‘The Creator,’ ‘Spider-Verse,’ ‘The Last Of Us’ Win Big At 2024 VES Awards

Last night, the Visual Effects Society hosted the 22nd edition of its VES Awards, where The Creator, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and The Last of Us emerged as the evening’s big winners.

Spider-Man perhaps bolstered its resume heading into the animated feature Oscar race by winning four awards on the night from seven nominations, the most of any animated feature and tied with The Creator, including the Outstanding Visual Effects in an Animated Feature prize. Since its introduction in 2008, 11 of the award’s 15 winners have gone on to win the Oscar for best animated feature.

The Creator, which features vfx work by Industrial Light & Magic, has scored dozens of visual effects nominations this awards season, including one for this year’s Oscars. The film was nominated for seven VES Awards in six categories, the most of any feature title, and won five, including outstanding visual effects in a photoreal feature.

The Last of Us was the winningest series at this year’s VES Awards, scoring four prizes from six nominations in four categories, including outstanding visual effects in a photoreal episode. The series features more than 3,000 vfx shots created by a roster of studios, including DNEG, Wētā FX, Distillery VFX, Zero VFX, Important Looking Pirates, beloFX, Storm Studios, Wylie Co., RVX, Assembly, Crafty Apes, UPP, RISE, Framestore, Digital Domain and MAS.

The 2024 VES Awards feature 25 categories selected by Society members during 39 in-person and virtual nomination events hosted worldwide over 36 hours. Members of this year’s selection panels came from 25 countries.

Here are all the winners from the 2024 VES Awards. In addition to the winners, Joyce Cox received the VES’ lifetime achievement award and William Shatner was given the VES award for creative excellence.

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Ben Snow, Diana Giorgiutti, Khalid Almeerani, Scott Benza, Sam Conway

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Stephane Ceretti, Susan Pickett, Alexis Wajsbrot, Guy Williams, Dan Sudick

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Andrew Whitehurst, Kathy Siegel, Robert Weaver, Julian Hutchens, Alistair Williams

Oppenheimer
Andrew Jackson, Mike Chambers, Giacomo Mineo, Dave Drzewiecki, Scot Fisher

(WINNER) The Creator
Jay Cooper, Julian Levi, Ian Comley, Charmaine Chan, Neil Corbould

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

John Wick: Chapter 4
Janelle Croshaw Ralla, Reina Sparks, Jonathan Rothbart, Javier Roca, Gerd Nefzer

Killers of the Flower Moon
Pablo Helman, Brian Barlettani, Sam Bassett, Brandon Keys McLaughlin

Napoleon
Charley Henley, Sarah Tulloch, Luc-Ewen Martin-Fenouillet, Simone Coco, Neil Corbould

Nyad
Jake Braver, Fiona Campbell Westgate, Christopher White, Mohsen Mousavi

Society of the Snow
Félix Bergés, Micaela Gagliano, Laura Pedro, Ezequiel Larrú, Pau Costa

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget
Jon Biggins, Jim Lewis, Charles Copping, Matthew Perry

Elemental
Peter Sohn, Denise Ream, Sanjay Bakshi, Stephen Marshall

Nimona
Archie Donato, Yancy Lindquist, Theodore Ty, Anthony Kemp

(WINNER) Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Alan Hawkins, Christian Hejnal, Michael Lasker, Matt Hausman

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
Matthieu Rouxel, Marie Balland, Jacques Daigle, Vincent Leroy

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE

Ahsoka; Season 1; “Dreams and Madness”
Richard Bluff, Jakris Smittant, Paul Kavanagh, Enrico Damm, Scott Fisher

Loki; Season 2; “Glorious Purpose”
Christopher Townsend, Allison Paul, Matthew Twyford, Christopher Smallfield, John William Van Der Pool

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters
Sean Konrad, Jessica Smith, Jed Glassford, Khalid Almeerani, Paul Benjamin

The Last of Us; Season 1; “Infected”
Alex Wang, Sean Nowlan, Stephen James, Simon Jung, Joel Whist

The Mandalorian; Season 3; “The Return”
Grady Cofer, Abbigail Keller, Victor Schutz IV, Cameron Neilson, Scott Fisher

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE

A Murder at The End of the World; Season 1; “Crypt”
Aaron Raff, Tavis Larkham, Douglas Stichbury, Mat Ellin

Citadel; Season 1; “Secrets in Night Need Early Rains”
Wesley Froud, Scott Shapiro, Aladino Debert, Greg Teegarden

Ted Lasso: Season 3; “Mom City”
Gretchen Bangs, Bill Parker, Lenny Wilson

The Crown; Season 6; “Dis-Moi Oui”
Ben Turner, Reece Ewing, Oliver Bersey, Joe Cork

(WINNER) Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty; Season 2; “BEAT LA”
Raymond McIntyre Jr., Victor DiMichina, Javier Menéndez Platas, Damien Stantina

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A REAL-TIME PROJECT

(WINNER) Alan Wake 2
Janne Pulkkinen, Johannes Richter, Daniel Kończyk, Damian Olechowski

Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
Jakub Knapik, Paweł Mielniczuk, Maciej Włodarkiewicz, Kacper Niepokólczycki

Immortals of Aveum
Joseph Hall, Kevin Boyle, Dave Bogan, Julia Lichtblau

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Jacinda Chew, Jeannette Lee, Bryanna Lindsey, Alan Weider

Mortal Kombat 1
Christopher Chapman, Scott Quinn, James DeSousa, Jeff Palmer, Matt Gilmore

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A COMMERCIAL

Accenture; “Changing Tree”
Simon French, Vic Lovejoy, David Filipe, Matteo La Motta

Apple; Air Pods Pro; “Quiet The Noise”
Iain Murray, Oscar Wendt, Dean Robinson, Sergio Morales Paz

(WINNER) Coca-Cola; “Masterpiece”
Ryan Knowles, Antonia Vlasto, Gregory McKneally, Dan Yargici

Jean Paul Gaultier; “Divine Perfume”
Stéphane Pivron, Cécile Hubin, Guillaume Dadaglio, Mathias Barday

Virgin Media; “Goat Glider”
Ben Cronin, George Reid, Sam Driscoll, Christian Baker

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A SPECIAL VENUE PROJECT

Hypersphere 360; SeaWorld Abu Dhabi
Daren Ulmer, Cedar Connor, Lindsey Sprague, Ryan Kravetz

(WINNER – TIE) Postcard From Earth
Aruna Inversin, Eric Wilson, Corey Turner, Bill George

(WINNER – TIE) Rembrandt Immersive Artwork
Andrew McNamara, Sebastian Read, Andrew Kinnear, Sam Matthews

The Marvels: Goose the Flerken Cat
Tim Kafka, Mari Suarez, Toya Drechsler, Sebastian Niño Florez

Zootopia: Hot Pursuit
Blaine Kennison, Jeanne Angel, Darin Hollings, Aaron Arendt

OUTSTANDING ANIMATED CHARACTER IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom; Topo the Octopus
Thomas Ward, Andrew Butler, Felix Slinger-Thompson, Jacob Burstein

Godzilla Minus One; Godzilla
Kosuke Taguchi, Takashi Yamazaki

(WINNER) Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3; Rocket
Nathan McConnel, Andrea De Martis, Antony Magdalinidis, Rachel Williams

Wonka; Oompa Loompa
Dale Newton, Kunal Ayer, Valentina Ercolani, Gabor Foner

OUTSTANDING ANIMATED CHARACTER IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

Elemental; Ember
Gwendelyn Enderoglu, Jared Fong, Jonathan Hoffman, Patrick Witting

Elemental; Wade
Max Gilbert, Jacob Kuenzel, Dave Strick. Benjamin Su

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse; Spot
Christopher Mangnall, Craig Feifarek, Humberto Rosa, Nideep Varghese

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem; Superfly
Gregory Coelho, Anne-Claire Leroux, Simon Cuisinier, Olivier Pierre

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

Diablo IV; Inarius and Lilith Cinematic; Lilith
Matt Onheiber, Jason Huang, Maia Neubig

Shadow and Bone; Season 2; “No Funerals”; Nichevo’ya the Shadow Monster
José María del Fresno, Matthieu Poirey, Carlos Puigdollers, Guillermo Ramos

(WINNER) The Last of Us; “Endure & Survive”; Bloater
Gino Acevedo, Max Telfer, Pascal Raimbault, Fabio Leporelli

The Nevers; “It’s a Good Day”; Robot Dog
Christian Leitner, Bernd Nalbach, Sebastian Plank, Martin Wellstein

Virgin Media; Goat Glider; The Goat
Sam Driscoll, Kanishk Chouhan, Suvi Jokiniemi ,Chloe Dawe

OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3; Knowhere
Omar Alejandro Lavrador Ibanez, Fabien Julvecourt, Klaudio Ladavac, Benjamin Patterson

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny; Underwater Wreck Environment
Johan Gabrielsson, Adrian Tsang, Stefan Andersson, Martin Eneroth

John Wick: Chapter 4; Place de L’Étoile
Manuel Gaudreau, Fabrice Vienne, Vignesh Ravi, Laurent Makowski

(WINNER) The Creator; Floating Village
John Seru, Guy Williams, Vincent Techer, Timothée Maron

OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget; Chicken Island
Charles Copping, Matthew Perry, Jim Lewis, Jon Biggins

Elemental; Element City
Chris Bernardi, Brandon Montell, David Shavers, Ting Zhang

(WINNER) Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse; Mumbattan City
Taehyun Park, YJ Lee, Pepe Orozco, Kelly Han

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem; Midtown Manhattan
Olivier Mitonneau, Eddy Frechou, Guillaume Chevet, Arnaud Philippe-Giraux

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

Loki; Season 2: 1983; “World’s Fair White City”
Christian Waite, Ben Aickin, Francesco Ferraresi, Pieter Warmington

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds; “The Broken Circle”
Nathaniel Larouche, Owen Deveney, Mujia Liao, Alex Morin

The Last Of Us; “Look for the Light”; Salt Lake City
Pascal Raimbault, Nick Cattell, Jasper Hayward, Kristine -Joeann Jasper

(WINNER) The Last of Us: “Post-Outbreak Boston”
Melaina Mace, Adrien Lambert, Juan Carlos Barquet, Christopher Anciaume

OUTSTANDING VIRTUAL CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A CG PROJECT

(WINNER) Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Joanna Davison, Cheyana Wilkinson, Michael Cozens, Jason Desjarlais

Migration
Guylo Homsy, Damien Bapst, Antoine Collet, David Dangin

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Rich Turner, Randolph Lizarda, Daniela Campos Little, Thomas Campos

The Creator
Roel Coucke, Christopher Potter, Amanda Johnstone-Batt, Jeremy Bloch

OUTSTANDING MODEL IN A PHOTOREAL OR ANIMATED PROJECT

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3; The Arête
Kenneth Johansson, Jason Galeon, Tim Civil, Artur Vil

Peter Pan & Wendy; Jolly Roger
Patrick Comtois, Thomas Gallardo, Harrison Stark, David Thibodeau

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse; Spider HQ
Dongick David Sheen, Mark JeongWoong Lee, Mikaela Bantog, René Völker

(WINNER) The Creator; Nomad
Oliver Kane, Mat Monro. Florence Green. Serban Ungureanu

OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE

Napoleon
Koen Hofmeester, Gianmichele Mariani, Clair Bellens, Hernan Llano Duque

Nyad; Stormy Waters
Korbinian Meier, Sindy Saalfeld, David Michielsen, Andreas Vrhovsek

The Creator
Ludovic Ramisandraina, Raul Essig, Mathieu Chardonnet, Lewis Taylor

The Nun 2
Laurent Creusot, Sebastien Podsiadlo, Michael Moercant, Benjamin Saurine

OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE

Elemental
Kristopher Campbell, Greg Gladstone, Jon Reisch, Kylie Wijsmuller

(WINNER) Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Pav Grochola, Filippo Maccari, Naoki Kato, Nicola Finizio

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
Louis Marsaud, Paul-Etienne Bourde, Serge Martin, Marine Pommereul

The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Simon Pate, Christophe Vazquez, Milo Riccarand

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

Citadel; “Secrets in Night Need Early Rains”; Ocean Water
James Reid, Mathew Rotman, Filipp Elizarov, Nardeep Chander

Invasion; Season 2; “A Voice from the Other Side”
Zybrand Jacobs, Alex Marlow, Tim Jenkinson, Tobias Grønbeck Andersen

Loki; Season 2; “Science/Fiction; Spaghettification
Rafael Camacho, Jonathan Lyddon-Towl, Julien Legay, Benedikt Roettger

(WINNER) The Mandalorian; Season 3; “Lake Monster” Attack Water
Travis Harkleroad, Florian Wietzel, Rick Hankins, Aron Bonar

Willow; “Children of the Wyrm”; Crone Duststorm and Magical Effects
Michael Cashmore, Robert Zeltsch, Jiyong Shin, Audun Ase

OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN A FEATURE

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Indah Maretha, Beck Veitch, Nathan Abbot, Steve McGillen

John Wick: Chapter 4; Apartment Massacre Videogame Style
Javier Roca, Julien Forest, Thomas Bourdis, Dominik Kirouac

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Bret St.Clair, Kieron Cheuk-Chi Lo, Kelly Christophers, Rowan Young

(WINNER) The Creator; Bar
Phil Prates, Min Kim, Nisarg Suthar, Toshiko Miura

The Creator; Spaceships
Ben O-Brien, Juan Espigares Enriquez, Wesley Roberts, Hayes Brien

OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN AN EPISODE

(WINNER) The Last of Us; “Endure and Survive”; Infected Horde Battle
Matthew Lumb, Ben Roberts, Ben Campbell, Quentin Hema

The Last of Us; “Infected”; Boston
Casey Gorton, Francesco Dell’Anna, Vaclav Kubant, Natalia Valbuena

The Mandalorian; Season 3; “The Return”
Sam Wirch, Tory Mercer, Donny Rausch, Erich Ippen

Willow; “Children of the Wyrm”
Jeremy Sawyer, Steve Hardy, Martin Tardif, Miguel Macaya Ten

OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN A COMMERCIAL

Accenture; “Changing Tree”
David Filipe, Matteo La Motta, Jordan Dunstall, Taran Spear

(WINNER) Coca-Cola; “Masterpiece”
Ryan Knowles, Greg Mckneally, Taran Spear, Jordan Dunstall

Smirnoff; “Cocktail”
Vittorio Barabani, Peter Hodsman, Giacomo Verri, Marc Greyvenstein
Starfield
Jimmy Bullard, Ajit Menon, Ruairi Twohig, Karim Moussa

OUTSTANDING SPECIAL (PRACTICAL) EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL PROJECT

I’m a Virgo
John McLeod, Scott Kirvan, Alec Gillis, Carl Miller

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
Neil Corbould, Ray Ferguson, Keith Dawson, Chris Motjuoadi

(WINNER) Oppenheimer
Scott Fisher, James Rollins, Mario Vanillo

Society of the Snow
Pau Costa, Carlos Laguna, Guillermo F. Aldunate, Eloy Cervera

EMERGING TECHNOLOGY AWARD

Blue Beetle; Machine Learning Cloth
JohnMark Gibbons, Allen Ruilova, Momme Carl, David Minor

Elemental; Volumetric Neural Style Transfer
Vinicius C. Azevedo, Byungsoo Kim, Raphael Ortiz, Paul Kanyuk

The Flash; Volumetric Capture
Stephan Trojansky, Thomas Ganshorn, Oliver Pilarski, Lukas Lepicovsky

Wish; Dynamic Screen Space Textures for Coherent Stylization
Brent Burley, Daniel Teece, Brian J. Green

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

Au 8ème Jour
Flavie Carin, Agathe Sénéchal, Alicia Massez, Elise Debruyne

L’Animal Sauce Ail
Aurélien Duchez, Ysaline Debut, Diane Mazella, Camille Rostan

Loup y es-tu?
Célina Lebon, Louise Laurent, Emma Fessart. Annouck François

(WINNER) Silhouette
Alexis Lafuente, Antoni Nicolaï, Chloé Stricher, Elliot Dreuille