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The 2025 Scientific and Technical Awards took place on Tuesday night at the Academy’s David Geffen Theater in Los Angeles, celebrating 14 noteworthy artistic contributions reflected through the efforts of 37 individuals. Notably, actor Diego Luna, known for his roles in Andor and La Maquina, served as the host for this prestigious event.
This year’s celebrations included the presentation of an Academy Award of Merit. This distinct accolade acknowledges the collective work of those in the film industry who have advanced captioning technology, enhancing accessibility in cinema. The award statuette will be displayed at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
In a statement, Bill Kramer, the Academy CEO, alongside Janet Yang, the Academy President, emphasized the importance of recognizing these technical achievements. “These contributions drive significant advances in our industry,” they stated. They also highlighted the importance of captioning technology in making films accessible, reiterating the Academy’s mission to celebrate artistry and innovation in filmmaking.
The event commenced with a red carpet reception at 6 p.m. PT, offering champagne to guests, followed by the formal awards ceremony which started at 7 p.m. The evening concluded with a honoree celebration at 9 p.m. in the Sidney Poitier Grand Lobby.
Below are the honorees for this year’s Academy Scientific and Technical Awards:
TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS (ACADEMY CERTIFICATES)
Recognition was awarded to Essex Edwards, James Jacobs, Jernej Barbic, Crawford Doran, and Andrew van Straten for their innovative work on Ziva VFX, a system designed to simulate the dynamics of human anatomy for digital characters. Light on artist accessibility, Ziva VFX has empowered many studios to create lifelike creatures on screen.
Javor Kalojanov and Kimball Thurston earned accolades for their work on Wētā FX’s ML Denoiser, which utilizes cutting-edge optical flow techniques to enhance detail retention in rendered imagery.
Neeme Vaino was recognized for developing Fireskin360 Naked Burn Gel, a product facilitating longer, controlled burns for fire stunts—pushing the boundaries of safety in performance art.
Dustin Brooks and Colin Decker were celebrated for their innovative naked burn gel. This technology allows fire effects to be safely applied directly on skin, ushering in new possibilities for stunts in films.
Attila T. Áfra and Timo Aila, recognized for their efforts on Intel Open Image Denoise, contributed to a widely adopted open-source library that enhances the quality of computer-generated imagery through improved efficiency.
Mark Noel‘s work on modular motion base technology, notably the NACMO series, enhances the dynamics of filming simulated actions, augmenting the visual storytelling experience.
Su Tie, Bei Shimen, and Zhao Yanchong received commendations for their roles in the Ronin 2 gimbal system’s development, enabling precise and dynamic camera movements through a sophisticated three-axis stabilization mechanism.
Last but not least, Tabb Firchau, John Ellison, Steve Webb, David Bloomfield, and Shane Colton were acknowledged for their contributions to the Mōvi gimbals, enhancing handheld stabilized gimbal technology for both individual and collaborative filming efforts.
SCIENTIFIC AND ENGINEERING AWARDS (ACADEMY PLAQUES)
Jayson Dumenigo was honored for his work on Action Factory Hydrogels, which allow for enhanced fire stunt performances with increased safety and efficiency.
Awardees Thijs Vogels, Fabrice Rousselle, David Adler, Gerhard Röthlin, and Mark Meyer were recognized for Disney’s ML Denoiser, a cutting-edge tool essential for creating high-quality computer-generated imagery now widely used beyond animation.
Nir Averbuch, Yair Chuchem, and Dan Raviv received accolades for Auto Align Post 2, which simplifies the merging of audio from multiple microphones, vastly improving dialogue quality and saving time in post-production.
Curt Schaller and Roman Foltyn‘s contributions to creating the ARRI Trinity 2 system, which merges advanced stabilization with electronic gimbal technology, were also celebrated for their vast impact on camera operations.
Finally, Steve Wagner, Garrett Brown, Jerry Holway, and Robert Orf were honored for the innovative design of the Steadicam Volt stabilization system, revolutionizing camera work with its advanced technologies that allow more nuanced filming styles.
The development of the hand-held Stabileye camera stabilization system by Dave Freeth also received recognition for its ability to facilitate dynamic filming in tighter spaces, enhancing filmmakers’ creative capabilities.
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www.goldderby.com