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    Home » “Avatar: The Way of Water” Wins 9 VES Awards, Including Marquee Feature Honor

    “Avatar: The Way of Water” Wins 9 VES Awards, Including Marquee Feature Honor

    By SHOOTThursday, February 16, 2023Updated:Tuesday, May 14, 2024No Comments2562 Views
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    Jake Sully, portrayed by Sam Worthington, in "Avatar: The Way of Water." (20th Century Studios)

    "Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio" is top animated film; "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" leads the way in episodic TV

    BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. --

    Avatar: The Way of Water tallied nine wins at the 21st Annual Visual Effects Society (VES) Awards, including the marquee honor for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature. Avatar: The Way of Water additionally topped the Outstanding Animated Character in a Photoreal Feature (Kiri), Created Environment in a Photoreal Feature (The Reef), Virtual Cinematography in a CG Project, Model in a Photoreal or Animated Project (The Sea Dragon), Effects Simulations in a Photoreal Feature (water simulations), Compositing & Lighting in a Feature (water integration), Special (Practical) Effects in a Photoreal Feature (current machine & wave pool) and the Emerging Technology Award (water toolset) categories.

    Also coming up big during the VES Awards’ in-person gala ceremony at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Wednesday (2/15) were the feature film Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio and the TV series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power with three wins apiece.

    Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio won for Outstanding Visual Effects in an Animated Feature, Animated Character in an Animated Feature (Pinocchio himself), and Created Environment in an Animated Feature (in the stomach of a sea monster).

    On the TV side, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power won for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Episode (“Udûn”), Created Environment in an Episode, Commercial or Real-time Project (“Adar”: Numenor City) and Effects Simulation in an Episode, Commercial or Real-time Project (“Udûn”: Water and Magma).

    Other category winner highlights included 13 Lives scoring the honor for Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature, and Frito-Lay’s “Push It” topping the commercials competition.

    Comedian/actor Patton Oswalt returned as host for the 10th time. Academy Award-winning filmmaker James Cameron presented the VES Lifetime Achievement award to acclaimed producer Gale Anne Hurd.  The Society’s current and former Board chairs presented the VES Board of Directors Award to former executive director Eric Roth. That group of presenters included Lisa Cooke, current VES chair; Jim Morris, VES, president of Pixar Animation and founding VES chair; and former chairs Jeffrey A. Okun, VES, Mike Chambers, VES, Carl Rosendahl, VES, and Jeff Barnes.  

    Other VES Award presenters included: Academy-Award nominated filmmaker Rian Johnson, Academy-Award-winning filmmaker Domee Shi; actors Tig Notaro, Jay Pharoah, Tyler Posey, Randall Park, Angela Sarafyan, Bashir Salahuddin, Josh McDermitt and Danny Pudi.  Dara Treseder, Autodesk’s chief marketing officer, presented the VES-Autodesk Student Award. 

    “As we celebrate the 21st Annual VES Awards, we’re honored to keep shining a light on remarkable visual effects artistry and innovation,” said VES chair Cooke.  “In all of our colleagues honored tonight, we see best in class work that elevates the art of storytelling and exemplifies the spirit of adaptation and ingenuity–talents that have kept audiences engaged and uplifted, now, more than ever.  The VES Awards is the only venue that showcases and honors these outstanding global artists across a wide range of disciplines, and we are extremely proud of all our winners and nominees!”

    Winners of the 21st Annual VES Awards are as follows: 

    OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE 

    Avatar: The Way of Water
    Richard Baneham
    Walter Garcia
    Joe Letteri
    Eric Saindon
    JD Schwalm

     

    OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

    Thirteen Lives
    Jason Billington
    Thomas Horton
    Denis Baudin
    Michael Harrison
    Brian Cox

     

    OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

    Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
    Aaron Weintraub
    Jeffrey Schaper
    Cameron Carson
    Emma Gorbey

     

    OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE

    The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power; Udûn
    Jason Smith
    Ron Ames
    Nigel Sumner
    Tom Proctor
    Dean Clarke

     

    OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE

    Five Days at Memorial; Day Two
    Eric Durst
    Danny McNair
    Matt Whelan
    Goran Pavles
    John MacGillivray

     

    OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A REAL-TIME PROJECT

    The Last of Us Part I
    Erick Pangilinan
    Evan Wells
    Eben Cook
    Mary Jane Whiting

     

    OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A COMMERCIAL

    Frito-Lay; Push It
    Tom Raynor
    Sophie Harrison
    Ben Cronin
    Martino Madeddu

    OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A SPECIAL VENUE PROJECT

    ABBA Voyage
    Ben Morris
    Edward Randolph
    Stephen Aplin
    Ian Comley

    OUTSTANDING ANIMATED CHARACTER IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

    Avatar: The Way of Water; Kiri
    Anneka Fris
    Rebecca Louise Leybourne
    Guillaume Francois
    Jung Rock Hwang

     

    OUTSTANDING ANIMATED CHARACTER IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

    Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio; Pinocchio
    Oliver Beale
    Richard Pickersgill
    Brian Leif Hansen
    Kim Slate

     

    OUTSTANDING ANIMATED CHARACTER IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

    The Umbrella Academy; Pogo
    Aidan Martin
    Hannah Dockerty
    Olivier Beierlein
    Miae Kang

    OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

    Avatar: The Way of Water; The Reef
    Jessica Cowley
    Joe W. Churchill
    Justin Stockton
    Alex Nowotny

     

    OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

    Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio; In the Stomach of a Sea Monster
    Warren Lawtey
    Anjum Sakharkar
    Javier Gonzalez Alonso
    Quinn Carvalho

     

    OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

    The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power; Adar; Númenor City
    Dan Wheaton
    Nico Delbecq
    Dan Letarte
    Julien Gauthier

     

    OUTSTANDING VIRTUAL CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A CG PROJECT

    Avatar: The Way of Water
    Richard Baneham
    Dan Cox
    Eric Reynolds
    AJ Briones

    OUTSTANDING MODEL IN A PHOTOREAL OR ANIMATED PROJECT

    Avatar: The Way of Water; The Sea Dragon
    Sam Sharplin
    Stephan Skorepa
    Ian Baker
    Guillaume Francois

    OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

    Avatar: The Way of Water; Water Simulations
    Johnathan Nixon
    David Moraton
    Nicolas James Illingworth
    David Caeiro Cebrian

    OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

    Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
    Derek Cheung
    Michael Losure
    Kiem Ching Ong
    Jinguang Huang

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

    The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power; Udûn; Water and Magma
    Rick Hankins
    Aron Bonar
    Branko Grujcic
    Laurent Kermel

    OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN A FEATURE

    Avatar: The Way of Water; Water Integration
    Sam Cole
    Francois Sugny
    Florian Schroeder
    Jean Matthews

     

    OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN AN EPISODE

    Love, Death and Robots; Night of the Mini Dead
    Tim Emeis
    José Maximiano
    Renaud Tissandié
    Nacere Guerouaf

     

    OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN A COMMERCIAL

    Ladbrokes; Rocky
    Greg Spencer
    Theajo Dharan
    Georgina Ford
    Jonathan Westley

     

    OUTSTANDING SPECIAL (PRACTICAL) EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL PROJECT

    Avatar: The Way of Water; Current Machine and Wave Pool
    JD Schwalm
    Richard Schwalm
    Nick Rand
    Robert Spurlock

     

    OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A STUDENT PROJECT (AWARD SPONSORED BY AUTODESK)

    A Calling. From the Desert. To the Sea
    Mario Bertsch
    Max Pollmann
    Lukas Löffler
    Till Sander-Titgemeyer

     

    EMERGING TECHNOLOGY AWARD

    Avatar: The Way of Water; Water Toolset
    Alexey Stomakhin
    Steve Lesser
    Sven Joel Wretborn
    Douglas McHale

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    Category:News
    Tags:Avatar: The Way of WaterGuillermo del Toro's PinocchioThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of PowerVES AwardsVisual Effects Society



    Rethink Names Caroline Grayson As Its First Managing Director In New York

    Wednesday, August 19, 2026

    Independent creative agency Rethink has appointed Caroline Grayson as managing director based in its New York office, a newly created leadership role that reflects the shop’s continued growth and momentum in the U.S. market.

    Reporting to Caleb Goodman, global COO and partner at Rethink, Grayson will oversee the strategic and operational growth of Rethink New York, with a focus on strengthening client partnerships, including Meta, Kraft Heinz, and Molson Coors Brewing Company. She will also focus on fostering talent and creating the conditions for the agency’s creative ambitions to thrive.

    “Caroline is exactly the kind of leader we were looking for as we take Rethink to the next level,” said Goodman. “Since opening our New York office, we’ve built incredible momentum, growing both our team and the caliber of work we’re doing. Caroline brings the experience and collaborative approach that will help us deepen client partnerships, continue attracting exceptional talent, and shape the next chapter of our growth.”

    Grayson joins Rethink from VCCP US, where she served as managing director. During her tenure, she led the agency through a period of significant growth and expansion across North America. Prior to VCCP, she spent five years at 72andSunny as group brand director, leading teams for brands including Comcast, Spotify, Smirnoff, and Etsy. Earlier in her career, Grayson worked at adam&eveDDB London, where she helped lead the John Lewis account, contributing to celebrated work.

    “Rethink has built a reputation that’s impossible to ignore, and a big part of that comes down to how clearly the agency lives its values,” said Grayson. “Creative integrity is a guiding light here--you can see it in the work, but you... Read More

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