Nominees for 3rd Annual VES Awards

The Visual Effects Society (VES) announced their nominees this week for their awards honoring oustanding visual effects in 19 categories of film, television, commercials, music videos and games. On January 22nd, VES will hold their “Big Reveal” — an oustanding event where VES members and the general public can hear about the work first-hand from the artists….

The awards process continues with The Big Reveal on January 22. The event is VES’ counterpart to the Motion Picture Academys visual effects Bake-Off where nominees demonstrate the secrets behind the visual effects magic that earned each artist a place among this years VES Awards nominees. Unlike the Academys Bake-Off, the Societys Big Reveal event wont reduce the number of nominees. However, one major difference between the Bake-Off and the Big Reveal is that the VES allows the inclusion of before & after materials, enabling the artists to step out from behind the proverbial curtain and share their craft.

This process helps voters better understand the intricacies of each entry.Technology is evolving so quickly that even visual effects professionals themselves are fooled regularly by what is an effect and what is not, explains VES Awards Chair Jeff Okun. This event, being held at the Skirball Cultural Center, is open to all VES members as the entire membership participates in final voting. The Big Reveal 2005 is free to VES members and also open to the public at $20 per ticket. Tickets to the event are available by calling the VES office at (310) 822-9181 or may also be purchased at the door. For more details, visit the awards web site.

For the first time in the VES Awards 3-year history, final viewing and voting will take place online via the VES website from January 31 to February 12. This groundbreaking method will allow VES members worldwide to view encrypted clips of the nominees work and vote in a safe and secure online environment. Only VES members may vote and a special password is required to view and vote online. Winners will be announced at the 3rd Annual VES Awards gala on February 16, 2005 at the Hollywood Palladium. Academy Award winning director, Robert Zemeckis, will receive the VES Lifetime Achievement Award, which will be presented to him by Academy Award winning actor Tom Hanks.

The Nominees

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects Driven Motion Picture

The Day After Tomorrow
Karen Goulekas, Mike Chambers, Greg Strause, Remo Balcells

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Roger Guyett, Tim Burke, Theresa Corrao, Emma Norton

Spider-Man 2
John Dykstra, Lydia Bottegoni, Anthony LaMolinara, Scott Stokdyk

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Motion Picture

The Aviator
Rob Legato, Ron Ames, Matthew Gratzner, Pete Travers,

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Louis Morin, Mark Dornfeld

Troy
Nick Davies, Chas Jarrett, Jon Thum, Gary Brozenich

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

Dragons
Sirio Quintavalle, Jo Nodwell, Alec Knox, Neil Glaseby

Earthsea
Peter Ware, Eric Grenaudier, Jared Jones, Earl Paraszcynec

Virtual History – The Secret Plot to Kill Hitler
Jim Radford, Tom Phillips, Simon Thomas, Loraine Cooper

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Broadcast Series

Stargate Atlantis, Rising
John Gajdecki, Bruce Woloshyn, Jinnie Pak, Tara Conley

Stargate SG-1, Lost City, Part 2
James Tichenor, Shannon Gurney, Craig Van Den Biggelaar, Bruce Woloshyn

Star Trek Enterprise, Storm Front Part 2
Ronald Moore, Daniel Curry, David Takemura

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Commercial

British Telecom: Network
David Lombardi, Richard Mann, Eric Durst, Kevin Prendiville

Citroen ‘Alive With Technology’
Trevor Cawood, Neill Blomkamp, Simon Van de Lagemaat, Winston Helgason

Johnnie Walker ‘Tree’
William Bartlett, Murray Butler, Jake Mengers, Andy Boyd

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Music Video

Britney Spears Toxic
Bert Yukich

Duran Duran What Happens Tomorrow
Jerry Steele, Jo Steele, Brian Adler, Monique Eissing

Never ‘The Dream
Trevor Cawood, Simon Van de Lagemaat, Stephen Pepper, Jon Anastasiades

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Broadcast Program

Clubhouse, Episode #005
Curt Miller, Jason Spratt, Doug Witsken, Michael Tonder

Lost, Pilot – Part 2
Kevin Blank, Mitch Suskin, Benoit Girard, Jerome Morin

Spartacus
Sam Nicholson, Eric Grenaudier, Anthony Ocampo, Tim Donahue

Best Single Visual Effect of the Year

The Aviator – Hell’s Angels
Rob Legato, Ron Ames, David Seger, Peter Travers

The Day After Tomorrow – Tidal Wave
Karen Goulekas, Mike Chambers, Chris Horvath, Matthew Butler

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Bill George, David Andrews, Sandra Scott, Dome Huebler

Spider-Man 2 – Clock Tower
John Dykstra, Lydia Bottegoni, Dan Abrams, John Monos

Outstanding Visuals in a Video Game

007 Everything or Nothing
David Carson, Jay Riddle, Habib Zargarpour

Half-Life 2
Viktor Antonov, Randy Lundeen, Gary McTaggart, Bill Fletcher

The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle Earth
Mark Skaggs, Richard Taylor II, Matt Britton, Nate Hubbard

The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age
Stephen Gray, Margaret Foley-Mauvais

Outstanding Performance by an Animated Character in a Live Action Motion Picture

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Michael Eames, David Lomax, Felix Balbas, Pablo Grillo

Hellboy – Samael Character
Dovi Anderson, Todd Labonte, Sven Jensen, Paul Thuriot

Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events- Sunny Character
Rick O’Connor, Martin Murphy, Indira Guerrieri, Sam Breach

Outstanding Performance by an Animated Character in an Animated Motion Picture

The Incredibles Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible
Craig T. Nelson, Bill Wise, Bill Sheffler, Bolhem Bouchiba

The Polar Express – Steamer
Michael Jeter, David Schaub, Renato Dos Anjos, Roger Vizard

Shark Tale – Angie
Renee Zellweger, Ken Duncan

Shrek 2 – Puss in Boots
Antonio Banderas, Raman Hui

Outstanding Performance by an Animated Character in a Live Action Broadcast Program

Battlestar Galactica, Episode 101
Dustin Adiar, Mark Shimer, Jesse Toves, Sean Jackson

Stephen King’s Kingdom Hospital
William de Bosch Kemper, Brian Harder, Patrick Kalyn, Scott Paquin

Outstanding Special Effects in Service to Visual Effects in a Motion Picture

The Aviator
Robert Spurlock, Richard Stutsman, Matthew Gratzner, Roy Goode

Spider-Man 2
John Frazier, Jim Schwalm, Jim Nagle, Dave Amborn

Van Helsing
Georff Heron, Chad Taylor

Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Motion Picture

Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason
Alex Hope, Jody Johnson, Pieter Warmington

I, Robot
Rachael Haupt, Mark Tait Lewis, Nick McKenzie, Geoff Tobin

The Phantom of the Opera – Opening Shot
Claas Henke, Laurent Ben-Mimoun, Anupam Das

Spider-Man 2, – NYC Street – Night
Dan Abrams, David Emery, Andrew Nawrot, John Hart

Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Broadcast Program

Smallville, Crusade
John Han, Brian Harding, Terry Shigemitsu, Noriaki Matsumoto

Spartacus – Opening
Eric Grenaudier, Anthony Ocampo, Cedric Tomacruz, Michael Cook

Star Trek Enterprise, Storm Front Part 2 Dogfight over New York City
Pierre Drolet, Fred Pienkos, Eddie Robison, Sean Scott

Outstanding Models and Miniatures in a Motion Picture

The Aviator – XF11 Crash
Matthew Gratzner, Scott Schneider, Adam Gelbart, Leigh-Alexandra Jacob

Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban
Jose Granell, Nigel Stone

National Treasure – Treasure Room
Matthew Gratzner, Forest Fischer, Scott Beverly, Leigh-Alexandra Jacob

Outstanding Compositing in a Motion Picture

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – Azkaban Guards Attack
Dorne Huebler, Jay Cooper, Patrick Brennan, Anthony Shafer

The Phantom of the Opera – Opening Shot
Claas Henke, Laurent Ben-Mimoun, Anupam Das

Spider-Man 2- Train Sequence
Colin Drobnis, Greg Derochie, Blaine Kennison, Kenny Lam

Outstanding Compositing in a Broadcast Program

The Librarian – Himalayan Pass sequence
Greg Groenekamp, Joel Merritt, Mamie McCall

Smallville, Crisis
John Han, Eli Jarra, Noriaki Matsumoto, Terry Shigemitsu

Space Odyssey – Voyage To The Planets
George Roper, Christian Manz, Sirio Quintavalle, Pedro Sabrosa

Outstanding Performance by an Actor or Actress in a Visual Effects Film

The Aviator
Leonardo DiCaprio

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
Jude Law

Spider-Man 2
Alfred Molina