Fourteen scientific advancements in the film industry -- ranging from visual effects systems to "burn gels" to camera stabilization equipment -- were named Monday as winners of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Scientific and Technical Awards.
The awards are given to achievements with "a proven record of contributing significant value to the process of making motion pictures," according to the Academy. A total of 37 people involved with the 14 scientific and technical achievements will be honored during the April 29 ceremony.
Along with those honors, an Academy Award of Merit -- in the form of an Oscar statuette -- will be presented to collectively recognize "all the individuals who have developed and supported captioning technology, whether open or closed, for film." That statuette will reside at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
"As part of the Academy's mission to celebrate artistry and innovation in filmmaking, we are honored to recognize the exceptional contributions of this year's Scientific and Technical Awards recipients. Their work has powerfully driven advancements in our industry," Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said in a joint statement. "Also, we are deeply honored to present the Academy Award of Merit to the individuals who created and supported the development of captioning for films. This is an essential technology that plays a vital role in making the cinematic experience accessible to all."
Scientific and Technical Award winners do not need to be developed in they year in which they are honored.
Here is a complete list of honorees:
TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS (ACADEMY CERTIFICATES)
-- Essex Edwards, James Jacobs, Jernej Barbic, Crawford Doran and Andrew van Straten for the design and development of Ziva VFX, described as a "system for constructing and simulating muscles, fat, fascia, and skin for digital characters."
-- Javor Kalojanov and Kimball Thurston for the creation of Weta FX's ML Denoiser, which utilizes "temporal filtering using innovative optical flow techniques to preserve crucial details" in computer-generated imagery.
-- Neeme Vaino for the development of Fireskin360 Naked Burn Gel, which "allows longer targeted burns directly on the skin, broadening the range of fire stunts performed across the industry."
-- Dustin Brooks and Colin Decker for the development of naked burn gel, which "first publicly demonstrated a 'naked burn,' where fire appears directly on the skin, enabling a new form of safe fire stunts in motion pictures."
-- Attila T. Ãfra for the creation of Intel Open Image Denoise, and Timo Aila for his "pioneering" work at NVIDIA applying U-Nets to denoising which "improves efficiency and preserves detail, raising the quality of CG imagery across the industry."
-- Mark Noel for adapting and enhancing the safety and reliability of transportable six-degrees-of-freedom motion base technology for motion picture use, allowing filmmakers to "dynamically control simulated actions, providing precise movements, enhancing special effects, and enriching the visual experience for audiences worldwide."
-- Su Tie for the development of sensor analysis and stabilization software, Bei Shimen for the electrical engineering, and Zhao Yanchong for the mechanical design and engineering of the Ronin 2 gimbal system, which uses three-axis stabilization, "enabling filmmakers to create complex, dynamic camera moves."
-- Tabb Firchau for the conception and development, John Ellison and Steve Webb for the attitude control system, David Bloomfield for the motor design, and Shane Colton for the motor driver system design of the Movi gimbals, which allow "single-person or collaborative remote camera operation with various controllers, enabling previously difficult shots without dolly or crane-supported stabilized heads."
SCIENTIFIC AND ENGINEERING AWARDS (ACADEMY PLAQUES)
-- Jayson Dumenigo for the development of the Action Factory Hydrogels, which allow "longer burns at higher temperatures with quick turnaround times, increasing the safety and efficiency of fire stunt performances."
-- Thijs Vogels, Fabrice Rousselle, David Adler, Gerhard Rothlin and Mark Meyer for the creation of Disney's ML Denoiser, which is considered "an essential tool for creating computer-generated imagery in feature films."
-- Nir Averbuch, Yair Chuchem and Dan Raviv for the concept, design and development of the Auto Align Post 2, which allows "the seamless blending of multiple moving microphones during film post-production, eliminating phase distortion, saving significant time over manual alignment methods and raising the reproduction quality of dialogue recorded on set."
-- Curt Schaller for the concept, design and development of the Trinity 2 system, and Roman Foltyn for the software and hardware design of its motorized stabilized head, for a body-worn system that allows "unprecedented freedom of camera movement for acquiring shots with multiple transitions that are otherwise unobtainable."
-- Steve Wagner for the initial concept and software, Garrett Brown for the design, and Jerry Holway and Robert Orf for the engineering of the Steadicam Volt stabilization system, which allows "filmmakers to achieve dynamic shots with more complex camera movement while maintaining a stable roll axis."
-- Dave Freeth for the design, engineering and development of the hand-held Stabileye three-axis motorized camera stabilization system, which facilitates "subtle and dynamic camera moves closer to actors, and in tighter quarters than previously possible."