SAN FRANCISCO, CA
– Top honors were bestowed upon leading creative talent across the industry during the 18th annual Visual Effects Society (VES) Awards on Jan. 29, 2020, at the Beverly Hilton, including student artists and storytellers.
For the 12th consecutive year, Autodesk sponsored and presented the VES Student Award for outstanding achievement by up-and-coming filmmakers. This year’s honors went to Marc Angele, Aleksandra Todorovic, Pascal Schelbli and Noel Winzen of Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg in Germany for “The Beauty.”
“The Beauty” transports audiences to an aquatic world where plastic and ocean life coexist symbiotically. Dive into a dystopian tale in this photoreal animated short, where polluted underwater landscapes and fantastical marine life convey a thought-provoking social commentary on the human impact on our oceans.
“It’s an incredible opportunity to be recognized by our peers and the many talented artists and professionals we look to for inspiration,” said Director and CG Artist Schelbli. “We endeavored to create an ironic and esthetic narrative to make a point on an important issue, which affects a whole generation and the entire world. We are truly humbled to be honored at this prestigious event.”
“For more than a decade, we’ve had the honor of shining a light on the incredible talent of future creators and storytellers entering the industry,” said Jocelyn Moffatt, Entertainment Industry Marketing Manager, Autodesk. “We are absolutely blown away by the creativity, technical expertise, and striking artistry showcased by this year’s nominees, and we’re proud to play a part in getting their work out for the whole industry to see.”
This year’s VES Student Award nominees also included teams from the University of Hertfordshire in the UK and ESMA Nantes in France, for the following projects:
DOWNFALL
Stunning visuals of spacecrafts, extraterrestrial creatures and interstellar sets tell the story of a heroic astronaut who crash-lands his ship, following a terrifying alien encounter on a foreign planet. This sci-fi live action space adventure was created by Matias Heker, Stephen Moroz and Bradley Cocksedge from the University of Hertfordshire.
LOVE AND FIFTY MEGATONS
This explosive love story between Paul the Mechanic and Mary the Atomic Bomb combines a variety of crafted artistic techniques, including miniatures, matte paintings, greenscreens, on-set live tracking and real-time game engines. Denis Krez, Josephine Roß, Paulo Scatena and Lukas Löffler from Filmakademie created this 272 shot short in less than three months.
OEIL POUR OEIL
Join a hilarious crew of one-eyed pirates in their quest for treasure in this fully animated short by Alan Guimont, Thomas Boileau, Malcom Hunt and Robin Courtoise from ESMA Nantes. Comedic timing and whimsical character design bring adventure and antics to life in this short tale on the high seas.