The Academy Award for Best Visual Effects is an
Academy Award given for the best achievement in
visual effects.
History of the award
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences first recognized the technical contributions of special effects to movies at its inaugural dinner in 1929, presenting a plaque for "Best Engineering Effects" to the first Best Picture Oscar winner, the World War I flying drama ''
Wings''.
Producer
David O. Selznick
David O. Selznick (May 10, 1902June 22, 1965) was an American film producer, screenwriter and film studio executive who produced ''Gone with the Wind'' (1939) and ''Rebecca'' (1940), both of which earned him an Academy Award for Best Picture.
E ...
, then production head at
RKO Studios, petitioned the Academy Board of Governors to recognize the work of animator
Willis O'Brien for his groundbreaking work on 1933's ''
King Kong''.
It was not until 1938 when a film was actually recognized for its effects work, when a "Special Achievement Award for Special Effects" was given to the Paramount film ''
Spawn of the North''. The following year, "Best Special Effects" became a recognized category, although on occasion the Academy has chosen to honor a single film outright rather than nominate two or more films. From 1939 to 1963, it was an award for a film's visual effects as well as audio effects, so it was often given to two persons, although some years only one or the other type of effect was recognized. In 1964, it was given only for visual effects, and the following year the name of the category was changed to "Best Special Visual Effects".
Honorees for this award have been bestowed several times as a
Special Achievement Academy Award
The Special Achievement Award is an Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most pres ...
. In 1977, the category was given its current name "Best Visual Effects." For decades, shortlisted finalists were selected by a steering committee. They are presently chosen by the visual effects branch executive committee. 1990 was the last year there were no official nominees. ''
Back to the Future Part III
''Back to the Future Part III'' is a 1990 American science fiction Western film and the final installment of the ''Back to the Future'' trilogy. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis, and stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Mary Stee ...
'', ''
Dick Tracy
''Dick Tracy'' is an American comic strip featuring Dick Tracy (originally Plainclothes Tracy), a tough and intelligent police detective created by Chester Gould. It made its debut on Sunday, October 4, 1931, in the ''Detroit Mirror'', and it ...
'', ''
Ghost
A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to rea ...
'' and ''
Total Recall'' advanced to a second stage of voting, but only ''Total Recall'' received a requisite average and it was given a special achievement Oscar.
To date, there have been three wholly animated films nominated in this category: ''
The Nightmare Before Christmas'' in 1993, ''
Kubo and the Two Strings'' in 2016, and ''
The Lion King'' in 2019. There has been one semi-animated film nominated, which also won: ''
Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' in 1988.
Rules
Usually, there are three nominated films. In 1979, there were five films nominated. Sometimes, no award is given. Other times, a single film is given the award outright.
In 2007, it was decided that a list of no more than 15 eligible films would be chosen, from which a maximum of seven would be shortlisted for further consideration. A vote would then proceed, with a maximum of three nominees. Since 2010, there are ten shortlisted finalists which, using a form of
range voting
Score voting or range voting is an electoral system for single-seat elections, in which voters give each candidate a score, the scores are added (or averaged), and the candidate with the highest total is elected. It has been described by various ...
, produce five nominees. No more than four people may be nominated for a single film.
According to the official Academy Awar
rules the criteria are:
(a) consideration of the contribution the visual effects make to the overall production and
(b) the artistry, skill and fidelity with which the visual illusions are achieved.
Filmmakers
A number of filmmakers have had their movies honored for their achievements in visual effects; i.e., five films produced by
George Pal, five by director/producer
George Lucas
George Walton Lucas Jr. (born May 14, 1944) is an American filmmaker. Lucas is best known for creating the ''Star Wars'' and ''Indiana Jones'' franchises and founding Lucasfilm, LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic and THX. He served as chairm ...
, five by director
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker. A major figure in the post-New Hollywood era, he is considered one of the industry's most innovative filmmakers, regularly pushing the boundaries of cinematic capability w ...
(who began his career in Hollywood as an effects technician), four by directors
Richard Fleischer
Richard O. Fleischer (; December 8, 1916 – March 25, 2006) was an American film director whose career spanned more than four decades, beginning at the height of the Golden Age of Hollywood and lasting through the American New Wave.
Though he ...
,
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...
and
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson (born 31 October 1961) is a New Zealand film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best known as the director, writer and producer of the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (2001–2003) and the ''Hobbit'' trilogy ( ...
, three by directors
Robert Zemeckis
Robert Lee Zemeckis (born May 14, 1952) is an American filmmaker. He first came to public attention as the director of the action-adventure romantic comedy ''Romancing the Stone'' (1984), the science-fiction comedy ''Back to the Future'' film tr ...
and
Christopher Nolan, and two by directors
Ridley Scott
Sir Ridley Scott (born 30 November 1937) is a British film director and producer. Directing, among others, science fiction films, his work is known for its atmospheric and highly concentrated visual style. Scott has received many accolades thr ...
and
Denis Villeneuve
Denis Villeneuve (; born October 3, 1967) is a Canadian filmmaker. He is a four-time recipient of the Canadian Screen Award (formerly Genie Award) for Best Direction, winning for '' Maelström'' in 2001, '' Polytechnique'' in 2009, ''Incendies ...
.
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...
's only Oscar win was in this category, for 1968's ''
2001: A Space Odyssey''. The film's credits list four effects contributors, including
Douglas Trumbull. However, according to the rules of the Academy in effect at the time, only three persons could be nominated for their work on a single film, which would have resulted in the omission of either Trumbull,
Tom Howard, Con Pederson or Wally Veevers. Ultimately, it was Kubrick's name that was submitted as a nominee in this category, resulting in his winning the award, which many consider a slight to the four men whose work contributed to the film's success.
Engineering Effects Award
The table below display the Oscar nominees for Best Engineering Effects.
1920s
Special Effects Awards
The tables below display the Oscar nominees for Best Special Effects including the recipients of the Special Achievement Awards.
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
Visual Effects Awards
The tables below display the Oscar nominees for Best Visual Effects including the recipients of the Special Achievement Awards.
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s
Shortlisted finalists
Finalists for Best Visual Effects are selected by the Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee. Beginning with a long list of up to 20 titles, the committee then advances ten films to the shortlist. Prior to the
83rd Academy Awards
The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2010 in the United States and took place on February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beg ...
, only fifteen films were long-listed, and only seven films were shortlisted.
The full membership of the Visual Effects Branch is invited to view excerpts and is provided with supporting information at a "bake-off" where balloting determines the five nominees. These are the additional films that presented at the bake-off.
Multiple awards
Multiple awards
;8 awards
*
Dennis Muren
;5 awards
*
Gordon Jennings
*
Ken Ralston
;4 awards
*
L. B. Abbott
*
Richard Edlund
Richard Edlund, (born December 6, 1940) is an American visual effects artist and inventor. He was a founding member of Industrial Light & Magic, having already founded Pignose amplifiers, and later co-founded Boss Film Studios and DuMonde VFX. H ...
*
Joe Letteri
Joseph Bruce Letteri (born 1957) is a senior American visual effects artist, winner of four Academy Awards, four BAFTA awards and four VES awards. He is the current director of the Academy Award-winning Weta Digital, having joined the company ...
*
Glen Robinson
;3 awards
*
Randall William Cook
*
Farciot Edouart
*
John P. Fulton
John P. Fulton, A.S.C. (November 1902, in Beatrice, Nebraska – July 1966, in London, England) was an American special effects supervisor and cinematographer. His work included the Crossing the Red Sea, parting of the Red Sea scene in the 1956 fil ...
*
Alex Funke
*
A. Arnold Gillespie
*
Andrew Lockley
*
Louis Mesenkop
Louis Mesenkop (February 6, 1903 – February 19, 1974) was an American sound engineer. He won two Academy Awards for Best Special Effects and was nominated for another in the same category. Mesenkop was part of the production team who rece ...
*
Carlo Rambaldi
*
Jim Rygiel
*
Bill Westenhofer
*
Stan Winston
Stanley Winston (April 7, 1946 – June 15, 2008) was an American television and film Prosthetic makeup, special make-up effects creator, best known for his work in the Terminator (franchise), ''Terminator'' series, the first three ''Jurassic Pa ...
*
Robert Legato
*
Paul Lambert
;2 awards
*
Neil Corbould
*
John Dykstra
*
Scott R. Fisher
Scott Ray Fisher is an American visual effects supervisor.
He won at the 87th Academy Awards for his work on the film '' Interstellar'' and at the 93rd Academy Awards for his work on '' Tenet''. These were in the category of Best Visual Effects ...
*
A. D. Flowers
*
Paul Franklin
*
Charles Gibson
*
George Gibbs
*
Allen Hall
*
Thomas Howard
*
Ian Hunter
*
Brian Johnson
Brian Johnson (born 5 October 1947) is an English singer and songwriter. In 1980, after the death of Bon Scott, he became the third lead singer of the Australian rock band AC/DC. He and the rest of the band were inducted into the Rock and Rol ...
*
Andrew R. Jones
*
Eustace Lycett
*
Robert MacDonald
*
Tristan Myles
*
Gerd Nefzer
*
John Nelson
*
Warren Newcombe
*
Bruce Nicholson
Bruce Nicholson is a special effects artist who received the Special Achievement Academy Award in 1980 for the visual effects of the film ''The Empire Strikes Back'', which he shared with Brian Johnson, Richard Edlund and Dennis Muren. He won his ...
*
Guillaume Rocheron
Guillaume Rocheron is a French visual effects supervisor who was born in 1981 in Paris. He began his career in 2000 at the Paris-based BUF Compagnie, and after five years there he got invited to work for the Moving Picture Company. He won the A ...
*
Stephen Rosenbaum
*
Loren L. Ryder
Loren L. Ryder (March 9, 1900 – May 28, 1985) was an American sound engineer. He won five Academy Awards and was nominated for twelve more in the categories Best Sound Recording and Best Effects.
After serving in World War I, Ryder stu ...
*
Fred Sersen
Fred Sersen (February 24, 1890 – December 11, 1962) was an American painter and cinema special effects artist working mainly at 20th Century Fox Studios from the 1930s to the 1950s with credits in over 200 movies. He won two Academy Awards ...
*
Douglas Shearer
*
Robert Skotak
*
Kenneth F. Smith
*
John Stears
*
Richard Taylor
*
Phil Tippett
*
Albert Whitlock
Superlatives
For this Academy Award category, the following superlatives emerge:
Academy Award Statistics
* Most awards: Dennis Muren 8 awards (resulting from 15 nominations)
* Most nominations: Dennis Muren 15 nominations (resulting in 8 awards)
See also
* Saturn Award for Best Special Effects
* BAFTA Award for Best Special Visual Effects
* Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Visual Effects
Notes
References
{{Academy Award Best Visual Effects
Visual Effects
Academy Award