And the winner is…Autodesk!

All eyes were on the red carpet yesterday for the 88th Annual Academy Awards—we just love the celebrity glitz and Hollywood glamor. But the real stars of the entertainment industry are the men and women who create the incredible worlds that the stars and stories inhabit. As you know, Autodesk software is a prominent player in the world of animated films. Autodesk Maya first made headlines in 2009 when James Cameron and John Landau used it to create the revolutionary film, Avatar. (Landau spoke at AU Las Vegas 2009, saying, “[Autodesk] made the impossible possible.”) But did you know Autodesk products are used to create the groundbreaking visual effects in lots of live action films as well? In fact, this year all 5 nominees for Best Visual Effects used Autodesk Maya and Shotgun software to create winning visuals:

• Ex Machina (winner!)
• Mad Max: Fury Road
• The Martian
• The Revenant
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Autodesk received 2 additional nods at the awards ceremony this year. The Academy presented Autodesk scientists Jim Hourihan, Alan Trombla, and Seth Rosenthal with Technical Achievement Awards for their work developing the Tweak Software RV media player system, which is part of the Shotgun software offering. And Autodesk Software Development Manager Sylvain Laroche received the Pre-production Visualization System Technology & Engineering Emmy Award. Not too shabby. Congratulations to all the winners! [caption id="attachment_1411" align="aligncenter" width="699"] Ex Machina, winner for Best Visual Effects, used Autodesk Maya for rendering.[/caption]