AMPAS announces 2023 winners for science and technology awards

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today named the eight scientific and technical achievements of 19 individuals to be honored at the 2023 Scientific and Technical Awards Ceremony, which will be held in person at the Academy of Motion Picture for the first time since 2023. Arts and Sciences. Films on February 24.

Technical Achievement Award recipients, honored with Academy certificates, include Howard Jensen, Danny Cangemi, John Frazier, Mark Hills, Jim Vanns, Matt Chambers, Sébastien Deguy, Christophe Soum, Sylvain Paris, Nicolas Wirrmann, David Eberle, Theodore Kim , Fernando de Goes and Audrey Wong.

Jensen, Cangemi and Frazier are recognized for their contributions to rain beam technology to create convenient rain on set; Hills and Vanns for their design and engineering of the FQ render farm management system; Chambers for his contributions to modern farm management system design; Deguy, Soum, Paris and Wirmann for their work on Adobe Substance 3D Designer; and Eberle, Kim, De Goes, and Wong for their design and development of the Fizt2 elastic simulation system.

Science and Engineering Award winners, who will take home the Academy plaque, include Larry Barton and Ben Wilcox, who were behind Cinematography Electronics’ CineTape focus trigger range-measuring system, and Howard Preston and Bernie Butler-Smith, who worked on the focus assist system known as Preston Cinema Systems Light Ranger 2 contributed to this.

Ryan Laney receives an award in the form of a special plaque recognizing his work on 2020’s AI-powered face veil technology Welcome to Chechnya. And then there’s Gordon E. Sawyer Award winner Ian Neil, whose Oscar statuette recognizes the lasting influence of his lens design on motion picture cinematography.

Barbara Ford Grant, Chair of the Scientific and Technical Awards Committee, noted, “Since 1931, the Academy has recognized the great innovations in motion picture making; Inventors and engineers have since advanced the art and science of motion pictures. Their efforts have not only helped enrich the art form, but have inspired a global industry to evolve, create, transform and push the boundaries of our craft.

“This year we recognize achievements ranging from pioneering methods in practical rain effects to career-long contributions in optical design for cinematography to humanistic-oriented AI techniques,” Grant continued. “This outstanding work has opened up new and exciting ways to create and expand films.”