapted screenplayA Complete Unknown - Screenplay by James Mangold and Jay CocksConclave - Screenplay by Peter StraughanEmilia Prez - Screenplay by Jacques Audiard; In collaboration with Thomas Bidegain, La Mysius and Nicolas LivecchiNickel Boys - Screenplay by RaMell Ross & Joslyn BarnesSing Sing - Screenplay by Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar; Story by Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, John "Divine G" WhitfieldOriginal screenplayAnora - Written by Sean BakerThe Brutalist - Written by Brady Corbet, Mona FastvoldA Real Pain - Written by Jesse EisenbergSeptember 5 - Written by Moritz Binder, Tim Fehlbaum; Co-Written by Alex DavidThe Substance - Written by Coralie Fargeat Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.

Cinesite and Frameless Creative, an immersive experiences company, has formed a long-term partnership with the National Portrait Gallery. Their collaboration, National Portrait Gallery Unframed will launch with Stories Brought to Life, will explore the lives of people who have shaped the UKs history and culture, from the Tudor period to the present day. The touring art experience will premiere at MediaCity, Salford, Greater Manchester in May ahead of a national and international tour.We are delighted to announce this new long-term partnership with the National Portrait Gallery, said Rich Storton, General Manager, Frameless Creative. We hope that by unleashing the power of digital storytelling we can help the Gallery to bring art to a whole new audience. Were living in a changing world and there is a real need for new experiences that help open up art and culture to new audiences and crucially help ensure that national institutions such as the National Portrait Gallery and their incredible collections continue to be accessible and have cultural significance for the next generation. MediaCity is a vibrant cultural hub attracting a hugely diverse audience. This combined with its proximity to major transport links and focus on technology made it an obvious choice for premiering our first experience.Stories Brought to Life will combine high quality digital projection, Hollywood-style visual effects, and the latest audio technology with music and creative narratives to tell the stories behind some of the Gallerys best-loved portraits. Cinesite acts as Frameless content production partner.The National Portrait Gallery aims to share our unique collection of portraits with as wide an audience as possible and explore the human stories that shape our history and culture, Rosie Wilson, Director of Programmes, Partnerships and Collections at the National Portrait Gallery. This exciting new partnership with Frameless, inspired by our Collection, will enable us to take these stories outside of the Gallery walls and bring them to life in new, innovative ways.We are honored that the National Portrait Gallery and Frameless have chosen MediaCity as the first stop on the tour of this unique immersive experience, concluded Caroline Aikman, Director of Marketing, Brand and Place at MediaCity. Weve hosted many arts and culture events, experiences, festivals and exhibitions over the last few years and we cant wait to welcome visitors to Salford when the experience opens its doors in May.Source: Frameless Creative Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologistL'Wrenbrings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

FOLKS, a Pitch Black company, has welcomed FuseFXs teams in Los Angeles, Atlanta, New York, and Vancouver under the FOLKS umbrella. Anew Burbank, California FOLKS office has also been opened.FOLKS and FuseFX have worked as sister brands within Pitch Black, and the consolidation allows all teams to leverage shared capabilities, technology, and talent to provide cutting-edge visual effects artistry across North America.FOLKS presence in the United States is an incredible opportunity to work with top-tier talent, drive innovation, and build lasting partnerships like never before, " said Amlie Poitras, President of FOLKS. We cannot wait to deepen our relationships with our clients by being on the ground and by working closely with the talented people who are driving the future of the VFX industry. We are very excited about what is to come.Johnny Fisk has been named Executive Vice President. A Los Angeles native with decades of experience in VFX and animation, Fisk most recently served as President of FuseFX.FOLKS is now better equipped to provide efficient, seamless VFX services that meet the highest standards for their clients across the globe, said Sbastien Bergeron, CEO of Pitch Black. This is just the beginning of an exciting year as we continually evolve Pitch Blacks global creative capabilities across our 13 locations and brands, including FOLKS, Rising Sun Pictures, and El Ranchito. We cannot wait to see where it takes us.Source: Pitch Black Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologistL'Wrenbrings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

DC has announced Superman Unlimited, the new ongoing comic series by Dan Slott and Rafael Albuquerque, will debut May 21. Slott previously wrote Amazing Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, Silver Surfer, She-Hulk, Mighty Avengers, and Superior Spider-Man for Marvel Comics. The series will serve as a key title in DCs upcoming All In Summer of Superman initiative.Hes the first and the greatest superhero of all-time, and Ive been waiting my whole life to tell stories about him, said Slott, Not just because of all the amazing powers he has, but because of who he is inside. Rafael Albuquerque and I are going to take himand youto places youll want to escape to every month. Millions of surprising ideas for Superman, Lois, the supporting cast, classic rogues, and all-new friends and foes too. If youve never read a Superman book, a DC book, or any comic book beforeor if youve been a Superman fan your entire lifeyou couldnt ask for a better place to take the leap and go all in than Superman Unlimited #1.The series kicks off with a massive extinction-level Kryptonite asteroid that showers Supermans greatest weakness down upon the earth, creating an arms race for the new most valuable resource on the planet: Green K. The availability of Kryptonite changes the balance of power in the criminal empires of Metropolis and across the globe. To survive, Superman will need to forge new alliances, new tech, and new tactics if he hopes to carry on his quest for truth, justice, and a better tomorrow.A merger with a new incarnation of Morgan Edges Galaxy Communications expands the Daily Planet brand into a multimedia news platform with a cable news channel, website, strong social media presence, andyesLois Lane is still editor in chief. Daily Planet regulars Jimmy Olsen, Ron Troupe, Cat Grant and Steve Lombard will staff satellite branches across the DC universe, creating a global network. Behind it all is the tech savvy of a new IT specialist from Gorilla City, Tee-Nah.Superman Unlimited adds to the foundation of DCs Superman comics in the same way Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinnesss Superman/Batman did in the early 2000s, said DC group editor Paul Kaminski. Superman Unlimited will capture the big, fun, high-flying adventures that Superman is known for, while also providing big moments for DCs Superman-related comics with the introduction of a massive new Kryptonite deposit. Imagine a world where Superman is stopping a bank robbery, but every weapon is packed with Kryptonite ammunition and every petty criminal carries a Kryptonite shiv. This is a world of unlimited danger on a level that Superman, and DCs Superman family of characters, has never faced before.Slott penned the series, with art and cover by Albuquerque and Marcelo Maiolo. The main cover will retail at $4.99 while card stock variants will retail at $5.99. Ahead of the series launch, fans can read the Zero Issue prelude to Superman Unlimited for free on May 3 with DCs Free Comic Book Day offerings.DCs Summer of Superman comic books will feature limited and ongoing series starring Superboy, Supergirl, Krypto, and more, and the event will highlight DCs deep roster of Superman-related characters. Source: DC Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologistL'Wrenbrings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

Kim Davidson, ChairDavidson is the President and CEO of SideFX, a company he co-founded in 1987. He has received three Scientific and Technical Awards from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In 2018, he accepted, on behalf of SideFX, the Academy Award of Merit for the creation and development of Houdini. In 2015, Davidson was co-recipient of the Canadian Digital Media Pioneer Award, and in 2019 he and other SideFX team members accepted a Technology and Engineering Emmy award in the Cost-Effective Crowd Simulation Tools category. Davidson was an EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2021 Ontario Winner; received the J. Wesley Graham Medal in Computing and Innovation from the University of Waterloo; andSusan ONeal, 1st Vice ChairONeal joined the VES in the late 1990s and has served as a member of its global Board of Directors in multiple roles, including service on the Executive Committee in 2016 as Treasurer, and as 2nd Vice Chair in 2022 and 2023 and 1st Vice Chair in 2024. For many years, she served as the Chair for the legacy global Education Committee and currently Chairs the Membership Committee. She leads the bi-annual membership review and approval process. In 2019, ONeal was honored with the VES Founders Award for meritorious service to the Society.David H. Tanaka, VES, 2nd Vice ChairDavid H. Tanaka, VES is an Editor, Producer and Creative Director with experience ranging from visual effects and animation to documentary and live-action feature filmmaking. For 15 years he served at Industrial Light & Magic in VFX Production and VFX Editorial on films including Jurassic Park, Forrest Gump and the Star Wars saga. He then went on to Pixar Animation Studios as a Special Projects Editor for 10 years, contributing to such productions as Cars, Ratatouille, WALLE, Up, Toy Story 3 and Monsters University. Tanaka currently holds a VFX Editor position with Tippett Studio. He is an active contributor to the VES Archives, Outreach, and Work From Home Committees, as well as the VES Handbook of Visual Effects publications. In 2022, Tanaka was honored with both VES Lifetime Member and VES Fellow distinctions.Rita Cahill, SecretaryCahill is an international business and marketing/PR consultant and has worked with a number of US, Canadian, UK, EU and Asian companies for visual effects and animation projects. She is a partner in MakeBelieve Entertainment, a film development company and serves as Executive Producer on a number of international projects. This is Cahills ninth term as Secretary on the global Board of Directors. She also served as Chair or Co-Chair of the VES Summit for eight years. In 2021, Cahill was honored with the VES Lifetime Member distinction and the VES Founders Award.Jeffrey A. Okun, VES, TreasurerOkun is known for creating organic and invisible effects, as well as spectacular tent-pole visual effects. Okun has delivered wide-ranging effects in award-winning films including The Last Samurai, Blood Diamond, Stargate, Deep Blue Sea, The Last Starfighter, and Meet the Ricardos and acclaimed television programs such as Cosmos: Possible Worlds, The End Is Nye and The Good Lord Bird.Okun is a VES Fellow and recipient of the VES Founders Award. He co-edited the VES Handbook of Visual Effects, an award-winning reference book on visual effects techniques and best practices, as well as the newly released and acclaimed VES Handbook of Virtual Production. He also created and founded the VES Awards, now in its 23rd year.Our Society is fortunate to have strong leadership represented on our Executive Committee, said Nancy Ward, VES Executive Director. I am honored to work alongside these exceptional, dedicated professionals, especially amidst this time of dynamic change. We appreciate their commitment to further advance the Societys global initiatives and impact.Source: Visual Effects Society

TheAmerican Society of Cinematographers(ASC) has announced the nominees for its 2025 OutstandingAchievement Awards, spanning feature films, documentaries, television and music videos. Winners will be honored at the 39th Annual ASC Awards on February 23, 2025, at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California. The ceremony will also be live-streamed on theasc.com. 2025 honorees were previously announced.Below is a complete list of this years nominees:Theatrical Feature Film (Sponsored by Keslow Camera)Jarin Blaschke for Nosferatu (Focus Features)Alice Brooks, ASC for Wicked (Universal Pictures)Lol Crawley, BSC for The Brutalist (A24)Stphane Fontaine, AFC for Conclave (Focus Features)Greig Fraser, ASC, ACS for Dune: Part Two (Warner Bros. Pictures)Edward Lachman, ASC for Maria (Netflix)Phedon Papamichael, ASC, GSC, GCA for A Complete Unknown (Searchlight Pictures)Episode of a Half Hour Series (Sponsored by Nanlux)Adam Bricker, ASC for Hacks - Episode "Just for Laughs" (Max)Carl Herse for The Franchise - Episode Sc 31A: Tecto Meets Eye (HBO)Richard Rutkowski, ASC for Sugar - Episode Starry-Eyed (Apple TV+)Seamus Tierney for Emily in Paris - Episode Masquerade (Netflix)Kyle Wullschleger for Only Murders in the Building - Episode Once Upon a Time in the West (Hulu)Limited or Anthology Series or Motion Picture Made for Television (Sponsored by Arri)Adam Arkapaw, ASC for Masters of the Air Episode Part Three (Apple TV+)Michael Berlucchi for Interior Chinatown - Episode Generic Asian Man (Hulu)Robert Elswit, ASC for Ripley - Episode Lucio (Netflix)Jonathan Freeman, ASC for The Penguin - Episode Homecoming (HBO)Emmanuel Lubezki, ASC, AMC &Bruno Delbonnel, AFC, ASC for Disclaimer - Episode I (Apple TV+)Zo White, ASC for Hold Your Breath (Hulu)Episode of a One-Hour Regular Series (Sponsored by Panavision)Adriano Goldman, ASC, ABC, BSC for The Crown - Episode Sleep, Dearie Sleep (Netflix)Catherine Goldschmidt, BSC for House of the Dragon - Episode The Queen Who Ever Was (HBO)Baz Irvine, BSC, ISC for Silo - Episode The Engineer (Apple TV+)Alejandro Martinez, AMC for House of Dragon - Episode Rhaenyra the Cruel (HBO)Sam Mccurdy, ASC, BSC for Shgun - Episode Crimson Sky (FX)Christopher Ross, BSC for Shgun - Episode "Anjin" (FX)Spotlight Award (Sponsored by Panavision) Michal Dymek for The Girl with the Needle (MUBI)Jomo Fray for Nickel Boys (Amazon MGM Studios)Klaus Kneist and Renata Mwende for Nawi (MUBI and Baobab Pictures)Documentary Award (Sponsored by Canon)Michael Crommett for Photographer: Dan Winters Life is Once. Forever. (National Geographic)Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw for Gaucho Gaucho (Jolt)Andrey Stefanov for Porcelain War (Picturehouse)ASC Music Video Award (Sponsored by Red Digital Cinema)Pepe Avila del Pino, AMC for 313 (Performed by Residente, Slvia Prez Cruz and Penelope Cruz)Scott Cunningham, ASC for Rebound (Performed by Jennifer Lopez)Rodrigo Prieto, ASC, AMC for Fortnight (Performed by Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone)Source: The ASC Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.

The Producers Guild of America has just released its list of movie and TV nominations for the upcoming 36th annual Producers Guild Awards. The PGA Awards ceremony is set for February 25 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles.As part of their announcement the PGA stated, Earlier this week, the Producers Guild announced a partnership with the Entertainment Community Fund to establish a dedicated fund supporting producers of film, television and emerging media affected by the fires. The Guild is contributing a portion of the net proceeds from the Producers Guild Awards to the fund. In addition to the Guilds contribution, members are also donating. Together, $300,000 has already been committed.If there is a producer in need of financial assistance from the devastation caused by the fires, they can provide their contact information and eligibility criteria will be sent:https://producersguild.tfaforms.net/5133847For anyone able to contribute to supporting producers who are struggling financially due to the fires, a donation site has been started here:entertainmentcommunity.org/2025CAfiresPGA.The PGA Awards ceremony will be held on Saturday, February 8, 2025 at the Fairmont Century Plaza.Nominees for Theatrical Motion Pictures, Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures, Television Series/Specials, Limited/Anthology Series Television, Televised or Streamed Motion Pictures and Documentary Motion Pictures are:Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion PicturesAnoraThe BrutalistA Complete UnknownConclaveDune: Part TwoEmilia PrezA Real PainSeptember 5The SubstanceWickedAward for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion PicturesFlowInside Out 2Moana 2Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most FowlThe Wild RobotNorman Felton Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television - DramaBad SistersThe DiplomatFalloutShgunSlow HorsesDanny Thomas Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television - ComedyAbbott ElementaryThe BearCurb Your EnthusiasmHacksOnly Murders in the BuildingDavid L. Wolper Award for Outstanding Producer of Limited or Anthology Series TelevisionBaby ReindeerFEUD: Capote Vs. The SwansThe PenguinRipleyTrue Detective: Night CountryAward for Outstanding Producer of Televised or Streamed Motion PicturesCarry OnThe Greatest Night in PopThe KillerRebel RidgeUnfrostedAward for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television30 for 30Conan O'Brien Must GoThe Jinx Part TwoSTEVE! (martin) a documentary in 2 piecesWelcome to WrexhamAward for Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment, Variety, Sketch, Standup & Talk TelevisionAli Wong: Single LadyThe Daily ShowLast Week Tonight with John OliverThe Late Show with Stephen ColbertSaturday Night LiveAward for Outstanding Producer of Game & Competition TelevisionThe Amazing RaceRuPaul's Drag RaceTop ChefThe TraitorsThe VoiceThe following nominees were previously announced.The Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Motion PicturesGaucho GauchoMedihaMountain Queen: The Summits of Lhakpa SherpaPorcelain WarSuper/Man: The Christopher Reeve StoryWe Will Dance AgainThe Award for Outstanding Children's ProgramAvatar: The Last AirbenderFraggle Rock: Back to the RockPercy Jackson and the OlympiansSesame StreetSpongeBob SquarePantsThe Award for Outstanding Short-Form ProgramThe Crown: Farewell To A Royal EpicHacks: Bit By BitThe Penguin: Inside GothamReal Time with Bill Maher: OvertimeShgun The Making of ShgunThe Award for Outstanding Sports ProgramFormula 1: Drive to SurviveHard Knocks: Offseason with the New York GiantsMessi's World Cup: The Rise of a LegendSimone Biles RisingTriumph: Jesse Owens and the Berlin OlympicsThe PGA Innovation AwardCritterzEmperorImpulse: Playing with RealityOrbitalThe Pirate Queen with Lucy LiuWhat If? An Immersive StoryFinal Ballots for TV (Comedy, Drama, Limited/Anthology Series, Televised/Streamed Motion Pictures, Non-Fiction, Game/Competition, Live Entertainment/Variety/Sketch/Talk Series) and Film (Theatrical Motion Picture, Animated Motion Picture, and Documentary) will close on Thursday, January 30 (2:00 pm PST). Winners of these categories will be announced at the 36th Annual Producers Guild Awards on February 8, 2025.Final Ballots for Children's, Short Form, and Sports Programs will close on Monday, January 20, 2025 (2:00 pm PST). Winners of the Sports, Childrens, and Short Form categories will be announced at the Guilds Nominee Events in New York and Los Angeles the week of February 3.At the Producers Guild Awards ceremony in February, the Producers Guild will also present special honors to powerhouse producers and leaders who have left undeniable marks on the industry. Honorees this year include Chris Meledandri (David O. Selznick Achievement Award), Dana Walden (Milestone Award), Taika Waititi (Norman Lear Achievement Award) and Lynda Obst and Paula Weinstein (Trailblazer Award).The 2025 Producers Guild Awards Event Chairs are Mike Farah and Joe Farrell. The 2025 Producers Guild Awards are produced by Anchor Street Collective and written by Lauren Cortizo, Jody Lambert and Matt Oberg for the Producers Guild of America. Branden Chapman is executive producer, and Carleen Cappelletti is co-executive producer. Sunshine Sachs Morgan & Lylis is PR agency of record, and Diane Salerno manages sponsorships.Source: The Producers Guild of America Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.

The Advanced Imaging Society just shared that due to the impact of the tragic Southern California fires, they are canceling the 15th Annual awards celebration; winners will still be announced February 7.

Flow, Inside Out 2, Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, and The Wild Robot get the nod for Animated Film with Better Man, Dune: Part Two, Gladiator II, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, and Wicked selected for Special Visual Effects.

Writers Guild of AmericaWest (WGAW) and Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) have announced nominations for outstanding achievement in television, new media, news, radio/audio, and promotional writing during 2024. Winners will be honored at the 2025 Writers Guild Awards (77th Annual), set forSaturday, February 15, 2025, at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles and the Edison Ballroom in New York City.The complete list of nominations can be foundhere. Animation and VFX-related nominations are as follows:SCREENPLAY NOMINEESADAPTED SCREENPLAYA Complete Unknown, Screenplay byJames MangoldandJay Cocks, Based on the BookDylan Goes Electric!by Elijah Wald; Searchlight PicturesDune: Part 2, Screenplay byDenis VilleneuveandJon Spaihts, Based on the NovelDuneby Frank Herbert; Warner Bros. PicturesHit Man, Screenplay byRichard Linklater & Glen Powell, Based on theTexas MonthlyArticle by Skip Hollandsworth; NetflixNickel Boys, Screenplay byRaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes, Based on the BookThe Nickel Boysby Colson Whitehead; Orion Pictures/Amazon MGM StudiosWicked, Screenplay byWinnie HolzmanandWinnie Holzman & Dana Fox, Based on the musical stage play with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and book by Winnie Holzman, From the Novel by Gregory Maguire; Universal PicturesTELEVISION, STREAMING, AND NEWS NOMINEESANIMATIONBottle Episode (The Simpsons), Written byRob LaZebnik & Johnny LaZebnik; FoxCremains of the Day (The Simpsons), Written byJohn Frink; FoxNight of the Living Wage (The Simpsons), Written byCesar Mazariegos; FoxSaving Favorite Drive-In (Bobs Burgers), Written byKatie Crown; FoxThe Tina Table: The Tables Have Tina-ed (Bobs Burgers), Written byGreg Thompson; FoxWinter Is Born (Blood of Zeus), Written byCharles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides; NetflixDRAMA SERIESThe Boys, Written byGeoff Aull, Jessica Chou, Paul Grellong, Eric Kripke, Ellie Monahan, Judalina Neira, David Reed, Anslem Richardson;Prime VideoThe Diplomat, Written byPeter Ackerman, Eli Attie, Debora Cahn, Anna Hagen, Julianna Dudley Meagher, Peter Noah; NetflixFallout, Written byJake Bender, Karey Dornetto, Zach Dunn, Kieran Fitzgerald, Chaz Hawkins, Lisa Joy, Carson Mell, Jonathan Nolan, Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Gursimran Sandhu, Graham Wagner; Prime VideoMr. & Mrs. Smith, Written byCarla Ching, Adamma Ebo, Adanne Ebo, Donald Glover, Stephen Glover, Schuyler Pappas, Francesca Sloane, Yvonne Hana Yi; Prime VideoShgun, Written byShannon Goss, Maegan Houang, Rachel Kondo, Matt Lambert, Justin Marks, Caillin Puente, Nigel Williams, Emily Yoshida; FX/HuluNEW SERIESEnglish Teacher, Written byBrian Jordan Alvarez, Wally Baram, Jake Bender, Emmy Blotnick, Zach Dunn, Dave King, Stephanie Koenig, Jonathan Krisel, Paul Simms, Samantha Shier; FX/HuluFallout, Written byJake Bender, Karey Dornetto, Zach Dunn, Kieran Fitzgerald, Chaz Hawkins, Lisa Joy, Carson Mell, Jonathan Nolan, Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Gursimran Sandhu, Graham Wagner; Prime VideoMr. & Mrs. Smith, Written byCarla Ching, Adamma Ebo, Adanne Ebo, Donald Glover, Stephen Glover, Schuyler Pappas, Francesca Sloane, Yvonne Hana Yi; Prime VideoNobody Wants This, Written byBarbie Adler, Jane Becker, Jack Burditt, Vali Chandrasekaran, Craig DiGregorio, Erin Foster, Lindsay Golder, Steven Levitan, Pat Regan, Niki Schwartz-Wright, Neel Shah, Noelle Valdivia, Ron Weiner, Ryann Werner; NetflixShgun, Written byShannon Goss, Maegan Houang, Rachel Kondo, Matt Lambert, Justin Marks, Caillin Puente, Nigel Williams, Emily Yoshida; FX/HuluLIMITED SERIESThe Penguin, Written byVladimir Cvetko, Breannah Gibson, Erika L. Johnson, Lauren LeFranc, Corina Maritescu, Megan Martin, John McCutcheon, Shaye Ogbonna, Nick Towne, Noelle Valdivia, Kira Snyder; HBO | MaxPresumed Innocent, Written byMiki Johnson, David E. Kelley, Sharr White; Apple TV+Ripley, Written bySteven Zaillian; NetflixSay Nothing, Written byClare Barron, Joe Murtagh, Kirsten Sheridan, Joshua Zetumer; FX/HuluTrue Detective: Night Country, Written byKatrina Albright, Alan Page Arriaga, Namsi Khan, Issa Lpez, Chris Mundy, Wenonah Wilms; HBO | MaxSource: WGA Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.

After shedding its writers and directors back in 2023, the all-new Marvel Studios series starring Charlie Cox and Vincent DOnofrio reprising their roles as Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil, and Wilson Kingpin Fiskfinally hits the streamer March 4.

Getting the chance to work on a sequel to a cult classic, One of Us contributed digital versions of a miniature plane, simulated stop-motion oceans, stretched faces, and sequences featuring sandworms across 317 shots inBeetlejuice Beetlejuice. The directive from filmmaker Tim Burton and Production VFX Supervisor Angus Bickerton was to preserve the spirit of the original Beetlejuice (1988). The first film had a different vibe than what was coming out at the time, observes James Brennan-Craddock, VFX Supervisor at One of Us. We wanted to pay homage to that original aesthetic in the new film. We started off doing some early CG tests of the sandworm in an old-school style. The asset we created wasnt so much skin and muscle but latex and foam. The end result in the film was done fully stop-motion. We were still heavily involved with Mackinnon & Saunders in the early stages because we did all the postvis for the sandworm sequences.Tim arrived with a small, green toy snake and was going, The snake goes here and then there, recalls Brennan-Craddock. But how do you translate that to a snake which couldnt even fit into this church? But due credit because what they shot was workable and the first thing that we did was postvis how the snake would move and fit into the scene. We did the same thing with the sequence on Titan, the desert planet. We did all sorts of things like cheating the scale of sandworm shot per shot; the scale is reasonably consistent, but weve done it in a way that you dont notice. The sandworm is not an organic creature. According to Brennan-Craddock, A lot of that came for free from the stop-motion version of the sandworm. We had to be wary about that when doing postvis because you can take a CG rig and move it however you want. We had to keep the physicality of the sandworm in mind and not create too sharp a bend or turn. When you see the side-by-side comparisons of our postvis and stop-motion version, theyre damn similar in terms of their overall movement. Until we did the postvis, it wasnt clear how the sandworm was going to react. Any shot that had complicated cameras we would stabilize those postvis plates. We gave stabilized plates to Mackinnon & Saunders so that they had something they could animate to.Lighting the sandworm in the church was particularly intriguing. Theres this motif in the film that whenever youre in the afterlife there is a constantly changing blue to green light bathing the sets, Brennan-Craddock says. Even though the church is in the real world, because Beetlejuice took over, that blue green motif came back. Onset it was these big LED lights that you could control to swing between blue and green. It was being done randomly and if you actually watch that sequence from shot to shot, youll see that one shot ends in green and the next shot starts blue. That happens all the time, which might bug people from a continuity perspective, but it totally works because of the kinetic energy of the scene. Essentially, there was a blue and green light that were on and off. Mackinnon & Saunders provided each frame that they shot the blue and green light version of the sandworm, because if you shine a blue and green light on an object its not only a grade difference, but there are also subtle differences in how the surfaces react. We would take the blue and green light versions of the sandworm and treat them as CG lighting passes. We would animate the intensity of one up and the other down based on the shots that they were in, eyeballing it with what we could see in the environment itself. That was an unusual challenge. The Titan sequence relied on CG to create an otherworldly yet tactile aesthetic. There was a patch of sand that the actors were running on while everything else is CG, Brennan-Craddock explains. The aesthetic look was a blend of something that felt purposely miniature while also having the scale of something that could be more realistic. At no point were we going to make our own version of Arrakis in Dune. We created these red noodle rocks to feel like polystyrene. Then we had these bigger mountains in the background called the Cheese Mountains because they have holes in them. But the actual environment itself, the undulating sand dunes, is something reasonably realistic to tie it to. There is an expectation these days that things feel grand. We wanted to balance the grand with the Beetlejuice cartoon aesthetic. Reference consisted of Titan in Beetlejuice and real-world deserts. Angus had found a NASA rendering of the real Titan early on, which had some interesting rocks. And we looked at the blue sky, sandstorm and noodle rocks in the original film, he adds.Most challenging was the church scene where the Influencers get sucked into their cellphones as it was a last-minute decision by Burton. There was quite a short turnaround on this film, remarks Brennan-Craddock. From wrap it was around eight months in total. It was two sides of the same coin. On one hand it was quite a logistical creative challenge to build everything and knock the shots out. On the other hand, it was an exciting creative challenge because the brief for the Influencers was open to discover. We wanted to get rid of the Influencers, theyre the friends of Rory who is one of the villains, in a cartoony way. Thats the case with Beetlejuice too. Hes like a live-action cartoon character in a lot of ways and his magic has that aesthetic too.Like everything done one the film, the visual effects were meant to evoke a practical aesthetic. Stop-motion animation was an influence. We did a lot of complicated and simple things to convey that, Brennan-Craddock notes. On the simpler side we played with motion blur a lot by turning it off or exaggerating it in different places. We completely broke our digital double rigs to get the characters into bizarre poses for the four or eight frames you see their bodies getting pulled into the phones. We played a lot with the timing of the effects. Initially, it was going to be slow, heavy footed, getting sucked into a vacuum cleaner type thing. But through Tims direction we ended up with something quite elastic. There is this slow stretch where the faces are being pulled and contorted. We also used the opportunity to pay homage to the original when Barbaras [Geena Davis] and Adam Maitland [Alec Baldwin]s faces get pulled. As their face gets stretched, each of the Influencers form a different goofy pained expression. For the most part we pulled it off. There is this elastic stretch and at one point, the pressure is released, causing the whole body to shoot in. Secondary animation and effects provided the desired elastic physicality. Its not a human anymore, explains Brennan-Craddock. Its a prosthetic human that we created. The fleshier areas of the face, like the cheeks, jowls and lips, had a lot of vibration. The Influencers are in elaborate dress, have crazy hair styles, and numerous accessories. So, we played with that as well. Necklaces would come up and start to wiggle. It was partly suctioned, gravity, and magnetic. Technically, the cellphone effect could be applied to each face. Towards the end I was mixing and matching to see what things looked like, Brennan-Craddock says. But we have a robust and smooth digital double creation process. The bodies and skin share the same topology, and the workflow is similar, so you could take a sculpt design from one face and put it on another. We had 22 hero characters with varying degrees of complexity. The closer ones were much more detailed than the ones further back. Later there was a request to put more Influencers in, so we created three different generic face structures for background characters and matched the skin tones and hair color. We had some repetition there, but not much.Stop-motion animation was used to explain the death of Charles Deetz (Jeffrey Jones), which involved a plane crash and shark attack. We worked closely with Mackinnon & Saunders, who animated the characters in the plane and ocean, remarks Brennan-Craddock. We built the plane, but the most challenging thing we did was the ocean itself. The mindset for this was how would a stop-motion artist build an ocean and replicate that. We split it into two categories of oceans. There was the foreground, and the background ocean. In the foreground we needed some kind of interaction between the character and the ocean. In the background we didnt need interaction. We just needed to fill the space. How do you get interaction with a stop-motion ocean and a puppet? You would probably embed the character in plasticine. The character would animate, and youd smoosh the plasticine around to create waves and splashes. We followed that mindset for the virtual version. We created a viscous fluid simulation and then completely messed it up. The look development shifted from plasticine to a translucent resin, creating cellophane splash elements that get stained red when the shark comes along. After initial work, it was decided the gore had to be pulled back. It was a compositional thing in the end, reveals Brennan-Craddock. You can get away with quite a lot of gore when youre pretending its plasticine! The characters were full stop-motion at different scales. We did scans of the puppets and shark, body tracked those as the basis for the simulation and lighting interaction, and then went from there, he continues. Once we got the footage, the shots had to be recomposed to get Charles and the shark to match as required and then we would scale our tracks accordingly to make that work. When that shark starts to move it creates a lot of red stained cellophane. We art directed the blood to cover Charles, splash outwards and hit the lens. Humor is a big part of this film. And a big part of humor is timing, which was something we had control over. If the effects slap comp in the dailies makes you smirk, then youre on the right track. The interior of the plane was constructed by Mackinnon & Saunders, which was extended digitally while the exterior was entirely CG. VFX placed a cellophane splash around the plane that was reasonably straightforward.Core software programs were Nuke and Houdini. The procedural pipeline that you get is so flexible and weve got a bunch of talented artists who know the ins and outs of the software, observes Brennan-Craddock. We just made sure that we were going in the right direction in matching the correct aesthetic. On Titan, when the sandworm blasts out onto the surface, it kicks up a lot of sand. But but we didnt want to create 20-metre-high sand explosions because you want it to feel like a miniature. Brennan-Craddocks love for the stop-motion Wallace & Gromit franchise came in handy. He concludes, I remember when we were looking at making stop-motion foam for the ocean in Charles Deetzs demise, all I could think about was A Close Shave, when Gromit becomes a window cleaner, and they create these stop-motion soap suds that to me looked like tiny plastic marbles. So, we used that as a reference when we tried to create our white water! Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer best known for composing in-depth filmmaker and movie profiles for VFX Voice, Animation Magazine, and British Cinematographer.

Dune: Part Two, The Wild Robot, Shgun and The Penguin lead all nominees for the 23ndAnnualVES Awards, theyearly celebration that recognizes outstanding visual effects artistry and innovation in features, animation, television, commercials and video games and the VFX supervisors, VFX producers and hands-on artists responsible for its creation. The awards ceremony is set for February 11, 2024at The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles.In feature films,Dune: Part Two garnered sevennominations.The Wild Robot leads all animation category contenders with five nominations, whileShgun and The Penguin each garnered four nominations to lead in the episodiccategories.Nominees in 25 categories were selected by VES members at 39 in-person and virtual nomination events conducted worldwide over a 36-hour continuous process. The distinctive and thoughtful VES Awards nominations protocol included a review of each awards submission including Befores and Afters by a minimum of three different judging panels. Participating VES members on the panels represented 25 countries, highlighting the full breadth of the Societys diverse global membership.The artistry, ingenuity and passion of visual effects practitioners around the world have come together to create remarkable imagery, said Kim Davidson, VES Chair. We are seeing best in class work that elevates the art of storytelling and exemplifies the spirit of innovation. The VES Awards is the only venue that showcases and honors these outstanding artists across a wide range of disciplines, and we are extremely proud of our nominees.Nominees in 25 categories were selected by VES members at 49 in-person and virtual nomination panels conducted around the world over a 30-hour continuous process. The distinctive and thoughtful VES Awards nominations protocol included a review of each awards submission including Befores and Afters by a minimum of three different judging panels. Participating VES members on the panels represented 307 cities in 24 countries, highlighting the full breadth of the Societys diverse global membership.Whether its through a fully immersive environment, realistic characters, or jaw-dropping action sequences, visual effects artists continue to push the boundaries of creativity and transform the way stories are told, said Diana Colella, Executive Vice President of Media & Entertainment at Autodesk, sponsor of the VES-Autodesk Student Award. This years student film submissions celebrate the technical talent and creativity of up-and-coming visual effects artists. Congratulations to all the student nominees.This years nominees are as follows:OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATUREBetter ManLuke MillarAndy TaylorDavid ClaytonKeith HerftPeter StubbsDune: Part TwoPaul LambertBrice ParkerStephen JamesRhys SalcombeGerd NefzerKingdom of the Planet of the Apes Erik WinquistJulia NeighlyPaul StoryDanielle ImmermanRodney BurkeMufasa: The Lion KingAdam ValdezBarry St. JohnAudrey FerraraDaniel FotheringhamTwistersBen SnowMark SoperFlorian WitzelSusan GreenhowScott FisherOUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATUREBlitzAndrew WhitehurstSona PakTheo DemirisVincent PoitrasHayley WilliamsCivil War David SimpsonMichelle RoseFreddy SalazarChris ZehJ.D. SchwalmHorizon: An American Saga Chapter 1Jason NeeseArmen FetulagianJamie NeeseJ.P. JaramilloNosferatuAngela BarsonLisa RenneyDavid ScottDave CookPavel SgnerYoung Woman and the SeaRichard BriscoeCarrie RishelJeremy RobertStphane DittooIvo JivkovOUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN AN ANIMATED FEATUREInside Out 2Kelsey MannMark NielsenSudeep RangaswamyBill WatralMoana 2Carlos CabralTucker GilmoreIan GoodingGabriela HernandezThe Wild RobotChris SandersJeff HermannJeff BudsbergJacob Hjort JensenTransformers One Frazer ChurchillFiona ChiltonJosh CooleyStephen KingUltraman: Rising Hayden JonesSean M. MurphyShannon TindleMathieu VigOUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE Fallout; The HeadJay WorthAndrea KnollGrant EverettJoao SitaDevin MaggioHouse of the Dragon; Season 2; The Red Dragon and the GoldDai EinarssonTom HortonSven MartinWayne StablesMike DawsonShgun; AnjinMichael CliettMelody MeadPhilip EngstrmEd BruceCameron WaldbauerStar Wars: Skeleton Crew; Episode 5John KnollPablo MollesJhon AlvaradoJeff CapogrecoThe Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power; Season 2; EldestJason SmithTim KeeneAnn PodloznyAra KhanikianRyan ConderOUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODEExpats: HomeRobert BockGlorivette SomozaCharles LabbTim EmeisLady in the Lake; It Has to Do With the Search for the MarvelousJay WorthEddie BoninJoe WehmeyerEric Levin-HatzMike MyersMasters of the Air; Part Three; The Regensburg-Schweinfurt MissionStephen RosenbaumBruce FranklinXavier Matia BernasconiDavid AndrewsNeil CorbouldThe Penguin; BlissJohnny HanMichelle RoseGoran PavlesEd BruceDevin MaggioThe Tattooist of Auschwitz; PilotSimon GilesAlan ChurchDavid SchneiderJames HattsmithOUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A REAL-TIME PROJECT[REDACTED]Fabio SilvaMatthew ShermanCaleb EssexBob KopinskyDestiny 2: The Final ShapeDave SamuelBen FabricEric GreenliefGlenn GambleStar Wars OutlawsStephen HawesLionel Le DainBenedikt PodlesniggBogdan DraghiciWhat If? An Immersive StoryPatrick N.P. ConranShereif FattouhZain HomerJax LeeUntil DawnNicholas ChambersJack Hidde GlavimansAlex GaborOUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A COMMERCIALYouTube TV NFL Sunday Ticket: The Magic of SundayChris BayolJeremy BrooksLane JollyJacob BergmanDisney; Holidays 2024Adam DroyHelen TangChristian Baker-SteeleDavid FleetVirgin Media; Walrus WhizzerSebastian CaldwellIan BerryBen CroninAlex GreyCoca-Cola; The HeroesGreg McKneallyAntonia VlastoRyan KnowlesFabrice FiteniSix Kings Slam; Call of the KingsRyan KnowlesJoe BillingtonDean RobinsonGeorge SavvasOUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A SPECIAL VENUE PROJECTD23; Real-Time RocketEvan GoldbergAlyssa FinleyJason BrenemanAlice TaylorThe Goldau Landslide ExperienceRoman KaelinGianluca RavioliFlorian BaumannMTV Video Music Awards; Slim Shady LiveJo PlaeteSara MustafaCameron JacksonAndries CourteauxTokyo DisneySea; Peter Pan's Never Land AdventureMichael Sean FoleyKirk BodyfeltDarin HollingsBert KleinMaya VyasParis Olympics Opening Ceremony; RunBenjamin Le SterGilles De LusigmanGerome ViavantRomain TinturierOUTSTANDING CHARACTER IN A PHOTOREAL FEATUREBetter Man; Robbie WilliamsMilton RamirezAndrea MerloSeoungseok Charlie KimEteuati TemaKingdom of the Planet of the Apes; NoaRachael DunkAndrei CovalJohn SoreNiels Peter KaagaardKingdom of the Planet of the Apes; RakaSeoungseok Charlie KimGiorgio LafrattaTim TeramotoAidan MartinMufasa: The Lion King; TakaKlaus SkovboValentina RosselliEli De KoninckAmelie TalarmainOUTSTANDING CHARACTER IN AN ANIMATED FEATUREInside Out 2; AnxietyAlexander AlvaradoBrianne FranciscoAmanda WagnerBrenda Lin ZhangThe Wild Robot; RozFabio LigniniYukinori InagakiOwen DemersHyun HuhThelma The Unicorn; Vic DiamondGuillaume ArantesAdrien MonteroAnne-Claire LerouxGaspard RocheWallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl; GromitJo FentonAlison EvansAndy SymanowskiEmanuel NevadoOUTSTANDING CHARACTER IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, GAME CINEMATIC, OR REAL-TIME PROJECTSecret Level; Armored Core: Asset Management; Mech PilotZsolt VidaPter Krucsaignes VonaEnric Nebleza PaellaDiablo IV: Vessel of Hatred; NeyrelleChris BostjanickJames MaYeon-Ho LeeAtsushi IkarashiDisney; Holidays 2024; OctopusAlex DoylePhilippe MoineLewis PickstonAndrea LacedelliRonja the Robber's Daughter; Vildvittran the Queen HarpyNicklas AnderssonDavid AllanGustav hrenNiklas WallnOUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENT IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURECivil War; Washington, D.C.Matthew ChandlerJames HarmerRobert MooreAdrien ZeppieriDune: Part Two; The Arrakeen BasinDaniel RheinDaniel Anton FernandezMarc James AustinChristopher AnciaumeGladiator II; RomeOliver KaneStefano FarciJohn SeruFrederick ValleeWicked; The Emerald CityAlan LamSteve BevinsDeepali NegiMiguel Sanchez Lpez-RuzOUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENT IN AN ANIMATED FEATUREKung Fu Panda 4; Juniper CityBenjamin LippertRyan PrestridgeSarah VawterPeter MaynezThe Wild Robot; The ForestJohn WakeHe Jung ParkWoojin ChoiShane GladingTransformers One; Iacon CityAlex PopescuGeoffrey LebretonRyan KirbyHussein NabeelWallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl; AqueductMatt PerryDave Alex RiddettMatt SandersHoward JonesOUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENT IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, GAME CINEMATIC, OR REAL-TIME PROJECTDune: Prophecy; Pilot; The Imperial PalaceScott CoatesSam BesseauVincent l'HeureuxLourenco AbreuDune: Prophecy; Two Wolves; Zimia SpaceportNils WeisbrodDavid AnastacioRene BorstRuben ValenteShgun; OsakaManuel MartinezPhil HanniganKeith MaloneFrancesco CorvinoThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power; Season 2; Doomed to Die; EregionYordan PetrovBertrand CabrolLea DesrozierKaran DhandhaOUTSTANDING CG CINEMATOGRAPHYBetter ManBlair BurkeShweta BhatnagarTim WalkerCraig YoungDune: Part Two; ArrakisGreig FraserXin Steve GuoSandra MurtaBen WiggsHouse of the Dragon; Season 2; The Red Dragon and the Gold; Battle at Rook's RestMatt PerrinJames ThompsonJacob DoehnerP.J. DillonKingdom of the Planet of the Apes ; Egg ClimbDennis YooAngelo PerrottaSamantha ErickstadMiae KangOUTSTANDING MODEL IN A PHOTOREAL OR ANIMATED PROJECTAlien: Romulus; Renaissance Space StationWaldemar BartkowiakTrevor WideMatt MiddletonBen ShearmanDeadpool & Wolverine; Ant-Man ArenaCarlos Flores GomezCorinne DyChris ByrnesGerald BlaiseDune: Part Two; The Harkonnen HarvesterAndrew HodgsonTimothy RussellErik LehmannLouie ChoGladiator II; The ColosseumOliver KaneMarnie PittsCharlotte FargierLaurie PriestOUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATUREDune: Part Two; Atomic Explosions and WormridingNicholas PapworthSandy la TourelleLisa NolanChristopher PhillipsKingdom of the Planet of the Apes; Burning Village, Rapids and FloodsAlex NowotnyClaude SchitterFrdric ValleurKevin KelmTwistersMatthew HangerJoakim ArnessonLaurent KermelZheng Yong OhVenom: The Last Dance; Water, Fire & Symbiote EffectsXavi Martin RamirezOscar DahlenHedi NamarYuri YangOUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN ANIMATED FEATUREKung Fu Panda 4Jinguang HuangZhao WangHamid ShahsavariJoshua LaBrotMoana 2Zoran StojanoskiJesse EricksonShamintha Kalamba ArachchiErin V. RamosThe Wild RobotDerek CheungMichael LosureDavid ChowNyoung KimUltraman: RisingGoncalo CabacaZheng Yong OhNicholas Yoon Joo KuangPraveen BoppanaOUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, GAME CINEMATIC, OR REAL-TIME PROJECTAvatar: The Last Airbender; Legends; KoizillaIoan BoieriuDavid StopfordPer BalaySaysana RintharamyShgun; Broken to the Fist; LandslideDominic TiedekenHeinrich LweCharles GuertonTimmy LundinStar Wars: Skeleton Crew; Pilot; Spaceship Hillside TakeoffTravis HarkleroadXiaolong PengMarcella BrownMickael RiciottiThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power; Season 2; Shadow and Flame; Balrog Fire and Collapsing CliffKoenraad HofmeesterMiguel Perez SenentMiguel Santana Da SilvaBilly CopleyThree Body Problem; Judgement DayYves D'IncauGavin TemplerMartin ChabannesEloi Andaluz FullOUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN A FEATUREBetter ManMark McNichollGordon Spencer de HasethEva SnyderMarkus ReithofferDune: Part Two; Wormriding, Geidi Prime, and the Final BattleChristopher RickardFrancesco Dell'AnnaPaul ChapmanRyan WingKingdom of the Planet of the ApesJoerg BruemmerZachary BrakeTim WalkerKaustubh A. PatilThe Wild RobotSondra L. VerlanderBaptiste Van OpstalEszter OffertalerAustin CasaleOUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN AN EPISODEShgun; Broken to the Fist; LandslideBenjamin BernonDouglas RoshamnVictor KirschCharlie RaudStar Wars: Skeleton Crew; Episode 6; JawsRich GrandeTomas LefebvreIan DodmanRey ReynoldsThe Boys; Season 4; Life Among the SepticsTristan ZerafaMike StadnyckyjToshi KosakaRajeev BRThe Penguin; After HoursJonas StuckenbrockKaren ChangEugene BondarMiky GirnOUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN A COMMERCIALVirgin Media; Walrus WhizzerSebastian CaldwellAlex GreyKanishk ChouhanShubham MehtaCoca-Cola; The HeroesRyan KnowlesAlex GabucciJack PowellDan YarcigiCorcept; MarionetteYongchan KimArman MatinYoon BaeRajesh KaushikDisney; Holidays 2024Christian Baker-SteeleLuke WarpusPritesh KotianJack HarrisOUTSTANDING SPECIAL (PRACTICAL) EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL PROJECTBlitzHayley WilliamsDavid EvesAlex FreemanDavid WatsonConstellationMartin GoeresJohara RaukampLion David BogusLeon MarkThe Penguin; Safe GunsDevin MaggioJohnny HanCory CandrilliAlexandre Prod'hommeEMERGING TECHNOLOGY AWARDDune: Part Two; Nuke CopyCatBen KentGuillaume GalesMairead GroganJohanna BarbierFuriosa: A Mad Max Saga; Artist-driven Machine Learning CharacterJohn BastianBen WardThomas RowntreeRobert BeveridgeHere; Neural Performance ToolsetJo PlaeteOriel FrigoTomas KoutskyMatteo Oliviero DancyMufasa: The Lion King; Real-Time Interactive Filmmaking, From Stage To PostCallum JamesJames HoodLloyd BishopBruno PedrinhaThe Penguin; Phase Synced Flash-Gun SystemJohnny HanJefferson HanJoseph MenafraMichael PynnOUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A STUDENT PROJECTDawn (entry from ESMA cole Suprieure Des Mtiers Artistiques)Noah MercierApolline RoyerLorys StoraMarie PradeillesStudent Accomplice (entry from Brigham Young University)Spencer BlanchardLisa BirdAnson SavageKiara SpencerPittura (entry from ARTFX Schools of Digital Arts)Lauriol AdamLassre TitouanVivenza RmiMarre HellosCourage (entry from Supinfocom Rubika)Salom CognonMargot JacquetNathan BaudryLise DelcroixAs previously announced, special honorees at the 23rd Annual VES Award include: Golden Globe nominee and Emmy Award-winning actor-producer Hiroyuki Sanada, receiving the VES Award for Creative Excellence; Academy Award-winning director and Visual Effects Supervisor Takashi Yamazaki receiving the VES Visionary Award; and acclaimed Virtual Reality/Immersive Technology Pioneer Dr. Jacquelyn Ford Morie receiving the VES Georges Mlis Award.Source: Visual Effects Society Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.

During World War II, children were evacuated from British cities to the countryside and other countries to escape German aerial bombings. This is the subject of the Apple TV+ production Blitz, now streaming, where a nine-year-old evacuee decides to journey back home to reunite with his mother. To recreate this historical period, filmmaker Steve McQueen relied upon the skills of Production Designer Adam Stockhausen, Costume Designer Jacqueline Durran, and Visual Effects Supervisor Andrew Whitehurst. Both Whitehurst and McQueen share Fine Arts backgrounds, and a love of painting, which influenced their creative collaboration.Steve had not previously done a film with significant visual effects, says Whitehurst. What I hope I was able to do was talk to him in a more artist-to-artist way rather than making things unnecessarily technical. Most of our initial conversations were creatively driven. Steve is collaborative and wants you to bring ideas. That relationship allowed me to do quick storyboards and say, This is what we had in mind. That helped us establish a visual lexicon quickly. My first conversations with Steve were about atmosphere, smoke, sparks in the air, and debris - the sort of textural stuff. This was how I hoped to get him onboard with using visual effects, which can sometimes feel like an alienating discipline for a director.While historical authenticity was important, McQueen describes Blitz as a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. According to Whitehurst, We always started with historical truth and then asked, What do we want the shot to evoke? What are we trying to make the audience feel at this point? How can the way we light it help that? If we add two small bits of fire still burning in one building, what does that do emotionally? In the films last shot, one destroyed house in the background has a wash line with laundry blowing on it. That may not have happened on that street, but it adds humanity and a connection to something we all understand.Establishing shots were entirely CGI to achieve the necessary scope and narrative context. The wide shots were built from the ground up with a destroyed city in mind, Whitehurst explains. The first establishing shots are over the docks in East London. We used accurate pre-war maps to recreate the street and dock layouts. Since the docks were filled in after the war, and houses now sit on them, it wasnt like we could take a helicopter, film the real locations, and change a few things. Its a profoundly different place.Everything was driven by the desired final cinematic result. By understanding the intended feeling of the finished shot, you can work backward to build it effectively without wasting time on unnecessary details, Whitehurst observes. We dont have the time or budget to build every nut and bolt of East London just to cover it with smoke. I feel horrible anytime something is built that doesnt end up on screen.Street-level destruction was shown in firefighting scenes. We LiDAR-scanned set builds and photographed period-appropriate buildings to create digital variations of the practical sets, says Whitehurst. [Special Effects Supervisor] Hayley Williams team provided real flames for reference in our effects simulations. The only additions without special effects reference were big background smoke columns drifting across the city, for which we used newsreel footage as inspiration. A bombing at Londons Caf de Paris required an elaborate set build focused on the ground floor. Theres a wide shot looking down through tall awnings into the bombed-out caf - thats a matte painting I created over the photography, says Whitehurst. At ground level, most effects were practical, in-camera with some paint out. But we digitally removed the odd blink here and there from actors portraying the dead. When people are pulling earrings off them, its a big ask not to react.People fleeing the bombing often found refuge in the subway tunnels. One tunnel flooding scene was done mostly practical. The production wanted to do as much of the flood practically as possible, so a couple of decommissioned Tube stations in London often used [in productions] wasnt possible, says Whitehurst. Hayleys team built two two-ton dump tanks to release water through the Tube station sets roof. High-volume pumps circulated the warm water through the set. Everything was done practically. Stunt performers were pulled by cables to help sell the strong currents, but child actors only waded through waist-high water, with torrential effects added later using plates and some CG water to tie everything together.The film features 500 visual effects shots, evenly split between Cinesite and Raynault VFX, with ILM stepping in at the end to fill editorial gaps. Post-production took about a year, notes Whitehurst. Each VFX house was assigned distinct assets so they could build them in their own way and avoid the need to share. Nine-year-old Elliott Hefferman made his cinematic debut as the lead. Elliott was a total pro, says Whitehurst. Hes an old soul in a young body. He reacted to practical sets and locations with ease. If we said, It will feel like a stronger current later, he understood. Elliott was fantastic.Whitehursts design process was often ad hoc. I like to take screengrabs from the Avid and paint over them in Procreate or Photoshop, he explains. I did a bunch of scenes where Steve would say, Im not sure why this concept isnt quite working. What can we do? Once we were feeling good and aligned on a vision, Id share them with VFX houses and say, This is the work in progress shot that I painted over the top. I added smoke here. It gave them a clear direction for the next iteration.I did storyboards in sketchbooks, which I show to Steve and asked, Is this what you want? he adds. Then I would take a picture of it, send it to ILM and say, Thats the framing.Principal photography occurred across London and in big, elaborate set builds with greenscreens used for digital extensions. St. Pauls Cathedral had been sandblasted clean in the 1980s, but in 1940 it was filthy from industrial smoke and smog rather than from bomb damage, says Whitehurst. We had to dirty up nice, clean stone fronted buildings to be period correct, adjust street signage, and remove modern elements like skylights and ringing video doorbells. Most of the vehicles were practical; there was a good number of period cars and trucks kept in good condition, as well as buses. There are a couple CG buses. All the stores needed fixing. A lot of that was done by the art department, but for shots out of a moving bus, visual effect sorted that all out. Even the smaller street scenes required augmentation. Most people living in London who want more housing space have extended up into their loft, so theyve got skylights in their roofs, he adds. There was a lot of work to make a real Victorian street look like an actual 1940 Victorian street.Digital doubles were sparingly used. We shot some old-school sprite crowds for backgrounds, says Whitehurst. For instance, George jumping off a train was filmed in a backlot with a stunt performer, onto a greenscreen with a wind machine. For the wide shot, the distance was long enough that there was no need for a face replacement, due to the aesthetic style of the camera work. We didnt need any digital doubles. The vista shots were the hardest because there was nowhere to hide. Theyre long shots so you spend plenty of time looking at them, Whitehurst notes. The rest of the work was difficult because effects simulations are hard, and building environments or set extensions with the fidelity of the needed texture is tricky. Lighting them appropriately is difficult as well. Blitz was shot with Panavision C Series lenses which are beautiful but give compositors a harder time than modern glass. Nothing was a surprise in terms of what I thought would be easy but turned out not to be, or vice versa. Surprises came in realizing places where we needed additional shots, which is where ILM stepped in. The did five extra fully CG shots.Whitehurst, who has lived in London for quite some time, is familiar with much of what happened in the city during World War II. Recreating that period of history was emotionally affecting. The Tube flooding happened in Balham, which is an area of London about a mile and a half from where Im talking to you now, he remarks. I knew about that because its a noted piece of local history. When you walk around the city, youre aware of the history of the bomb damage because buildings still have shrapnel marks, or destroyed buildings have been replaced with something modern. The thing that was most surprising was how emotionally affecting confronting this became. We did some additional photography when George runs down a real street in Stepney, and from a crane up in the rooftops, you can see bomb-damaged Victorian terraces and where theyd been repaired with cement, alongside apartment blocks built in the 1950s when funds became available to rebuild, Whitehurst reflects. Digitally restoring the damage to the houses and imagining the belongings of the people who lived there was profoundly moving. It made the history feel viscerally real. Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer best known for composing in-depth filmmaker and movie profiles for VFX Voice, Animation Magazine, and British Cinematographer.

LOS ANGELES The Academy has just announced updates to its 97th Oscars key dates and schedule of events due to the impact of the Los Angeles-area fires.Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said:We are all devastated by the impact of the fires and the profound losses experienced by so many in our community. The Academy has always been a unifying force within the film industry, and we are committed to standing together in the face of hardship.Due to the still-active fires in the Los Angeles area, we feel it is necessary to extend our voting period and move the date of our nominations announcement to allow additional time for our members.Additionally, as we want to be sensitive to the infrastructure and lodging needs of the region in these next few weeks, it is imperative that we make some changes to our schedule of events, which we believe will have the support of our industry.Our members always share how important it is for us to come together as a community, and we are determined to use this opportunity to celebrate our resilient and compassionate industry. We also look forward to honoring our frontline workers who have aided with the fires, recognizing those impacted, and encouraging people to join the Academy in supporting the relief efforts.We will get through this together and bring a sense of healing to our global film community.Updates are outlined as follows:The Oscars nominations voting period is extended through Friday, January 17, at 5 p.m. PT.The Oscars Nominations Announcement is rescheduled for Thursday, January 23, at 5:30 a.m. PT. The live announcement will be a virtual event without in-person media coverage.The Oscars Nominees Luncheon, scheduled for Monday, February 10, will not be held this year.The Scientific and Technical Awards, scheduled for Tuesday, February 18, will be rescheduled to a later date yet to be determined.Please note that all dates are subject to change.The 97th Oscars will still be held on Sunday, March 2, 2025, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood and will be televised live at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on ABC, streamed live on Hulu and air live in more than 200 territories worldwide.Source: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.

Sony Corporation has announced the launch of XYN, an integrated software and hardware solution designed to support the creation of spatial content. Leveraging Sony's imaging, sensing, and display technologies, XYN accurately captures real-world objects, human motion, and backgrounds, recreating them in virtual environments for 3DCG production.By supporting a wide range of third-party tools, it enables flexible workflows. XYN will support intuitive and efficient spatial content creation for a diverse range of creators.XYN Motion Studio is a PC application which supports connection with 12 mocopi sensors and utilizes Sony's proprietary algorithms for automatic motion interpolation and auto-tagging functions. It will be available in late March 2025. The mobile motion capture system mocopi has been utilized by VTubers and VR social platform users as well as creators in game, film, and animation production. The new XYN Motion Studio enhances precision through connections with 12 sensors via dedicated receivers (professional mode). The application also adds new functions for motion data, editing, making motion capture more affordable and accessible to creators across various genres.XYN Spatial capture solution will convert high-quality, photorealistic 3DCG assets from real-world objects and spaces using images captured by mirrorless cameras and proprietary algorithms. Additionally, a prototype for a mobile application that visualizes the shooting conditions of the mirrorless camera in real-time is also under development. This will streamline the 3DCG production workflow for films, games, virtual production, and the metaverse for objects such as props, items, and spatial backgrounds.Additionally, the "XYN Headset" prototype is an immersive spatial content creation system equipped with high-quality 4K OLED microdisplays and video see-through function, optimized for intuitive creative work in spatial content creation. It will support various 3D production software, including pre-visualization and 3D character modeling, not only in the field of industrial design but also in entertainment, and a proof-of-concept experiment using the prototype is underway with Sony Pictures Animation.Experience the world of XYN at Sony's booth at CES 2025 from January 7-10.Check out a concept video for XYN now: Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologistL'Wrenbrings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

The Art Directors Guild (ADG, IATSE Local 800) has announced the nominees for its 29th Annual Excellence in Production Design Awards. The ceremony, hosted by actress and comedian Rachael Harris, will take place on February 15, 2025, at the InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown.The ADG Awards celebrate excellence in production design across theatrical motion pictures, television, commercials, music videos, and animated feature films. The 2025 Cinematic Imagery Award will be presented to Academy Award-nominated director and filmmaker Jason Reitman, whose body of work includes Juno, Up in the Air and Saturday Night.This years nominees showcase the incredible artistry and vision that define our craft and our industry. Were thrilled to bring the Guild together to celebrate the achievements of these incredible Production Designers and their Art Departments, says award show producers Michael Allen Glover, ADG, and Megan Elizabeth Bell, ADG, in a joint statement.In addition, the ADG will honor Lisa Frazza, Barbara Mesney, Dan Sweetman, and J. Dennis Washington with Lifetime Achievement Awards. Legendary production designer Carl Jules Weyl will be inducted into the ADG Hall of Fame as part of the ceremony.The awards nominees for selected category are as follows; the entire list can be found here:FEATURE FILM NOMINEES:PERIOD FEATURE FILMA Complete UnknownProduction Designer: Franois AudouyThe BrutalistProduction Designer: Judy BeckerGladiator IIProduction Designer: Arthur MaxNosferatuProduction Designer: Craig LathropSaturday NightProduction Designer: Jess GonchorFANTASY FEATURE FILMAlien: RomulusProduction Designer: Naaman MarshallBeetlejuice BeetlejuiceProduction Designer: Mark ScrutonDune: Part TwoProduction Designer: Patrice VermetteFuriosa: A Mad Max SagaProduction Designer: Colin GibsonWickedProduction Designer: Nathan CrowleyCONTEMPORARY FEATURE FILMCivil WarProduction Designer: Caty MaxeyConclaveProduction Designer: Suzie DaviesEmilia PrezProduction Designer: Emmanuelle DuplayThe SubstanceProduction Designer: Stanislas ReydelletTwistersProduction Designer: Patrick M. SullivanANIMATED FEATURE FILMFlowArt Director: Gints ZilbalodisInside Out 2Production Designer: Jason DeamerMoana 2Production Designer: Ian GoodingWallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most FowlProduction Designer: Matt PerryThe Wild RobotProduction Designer: Raymond ZibachTELEVISION NOMINEES:ONE-HOUR PERIOD SINGLE-CAMERA SERIESBridgerton: Old Friends, Romancing Mister Bridgerton, Into the LightProduction Designer: Alison GartshoreOne Hundred Years of Solitude: Remedios MoscoteProduction Designers: Brbara Enriquez, Eugenio CaballeroPachinko: Chapter 13Production Designer: Ruth AmmonPalm Royale: Maxines Like a DellacorteProduction Designer: Jon CarlosShgun: AnjinProduction Designer: Helen JarvisONE-HOUR FANTASY SINGLE-CAMERA SERIESDune: Prophecy: The Hidden HandProduction Designer: Tom MeyerFallout: The EndProduction Designer: Howard CummingsHouse of the Dragon: SmallfolkProduction Designer: Jim ClayThe Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power: Shadow and FlameProduction Designer: Kristian MilstedSilo: Solo, HarmoniumProduction Designer: Nicole NorthridgeONE-HOUR CONTEMPORARY SINGLE-CAMERA SERIESThe Gentlemen: Tackle Tommy Woo WooProduction Designer: Martyn JohnMr. & Mrs. Smith: A BreakupProduction Designer: Gerald SullivanSlow Horses: ReturnsProduction Designer: Choi Ho ManSquid Game: Six Legs, O XProduction Designer: Chae Kyoung-sunYellowstone: Desire is All You Need, Three Fifty-Three, Give the World AwayProduction Designer: Yvonne BoudreauxLIMITED SERIESAgatha All AlongProduction Designer: John CollinsFeud: Capote vs. The SwansProduction Designer: Mark RickerThe PenguinProduction Designer: Kalina IvanovRipleyProduction Designer: David GropmanTrue Detective: Night CountryProduction Designer: Daniel TaylorHALF HOUR SINGLE-CAMERA SERIESEmily in Paris: The Grey Area, All Roads Lead to RomeProduction Designer: Anne SeibelHacks: Just For Laughs, Better LateProduction Designer: Daniel NovotnyOnly Murders in the Building: Gates of Heaven, Valley of the DollsProduction Designer: Patrick HoweShrinking: Jimmying, I Love Pain, Psychological Something-ismProduction Designer: Cabot McMullenWhat We Do in the Shadows: HeadhuntingProduction Designer: Shayne FoxCOMMERCIALSApple Pay: PlatesProduction Designer: Franois AudouyBvlgari: Eternally RebornProduction Designer: Freyja BardellDr Pepper: Into the Great UnknownProduction Designer: Mark SnelgroveGucci Flora: Gorgeous OrchidProduction Designer: Jordan FerrerNBA Finals The ToastProduction Designer: Dylan KahnMUSIC VIDEOSCharli XCX and Billie Eilish: GuessProduction Designer: Hugh Charles ZeiglerEminem: HoudiniProduction Designer: Brandon MendezKendrick Lamar: Not Like UsProduction Designer: Freyja BardellSabrina Carpenter: TasteProduction Designer: Grant ArmstrongTaylor Swift featuring Post Malone: FortnightProduction Designer: Ethan TobmanTELEVISION MOVIEApartment 7AProduction Designer: Simon BowlesDescendents: The Rise of RedProduction Designer: Mark HofelingThe KillerProduction Designer: Aline BonettoMsicaProduction Designer: Patrick M. SullivanUnfrostedProduction Designer: Clayton HartleySource: The Art Directors Guild Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.

Released late last year by Joseph Bell, who was unhappy and frustrated by the lack of clear, objective information about the VFX industry, the Visual Effects World Atlas provides a unique, comprehensive research report and overview of artists who work in the global visual effects industry, an industry that supports the creative works of film studios, streamers, and branded content creators.Bell provides a unique voice in visual effects, combining 20 years of hands-on experience at some of the most respected studios in the field including Industrial Light & Magic, The Mill, and FuseFX with a global view of industry trends and business dynamics.Available free of charge in the hope that it will help foster a sense of global community among VFX artists, the atlas can be downloaded hereor atvfxatlas.com.We recently had a chance to chat with Bell about his sorely needed, unique research efforts, how the atlas was produced, and what his plans are for updates and related industries.AWN: What led you to create this atlas? Why, and what were your goals?Joseph Bell: Visual Effects have grown into a multi-billion-dollar global industry in a relatively short span of years. And yet we rarely talk about VFX as an industry. Its much easier to find information on how state-of-the-art VFX are created than it is to find information about global trends impacting hundreds of VFX studios and tens of thousands of VFX professionals worldwide.There are conversations that were simply not having as a professional community. My goal with the Atlas is to start building a shared understanding of the VFX industry, one that is grounded in data rather than hearsay and marketing. I hope the Atlas will foster a sense of community that spans borders and time zones. I also want to make it normal to talk openly and publicly about important industry trends, and how VFX businesses are responding to them. The Atlas is a first step in that direction.AWN: How did you produce it can you breakdown the type of research you did, where you found numbers, and how you extrapolated data? JB: The Atlas was created almost entirely using publicly available data from the internet. This allowed me to identify over 55,000 individuals around the world who work in visual effects, including their job title, location, and company affiliation. Obviously, the data doesnt include every person in the VFX industry globally. But it is a rather large and detailed sample!Theres an idea that VFX companies are the only source of accurate information for something like this. To be honest, I think thats a naive view. Many companies would have concerns about revealing details of their internal staffing, and, from a marketing perspective, they all want to look as large and as capable as possible. The approach used for the Atlas sidesteps these issues entirely.I wanted to leave plenty of room for readers to draw their own conclusions from the data. Thats why theres a limited amount of commentary and interpretation in the pages of the Atlas but there are plenty of data tables to browse. I avoided extrapolating the data as much as possible, trying to be totally upfront with readersabout what it does and does not show.AWN: How long did it take to produce, who was involved can you provide any details about the actual process.JB: The Atlas itselftook about three months to produce. I started gathering data in May 2024, but it wasnt until a few months into the project that I realized there was enough to share in an ebook rather than a few charts and graphs.This first edition of the Atlas was created by a very small team. I cleaned the raw data personally, combing through a 55,000-row spreadsheet line by line several times. Did you know that many photographers around the world call their shingle Blur Studio? And a lot of heavy machinery operators work for companies named MPC? I screened out over 12,000 extraneous entries from the data to get to the 55,000 that were used for the Atlas. I then used Tableau software to generate the maps and charts.My wife did all the design and layout work for the Atlas and the website. I also hired two researchers, one in India and the other in Vietnam, to contribute to the coverage of those countries (you can hear from them directly in the Atlas). And, of course, several people kindly wrote pieces, including the foreword by Jeff Okun and various spotlight articles on specific countries. AWN: What do you hope people use this for? And how do you suggest people use this information?JB: The Atlas should be useful for anyone who wants an overview of the VFX industry. Students planning their careers in VFX, investors and journalists trying to grasp the shape of the industry, recruiters looking at demand for and availability of talent, perhaps even managers at VFX studios navigating the business landscape.I think of the Atlas as being like the first ever photograph of the Earth from space. Well certainly be able to capture higher resolution images in the future, but they probablywon't have quite the same impact. If people take away just one thing from the Atlas, I hope its that Visual Effects is a truly global endeavor. Whether you are in Sydney, Mumbai, Toronto, London, or somewhere else entirely, you have industry colleagues around the world who share your passion for the work, and face many of the same challenges.My other suggestion is to use the information to get comfortable talking with colleagues about data. People are rightly skeptical of questionable data and data-driven decision-making that flies in the face of common sense. Data is never perfect, but it can still provide crucial insights. Were at a disadvantage as an industry if we turn our back on tools that thrive in other sectors.AWN: Whats next?JB: Ill produce an expanded second edition of the Atlas this year, assuming theres enough interest. Between now and then, I plan to refresh the data every few months, tracking movement across the industry over time. I think this will be fascinating. People are also asking for a similar treatment of Animation and Video Game studios rest assured, thats on the way.My bigger project is shifting the conversation in the VFX industry. I hope to do some traveling in the coming year, present the work at conferences, and find industry colleagues around the world who see value in opening up discussion of VFX as an industry. The Atlas is just the beginning. Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.

Enhancing safety, reducing costs, and maximizing creative freedom compared to traditional methods, the new system offers an all-in-one solution for filming vehicles using virtual production in any setting.

VFX and animation studio MPC brought Disney's characters and the African savannah to life in the recently released CG feature Mufasa: The Lion King. Under the leadership of director Barry Jenkins, the studio blended artistry and leading-edge technology to capture the story's heart and soul.Production VFX supervisor Adam Valdez, animation supervisor Daniel Fotheringham, VFX producer Barry St. John, VFX supervisor Audrey Ferrara, and VFX producers Georgie Duncan and Benny Milligan led a team of over 1,700 artists, technologists, and production crew across four continents.The films production leveraged innovative tools and techniques, including virtual production and motion-capture during pre-production. Despite COVID-19 restrictions, the team collaborated remotely across London, New York, and Los Angeles, using VR to navigate digital environments. Motion-capture performers' movements were mapped onto digital animals. Jenkins was able to direct performances live using Unreal Engine real-time animated feeds. To create a blueprint for our final animation our motion capture shoot involved multiple performers playing Mufasa, Sarabi, Taka, Rafiki and even Zazu says Valdez. They wore motion capture suits, and through a process we call QuadCap, their movements were mapped onto digital lion characters. This technology aligned the performers head and spine movements to the lions head and neck, their legs to the lions front legs, and simulated the lions back legs and hips to follow. Barry could then watch a live feed of the lions on screen through Unreal Engine, allowing him to give real-time performance and camera notes to the actors and DP.We added facial expressions and lip sync to enhance characters performances. Fotheringham noted, then Barry could walk through the recorded sequence in VR making notes before we could wrap it up to be shot virtually. Performances with complex animal mechanics, like fighting or leaping were then integrated into the Quadcap performances and into the virtual sets, creating a complete master scene that Barry and James could shoot from any angle. This innovative blending of live-action filmmaking techniques and visual effects became a defining feature of the entire production. MPCs Character Lab team crafted over 118 photorealistic unique animals, each built from the ground up using anatomically precise bone and muscle structure. MPCs proprietary grooming system, Loma, created lifelike fur with an unprecedented number of hairs that could react naturally to environmental elements like snow, wind and water. Meanwhile, MPCs animators delivered performances rich in emotional depth and authenticity.The studios Environment artists crafted expansive African landscapes through scouting trips, photogrammetry, and hand-sculpting. They designed plains, canyons, and forests, capturing every detail from weathered rocks to blades of grass. To manage the vast scale, they developed a 107 square-mile digital world, rendered with photorealistic detail.Source: MPC Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologistL'Wrenbrings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

The upcoming season of the hit series, based on Naughty Dogs PlayStation video game franchise, will debut this April on HBO, also streaming on Max.

Maxon, the software solution for 2D/3D design, motion graphics, visual effects, and other areas of visual content creation, has acquired Laubwerk, the Berlin-based CG software company that offers procedural 3D plant models. Hundreds of detailed 3D greenery and botanical assets, materials, and tools will join the Maxon creative workflow.With the Laubwerk team joining Maxon, they bring synergies that will result in even greater innovation in our products and enhanced creative possibilities for artists, said David McGavran, CEO of Maxon. Laubwerks vast library of plants and trees, some of which we already added to Maxon One as part of our long-standing partnership, is widely used by artists working in architectural visualization and visual effects. Their solutions and extensive experience will be instrumental in supporting our efforts to accelerate artists workflows by delivering ready-to-use, parametric assets to help kickstart their projects.The acquisition of Laubwerk is a natural and exciting extension of our long-standing partnership, said Philip Losch, Chief Technology and Product Officer at Maxon. Their expertise in high-quality 3D plant modeling complements our own technologies perfectly. Together, we can enhance the creative capabilities and workflows of our users around the world.The move is part of Maxon's ongoing Capsules project, which seeks to provide artists with essential assets to jumpstart creativity. Maxon One subscribers will already have access to a selection of Laubwerk's Redshift-ready trees and plants directly within the Cinema 4D Asset Browser.Laubwerk's mission has always been to create the most authentic, versatile, easy to use digital plant models, grounded in the expertise of experienced landscape architects and botanical experts, said Philip Paar, CEO and Founder of Laubwerk. Our previous collaboration with Maxon has been incredibly rewarding and our relationship has always been characterized by a shared passion for innovation and a commitment to enhancing the creative process for digital artists. Joining forces with Maxon allows us to leverage their extensive resources and reach, enabling us to elevate our offerings and continue pushing the envelope in 3D plant modeling and visualization. We look forward to the incredible new possibilities this union will bring to the industry.Following the integration with Laubwerk, a broader range of assets will become available to subscribers in the future. Further developments for existing Laubwerk customers will also be announced at a later date.Source: Maxon Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologistL'Wrenbrings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

Conventional wisdom is not something that filmmaker Robert Zemeckis routinely follows as he pushes the boundaries of technology and cinematic language to pursue his creative vision. Based on the graphic novel of the same name by Richard McGuire, Here chronicles the entire history of a plot of land from primeval to contemporary times. The various storylines are intercut with each other from a singular camera perspective that doesnt change until the concluding shot. Frequent Zemeckis collaborator Kevin Baillie brought DNEG on as the main visual effects vendor with tasks ranging from creating the Dinosaur/Ice Age sequence and a massive tidal wave to a photoreal CG neighborhood environment and an AI tool to assist with the scene transitions from era to era.Setting everything in motion is the four-minute opening sequence that showcases roaming dinosaurs, the meteorite shower that led to their extinction, the Ice Age that engulfed the entire planet, and the renewal of life that followed. That shot was the one we started the project with, and it could have been the last one we finalled, states Alexander Seaman, VFX Supervisor, DNEG. It sums up the broader design aspects of cinematography that we had to continue through the whole show and also the minutia of detail that we needed to think about. The fact that its telling a story over such a long period of time was a challenge enough. Having cinematography where the camera [does not move or shift focus] while still trying to tell something thats exciting and dramatic was another challenge in itself.The first step in producing the sequence was to assemble an animatic. Its made up of about five to six substories which were split into subshots that had appropriate names such as Ice Age and Dino, explains Seaman. We worked on the subshots independently, bringing them all up to the same level, and stitched them together so we could talk to editorial; that went back and forth through the year we were working on it. We did quite a few iterations to make sure youre passing through the right period of time over the right amount of time. As a colleague of mine echoed to me recently, one of the biggest challenges of a static camera is everything has to move all the time in the shot. You have to have bugs crawling on branches. You always have to have your eye wanting to go somewhere. The idea is if you saw the shot five or six times you could still find something to concentrate on and go, I havent seen that before. Development of the scene transitions took place in post-production, in particular for the moments that take place in the interior of the house that gets built on the plot of land. Originally, they started out wanting to have everything morph inside the room or maybe a stool appears for a brief instance, or a TV set changes in the background, remarks Martine Bertrand, Senior Researcher of AI, DNEG. You see some intermediate states of the room as youre traversing these different time periods. Crafting manual transitions would take forever, so the decision was made to develop an AI tool to assist. Generative AI had come out just months before that and these tools were not as evolved as they are today, Bertrand says. We had to generate these intermediate states that still looked like a room, but a slightly different one, because it evolves over time. There was no set recipe to achieve this.I set out on a few months long journey experimenting with the code and tools, and interacting with Johnny Gibson [VFX Supervisor, DNEG] trying to establish this visual language, he continues. Initially it was jaunty. Everything was jumping all over the place. As time went on, by mastering the various parts of these technologies that were available to us, the tool came together. We understood how to create a melting type of transition and string this together with refinement passes to get a more realistic feel and look to the image. Custom tools were constructed inside Nuke in collaboration with the visual effects artists to generate the transitions quickly. According to Bertrand, When the tool came to fruition, we were able to generate hundreds of transitions per day and select those that were interesting to us rather than have one transition in two or three weeks. Then we art directed and modified them. By experimenting, the artists discovered that there were other uses and that triggered an avalanche of possible solutions for various shows.Sharing that dealing with destruction and dinosaurs was fun, Seamon notes, The tricky thing when doing stuff like that is not to reference other CG projects. You have to start looking as best you can at reality, history, and museums for the dinosaurs. It was a popular set of shots for the artists to work on, but it was very complex work. He goes on to say that the macro level of destruction is where real difficulty occurs, such as with leaves and branches, as Baillie wanted to art direct a specific simulation in a particular way. Normally, that is not too much trouble, but when you have a shot that is 6,000 7,000 frames long and want to art direct a piece of the explosion to do something specific halfway through, it becomes unpredictable, and you dont know whats going to happen with the other half of the shot. We had to develop tools to effectively art direct effects simulations but then pick up again or start and stop them in a way that would allow art direction in the middle section instead of letting it simulate as you normally would on a 100-frame shot. Snow and ice were the most complex elemental effects. Because of the screen space and the distance in the volume, we kept having to art direct it as well as having the whole simulation run over a large number of frames, Seamon says. Ice has a difficult lighting model, where it reflects, sparkles and has different states of look depending on whether its snow or crystalized. A significant environmental component was the transforming neighborhood seen outside the living room windows, which contextualized the era being portrayed. Most of that was put together from the production art department, states Gibson. In the cases where we knew there were going to be digital replacements, we wanted to make sure to have the right color temperature from the lighting, so we didnt have to change the foreground that much. In terms of time periods, cars were parked in the background, houses had been destroyed or newly built, how much dirt and grime had been built up over the years, what weather systems are there, and what lighting is there, all of that was meticulously planned out before virtual production because of the interactive lighting scenario.For the final shot, the camera moves outside to reveal the exterior of the house along with the rest of the neighborhood. The design and conceit were the camera starts in the house and for the first time begins to move, remarks Seaman. It was meant to be so subtle that you dont notice it at first and then it surprises the audience because its a heartfelt moment. What was difficult was trying to keep the feeling of that heartfelt moment through the course of the shot. We had to do that in a way that settled on a peaceful happy well-maintained neighborhood that echoes the family that weve been watching. That in itself is not difficult. But when its an entirely CG shot, now were talking levels of difficulty. Kevin Baillie actually captured that shot in a neighborhood in Los Angeles, which became an essential piece of the kit for us to be able to deliver a photoreal shot. Once we established the camera move, the look of the composition became an exercise of adding layers and layers. Its like the dino shot. If you look at the shot five or six times you still wouldnt see all of the little stories that are happening. Down the street there is a woman pushing a baby, someone is sweeping leaves, and the hummingbird comes into the shot. You start to think, What about all of these other people? Throughout the film, the hummingbird is considered to be the spirit animal that appears in different eras. Most birds have a feather system, notes Gibson. But the problem with feathers on a hummingbird is that the feathers are moving so quickly that subframe motions wont suffice. That subframe information needs to be encoded into the entire arc of the wing motion so you have that impression of that figure eight infinity look of the path of the wing. I wouldnt say that the feather system was unique, but how much we had to make it exposed to a digital camera was. Once the camera began to move, transitioning seamlessly from inside the house to the outside via the window was especially tricky. We didnt have the glass when we shot it, reveals Gibson. We werent sure where the edges of the pane were because there was no guide there for the camera operator. We were divorced from the camera track before we approached the glass and that caused so many problems inside of the room. Extensive reconstruction had to be done digitally. Three quarters of the way through it's an entirely CG room, states Seaman. Mostly real actors but not completely. A de-aged Robin Wright created by Metaphysic was composited into the close-up shot of her responding to Tom Hanks, saying, Time sure flies. As Robin is delivering her line, Sure does, She is aging to the next scene, remarks Gibson. It's an amazing morph goal to try to capture someones performance while theyre changing their shape. This was massaged for weeks, much longer than we expected it to go because of necessity. Our compositing supervisor, Ivelina Dobreva, basically owned comping the shot and kept iterating. It took a lot of patience. Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer best known for composing in-depth filmmaker and movie profiles for VFX Voice, Animation Magazine, and British Cinematographer.

Disney is set to combine its Hulu + Live TV business with Fubo, forming a combined virtual MVPD company. The deal is subject to regulatory approvals, Fubo shareholder approval, and the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.Under the terms of the definitive agreement, Disney will own 70% of Fubo at closing. Disney, FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery will make an aggregate cash payment to Fubo of $220 million. Disney has also committed to provide a $145 million term loan to Fubo in 2026. A termination fee of $130 million will be payable to Fubo under certain circumstances, including if the deal fails to close due to the failure to obtain requisite regulatory approvals on the terms and conditions set forth in the definitive agreement.Fubos existing management team, led by co-founder and CEO David Gandler, will operate the newly combined Fubo and Hulu + Live TV businesses.We are thrilled to collaborate with Disney to create a consumer-first streaming company that combines the strengths of the Fubo and Hulu + Live TV brands, said Gandler. This combination enables us to deliver on our promise to provide consumers with greater choice and flexibility. Additionally, this agreement allows us to scale effectively, strengthens Fubos balance sheet and positions us for positive cash flow. Its a win for consumers, our shareholders, and the entire streaming industry.Fubo and Hulu + Live TV will continue to be available to consumers as separate offerings post-closing. Hulu + Live TV will continue to be streamed in the Hulu app and be offered as part of the bundle with Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+. Fubo, which streams more than 55,000 live sporting events annually, will continue to serve its subscribers in the Fubo app.This combination will allow both Hulu + Live TV and Fubo to enhance and expand their virtual MVPD offerings and provide consumers with even more choice and flexibility, said Justin Warbrooke, Executive Vice President and Head of Corporate Development, The Walt Disney Company. We have confidence in the Fubo management team and their ability to grow the business, delivering high-quality offerings that serve subscribers with the content they want and offering great value.In connection with the deal, Disney will enter into a new carriage agreement with Fubo that will allow for the creation of a new Sports & Broadcast service, featuring Disneys premier sports and broadcast networks including ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, as well as ESPN+.Fubo has settled all litigation with Disney and ESPN related to Venu Sports, the previously announced sports streaming platform planned by ESPN, FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery. Fubo has also settled all litigation with FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery.Source: The Walt Disney Company Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologistL'Wrenbrings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

NEW YORK Getty Images Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: GETY) and Shutterstock (NYSE: SSTK) today announced that they entered into a definitive merger agreement to combine in a merger of equals transaction, creating a premier visual content company. The combined company, which would have an enterprise value of approximately $3.7 billion, will be named Getty Images Holdings, Inc and will continue to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol GETY.As a combined company, GettyImages and Shutterstock will offer a content library with greater depth and breadth for the benefit of customers, expanded opportunities for its contributor community and a reinforced commitment to the adoption of inclusive and representative content. Furthermore, the stronger financial profile of the combined company is expected to create increased capacity for product investment and innovation for customers in a fastevolving and highly competitive environment. Todays announcement is exciting and transformational for our companies, unlocking multiple opportunities to strengthen our financial foundation and invest in the futureincluding enhancing our content offerings, expanding event coverage, and delivering new technologies to better serve our customers, said Craig Peters, CEO, GettyImages. With the rapid rise in demand for compelling visual content across industries, there has never been a better time for our two businesses to come together. By combining our complementary strengths, we can better address customer opportunities while delivering exceptional value to our partners, contributors, and stockholders.We are excited by the opportunities we see to expand our creative content library and enhance our product offering to meet diverse customer needs, said Paul Hennessy, CEO, Shutterstock. We expect the merger to produce value for the customers and stockholders of both companies by capitalizing on attractive growth opportunities to drive combined revenues, accelerating product innovation, realizing significant cost synergies and improving cash flow. We look forward to working closely with the GettyImages management team to complete the transaction and drive the next chapter of growth.Strategic and Financial BenefitsCuttingedge innovation:Facilitates greater investment in innovative content creation, expanded event coverage, and customerfacing technologies and capabilities such as search, 3D imagery and generative AI. Complementary portfolios:Creates a broader set of visual content products across still imagery, video, music, 3D and other asset types.Expanded opportunities for content creators:Provides contributors substantially greater opportunities to reach customers around the world.Strengthened balance sheet and greater cash flow generation:By deleveraging the combined balance sheet through the transaction and driving more robust cash flow, the combined company will be well positioned to accelerate debt repayment, reduce borrowing costs, and capitalize on new opportunities to create value for customers and stockholders.Significant synergies:Drives expected run rate synergies across SG&A and CAPEX between $150 million and $200 million achieved within the first three years postclose, with approximately twothirds expected to be delivered within the first twelve to twentyfour months.Compelling Financial Profile: On a pro forma 2024 basis the combined company would have an attractive financial profile:Revenue of between $1,979 million and $1,993 million, including 46% of subscription revenuePresynergy EBITDA of between $569 million and $574 millionPresynergy Adjusted EBITDA less capital expenditures of between $461 million and $466 millionPresynergy net leverage of 3.0x pro forma 2024 presynergy EBITDALeadership and GovernanceAt close, GettyImages CEO, Craig Peters, will serve as CEO of the combined company. The combined company will have an 11member Board of Directors, comprised of GettyImages CEO Craig Peters, six directors designated by GettyImages and four directors designated by Shutterstock, including Paul Hennessy, Shutterstock CEO. The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the combined company will be Mark Getty, currently Chairman of GettyImages.Transaction DetailsUnder the terms of the agreement, which was unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies, Shutterstock stockholders at close can elect to receive one of the following:$28.84870 per share in cash for each share of Shutterstock common stock they own;13.67237 shares of GettyImages common stock for each share of Shutterstock common stock they own; ora mixed consideration of 9.17 shares of GettyImages common stock plus $9.50 in cash for each share of Shutterstock common stock they own.Shutterstock shareholder elections at close are subject to proration to ensure that the aggregate consideration payable by GettyImages consist of $9.50 in cash per Shutterstock share as of immediately before close and 9.17 shares of GettyImages stock per Shutterstock share as immediately before close.Based on the common shares outstanding as of the signing date, the aggregate consideration payable by GettyImages would consist of $331 million in cash and 319.4 million shares of GettyImages stock. These figures do not include the impact of unvested Shutterstock equity holders as of the signing date and do not assume any vesting of currentlyunvested Shutterstock equity holdings between signing and close.Shutterstock equity holders with unvested RSU and PSU grants at close will only be eligible to receive the mixed consideration noted above upon vesting with respect to such grants. Shutterstock option holders will have their options and strike prices adjusted by a ratio equal to the sum of (i) 9.17 and (ii) $9.50 divided by the 10day average closing stock price of GettyImages common stock for the period ending two (2) business days prior to the closing as quoted on NYSE. Equity treatment will take into account any employment contracts in place at the close of the transaction. Aggregate cash and share amounts are estimates and are subject to change between signing and close.At close, GettyImages stockholders will own approximately 54.7% and Shutterstock stockholders will own approximately 45.3% of the combined company on a fully diluted basis. Shutterstock will, at the discretion of its Board of Directors, continue to declare and pay quarterly cash dividends, in accordance with its dividend policy, pending the close of the transaction.Timing and ClosingThe transaction is subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals, the approval of GettyImages and Shutterstock stockholders and the extension or refinancing of GettyImages existing debt obligations. AdvisorsBerenson & Company, LLC is acting as lead financial advisor and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC is acting as a financial advisor to GettyImages and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP is serving as legal advisor. Allen & Company LLC is acting as exclusive financial advisor to Shutterstock and White & Case LLP is serving as legal advisor.Source: Getty Images Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.