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The Visual Effects Society (VES) has announced the winners for the 2026 VES Awards, recognizing excellence in the craft across 25 categories, including film, television, special venue projects, technological innovation, student projects and more.
Avatar: Fire and Ash led the winners with seven including the top prize of outstanding visual effects in a photoreal feature. KPop Demon Hunters led the animation category wins with three trophies, including the top prize of outstanding animation in an animated feature. blogherads.adq.push(function () { blogherads .defineSlot( 'medrec', 'gpt-article-mid-article-uid0' ) .setTargeting( 'pos', ["mid-article1","mid-articleX","mid","mid-article"] ) .setTargeting( 'viewable', 'yes' ) .setSubAdUnitPath("ros\/mid-article") .addSize([[300,250],[2,2],[300,251],[620,350],[2,4],[4,2],[320,480],[620,366]]) .setClsOptimization("minsize") ; }); Related Stories Movies NAACP Image Awards: 'Sinners' Captures Three Prizes on Third Night of Non-Televised Winners Movies Elle Fanning on Her First Oscar Nomination: "I Like To Be Terrified"
Sinners won the award for outstanding supporting visual effects in a photoreal feature, while Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age won the award for outstanding visual effects in a photoreal episode.
Heading into the evening, Avatar: Fire and Ash led nominations with 10 overall. Other nominees in the society’s top award category were F1: The Movie, Jurassic World Rebirth, The Lost Bus and How To Train Your Dragon.
The 2026 VES Awards were held at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles. Jerry Bruckheimer received the VES Lifetime Achievement Award, and Weta Workshop co-founder and chief creative officer Sir Richard Taylor was honored with the VES Visionary Award. Comedy duo Randy and Jason Sklar (the Sklar Brothers) hosted the event.
Enuka Okuma (Paradise), Haley Joel Osment (The Burbs, Happy Gilmore 2), Jazz Raycole (The Lincoln Lawyer), Lil Rel Howery (One of Them Days), Omar Benson Miller (Sinners) and singer/songwriter Raphael Saadiq (Sinners) presented awards.
“The VES is honored to recognize brilliant artistry and technological innovation across a wide range of disciplines,” VES Board Chair Kim Davidson said in a statement. “The craft of visual effects is constantly evolving to push the limits of our imaginations, and tonight’s inspiring winners and nominees represent best-in-class work from around the world. Congratulations to all!” blogherads.adq.push(function () { blogherads .defineSlot( 'medrec', 'gpt-dsk-tab-mid-article2-uid1' ) .setTargeting( 'pos', ["mid","mid-article2","mid-articleX"] ) .setTargeting( 'viewable', 'yes' ) .setSubAdUnitPath("ros\/mid-article2") .addSize([[300,250],[300,251],[620,350],[2,4],[4,2],[320,480],[620,366]]) .setClsOptimization("minsize") ; });
See below for the full list of winners.
1. OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE
Avatar: Fire and AshRichard BanehamPeter LitvackEric SaindonNicky MuirSteve Ingram
2. OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE
SinnersMichael RallaJames AlexanderNick MarshallEspen NordahlDonnie Dean
3. OUTSTANDING ANIMATION IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE
KPop Demon HuntersJoshua BeveridgeJacky PriddleBenjamin HendricksClara Chan
4. OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE
Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age; “The Big Freeze”Russell DodgsonTracey GibbonsFrançois DumoulinGavin McKenzie
5. OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE
The Residence; “The Fall of the House of Usher”Seth HillTesa KubicekJohn NelsonGabriel Vargas
6. OUTSTANDING VISUAL ARTS IN A REAL-TIME PROJECT
Ghost of YteiJason ConnellMatt VainioJoanna WangJasmin Patry
7. OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A COMMERCIAL
BMW; “Heart of Joy | Meet Okto the Octopus”Tom RaynorHelen TangJack HarrisAlex Kulikov
8. OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A SPECIAL VENUE PROJECT
The Wizard of Oz at SphereBen GrossmannTamara Watts KentDr. Irfan EssaMatt DouganGlenn Derry
