"Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" won Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature, the top feature prize at the 23rd Annual Visual Effects Society Awards and the one that most closely corresponds to the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. The celebration of achievement in visual effects took place on Tuesday in Los Angeles.
The sci-fi primate sequel beat "Dune: Part Two," which went into the evening with the most nominations (seven) and emerged with the most wins (four): Outstanding Achievement in a Photoreal Feature, Outstanding CG Cinematography, Outstanding Effects Simulations in a Photoreal Feature and Outstanding Compositing & Lighting in a Feature.
The victory for "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" does not necessarily make the film a frontrunner in the Oscars' visual-effects race. Over the 22 years of VES Awards, the winner went on to receive the Oscar 12 times, but the two groups have only matched three times in the last 10 years. The three previous installments in the rebooted "Planet of the Apes" franchise -- "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" in 2011, "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" in 2014 and "War for the Planet of the Apes" in 2017 -- all won the top VES award, only to lose on Oscar night to "Hugo," "Interstellar" and "Blade Runner 2049," respectively.
"The Wild Robot" also had a great evening on Tuesday, winning four of the five categories in which it was nominated, including best VFX in an animated feature. The only category it didn't win was Outstanding Compositing & Lighting in a Feature, which went to "Dune: Part II."
On the TV side, "Shōgun" once again proved irresistible to voters, winning the top prize (Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Episode) for the pilot, "Anjin." Its three wins tied with "The Penguin," whose victories include best supporting VFX in a photoreal episode, for "Bliss."
In the commercial field, "Coca-Cola: The Heroes" came out on top.
During the show, which was hosted by the Sklar Brothers, Keanu Reeves presented Emmy-winning "Shōgun" star-producer Hiroyuki Sanada with the VES Award for Creative Excellence. The other honorees were Dr. Jacquelyn Ford Morie (for the Georges Méliès Award) and Takashi Yamazaki (for the Visionary Award).
The complete list of VES Awards winners is below.
OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE
"Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes"
Erik Winquist
Julia Neighly
Paul Story
Danielle Immerman
Rodney Burke
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE
"Civil War"
David Simpson
Michelle Rose
Freddy Salazar
Chris Zeh
J.D. Schwalm
OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE
"The Wild Robot"
Chris Sanders
Jeff Hermann
Jeff Budsberg
Jakob Hjort Jensen
OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE
"Shōgun" ("Anjin")
Michael Cliett
Melody Mead
Philip Engström
Ed Bruce
Cameron Waldbauer
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE
"The Penguin" ("Bliss")
Johnny Han
Michelle Rose
Goran Pavles
Ed Bruce
Devin Maggio
OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A REAL-TIME PROJECT
OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A SPECIAL VENUE PROJECT
OUTSTANDING CHARACTER IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, GAME CINEMATIC, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT
"Ronja the Robber's Daughter": Vildvittran the Queen Harpy
Nicklas Andersson
David Allan
Gustav Åhren
Niklas Wallén
OUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENT IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE
"Dune: Part Two": The Arrakeen Basin
Daniel Rhein
Daniel Anton Fernandez
Marc James Austin
Christopher Anciaume
OUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENT IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE
"The Wild Robot": The Forest
John Wake
He Jung Park
Woojin Choi
Shane Glading
OUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENT IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, GAME CINEMATIC, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT
OUTSTANDING MODEL IN A PHOTOREAL OR ANIMATED PROJECT
"Alien: Romulus": Renaissance Space Station
Waldemar Bartkowiak
Trevor Wide
Matt Middleton
Ben Shearman
OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN A PHOTOREAL FEATURE
"Dune: Part Two": Atomic Explosions and Wormriding
Nicholas Papworth
Sandy la Tourelle
Lisa Nolan
Christopher Phillips
OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE
"The Wild Robot"
Derek Cheung
Michael Losure
David Chow
Nyoung Kim
OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, GAME CINEMATIC, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT
OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN AN EPISODE
"The Penguin" (After Hours)
Jonas Stuckenbrock
Karen Cheng
Eugene Bondar
Miky Girón
OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN A COMMERCIAL
Coca-Cola: "The Heroes"
Ryan Knowles
Alex Gabucci
Jack Powell
Dan Yargici
OUTSTANDING SPECIAL (PRACTICAL) EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL PROJECT