8th Annual VES Awards

Below is the complete list of Winners and Nominees for the 8th Annual VES Awards. A sortable list for ALL years of VES Award winners / nominees can be found on the Previous VES Awards page. All archival viewing materials are cleared for viewing by logged-in VES members behind the VES website firewall. For more information, please review the VES Awards Rules & Procedures, Section 14: Ownership & Clearances here.

View the category of the nominees and winners below.

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects-Driven Feature Motion Picture

This award is to honor the overall achievement of the visual effects within a live action motion picture where the visual effects are a visible, essential, and integral part of the story and play a principal and active role in the motion picture. A rule of thumb for defining whether a motion picture would be considered effects-driven would be to ask if the story could be told without the active participation of the VFX (including Special Effects). On the whole, the VFX in an effects-driven film would be easily identifiable by the viewing public and professionals working in the VFX field.

Fully animated films are not eligible in this category.

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Feature Motion Picture

This award is to honor the overall achievement of the visual effects within a live action motion picture where the visual effects play a supporting, minor or background role in the telling of the story. Supporting visual effects, when taken as a whole, may help create the setting, environment, or mood of an entire film, but are generally intended to be subtle or invisible to the lay viewer. They do not consist of a significant number of CG characters, science fiction or fantasy elements, and other highly visible effects that one would expect to see in a visual effects-driven or “tent pole” film.

Effects-driven films may not enter their “invisible” effects in this category, and animated films are not eligible.

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Broadcast Miniseries, Movie, or Special

This award is to honor the overall achievement of the visual effects within a single episode of an effects-driven miniseries, made-for-television movie or special that was broadcast and delivered via over-the-air, pay/basic cable, or satellite transmissions to homes. A rule of thumb for defining whether a program would be considered effects-driven would be to ask if the story could be told without the active participation of the VFX (including Special Effects).

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Broadcast Series

This award is to honor the achievement of the visual effects within a single episode of a series where the visual effects are a visible, essential, and integral part of the story and play a principal and active role in the show. A rule of thumb for defining whether a series would be considered effects-driven would be to ask if the story could be told without the active participation of the VFX (including Special Effects).

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Broadcast Program

This award is to honor the overall achievement of the visual effects that play a supporting or background role within a single episode of a broadcast series, miniseries, made-for-television movie, or special wherein the visual effects are not necessarily essential to the telling of the story in the way that the effects of an effects-driven broadcast program are. Supporting visual effects, when taken as a whole, may help create the setting, environment, or mood of an entire program, and are generally intended to be invisible to the lay viewer. They do not consist of a significant number of CG characters, science fiction or fantasy elements, and other highly visible effects that one would expect to see in a visual effectsdriven broadcast program.

Best Single Visual Effect of the Year

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Commercial

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Special Venue Project

The award is to honor the overall achievement of the visual effects within an entire Special Venue project. Special Venues are defined as installations specifically set up to project large-format films (e.g. IMAX or OMNIMAX theaters), theme park theaters that may include a motion-based ride, museums, World Fairs, and similar venues.

To be eligible, a Special Venue project must have been exhibited publicly:

• In a commercial venue for a paid admission, which may include the general admission to a theme park or special venue theater;
• For a minimum period of one week on a regular daily schedule; and
• Premiered in the current awards year in a Special Venue theater as defined above.

The following are not eligible in this category, regardless of the material’s original capture format:

• Special purpose events such as trade shows and conventions;
• Video material generally referred to as “pre-show” material;
• Repurposed films, i.e. projects initially intended for the theatrical market but which have been blown up for exhibition in large-format Special Venue theaters;
• Projects that were created as conventional 2D theatrical presentations but have been repurposed to stereographic 3D;
• Any 2D or stereographic 3D feature motion picture that either premiered first, or simultaneously, in any regular movie theater or in any broadcast medium;
• Any project that runs for an equal or greater amount of time in any regular movie theater or in any broadcast medium; and
• Movies intended for simultaneous distribution in both Special Venue and normal movie theaters. The intent of this category is to honor those projects made specifically for the Special Venue market.

Outstanding Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

This award is to honor the overall achievement of the animation within an entire animated motion picture. The animation may be created by traditional cel animation, computer animation, and/or stop motion, as long as it meets the definitions of Animation and Animated Project as stated in the Appendix of this Rules & Procedures. The vocal performance of characters may be taken into consideration along with the visual qualities in evaluating the overall effectiveness of the animation.Title sequences are not eligible in this category.

Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture

This award is to honor the overall achievement in a single animated character in a live action motion picture. The character may have been created by any technique or combination of techniques, including animatronics, as long as it meets the definition of Animation as stated in the Glossary of these Rules & Procedures.

Title sequences are not eligible in this category.

Outstanding Animated Character in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

This award is to honor the overall achievement in a single animated character in an animated motion picture. The character may have been created by any technique or combination of techniques, including animatronics, as long as it meets the definition of Animation as stated in the Glossary.

Title sequences are not eligible in this category.

Outstanding Animated Character in a Broadcast Program or Commercial

This award is to honor the overall achievement in a single animated character in a broadcast program or commercial. The character may have been created by any technique or combination of techniques, including animatronics, as long as it meets the definition of Animation as stated in the Glossary. The character may or may not be photorealistic.

Title sequences are not eligible in this category.

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Video Game Trailer

This award is to honor the overall achievement of the pre-rendered visual effects within a Video Game Trailer. Game Trailers are defined as unique visual material created for the purpose of promoting an upcoming game release. To be eligible, the material in the Game Trailer must be pre-rendered and created for a promotional event, conference, in-store display or web distribution. The submission for this category must consist entirely of material from the Game Trailer as it was originally released.
Multiple entries from the same game title will only be allowed if the entries are from different Game Trailers and the submitting teams are entirely different, including the overall VFX Supervisor and overall VFX Producer.

The following are not eligible for this category:

• Game Trailers that share any pre-rendered material with a video game currently
  released in stores or that contain re-purposed shots from previous trailers;
• Game Trailers that contain real-time material from the game itself that totals more than 25% of the total running time of the Submission Length, not including Before & Afters; and
• Animated commercials that originate as Broadcast material.

Outstanding Real-Time Visual Effects in a Video Game

This award is to honor the overall achievement of real-time game engine-rendered visual effects within a video game for any game console, PC, or “next generation” platform. Submitted material may be any one, or combination of, the following:

• Recorded real-time Game Play; and/or
• A real-time game engine-rendered Cinematic that appears as part of the game.

Real-time is defined as predominantly 30 or greater frames per second NTSC and ATSC (US) HD video, or predominantly 25 or greater frames per second PAL and DVB (International) HD depending upon country of origination. Any imagery or action that does not meet this criterion is ineligible even if it was rendered in the game engine or in software. Any longer-than-real-time frames that are rendered in the game engine, later resized and/or reloaded, then played back in real-time from pre-rendered frames are ineligible as well.

Trailers or promos for games are not eligible in this category.

Outstanding Created Environment in a Broadcast Program or Commercial

This award is to honor the overall achievement of a single created environment in a live action broadcast program that best creates an illusion of setting for the story being told. Created environments are defined as either completely artificial environments, or the enhancement of an existing practical set location through the addition of elements not present during photography. The environment may occur more than once in the project and under different conditions, but must be the same environment, created by the exact same team.

This category judges not only the techniques for creating the environment, but also their integration with any practical plate photography. Before & Afters must show the integration of the multiple elements used to create the environment.

Stereo extractions of environments that do not contain any other significant enhancements, or fully animated productions, are not eligible in this category. For practical purposes, the environment should be a single setting within the story, and not, for example, all locations within an entire city.

Outstanding Matte Paintings in a Feature Motion Picture

Outstanding Effects Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

This award is to honor the overall achievement of the effects animation within an entire animated motion picture. Effects animation constitutes any dynamic elements that are not characters, set pieces, or what would be considered a matte painting or background. These effects may include water, splashes, smoke, fire, other naturally occurring elements including dust and other particulates, as well as those animated using procedural techniques or dynamic simulations. The effects may or may not be photorealistic and they may interact with, or be part of the characters, set elements and matte paintings with which they coexist.

Outstanding Matte Paintings in a Broadcast Program or Commercial

Outstanding Models and Miniatures in a Feature Motion Picture

Outstanding Created Environment in a Feature Motion Picture

Outstanding Compositing in a Feature Motion Picture

This award is to honor outstanding achievement in compositing multiple elements into a final visual effect shot or group of shots in a live action feature motion picture. This category is for a body of work created for a single motion picture by an individual artist or team of artists.

Multiple entries from the same project are eligible provided the compositing teams are 100% different and the shots being submitted are completelydifferent. Title sequences are eligible as long as:

• They are submitted in textless form in order not to conflict with any other awards rule; and
• They are part of the storytelling and are not a specially designed separate animated title sequence in a live action project.

Animated films are not eligible in this category.

Outstanding Compositing in a Broadcast Program or Commercial

This award is to honor outstanding achievement in compositing multiple elements into a final visual effect shot or group of shots in a single live action episode of a broadcast program or commercial. This category is for a body of work created for a single broadcast episode by an individual artist or team of artists. Multiple sequences may be entered from the same episode or series provided the compositing teams are 100% different and the shots being submitted are completely different.

Animated programs or main title sequences are not eligible in this category.

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Student Project