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VES NEWS
VES Launches New ‘Health and Wellbeing’ Member Benefit
By NAOMI GOLDMAN
Life can be complicated, and the pandemic has posed numerous additional challenges to our everyday lives. This past September, the VES Board of Directors and its global Health and Wellbeing Committee introduced the VES Member Assistance Program (MAP) – a comprehensive new benefit to VES members providing valuable round-the-clock support through LifeWorks.com. “The Society is committed to the health and welfare of our members and the VFX community at large, Lisa Cooke, VES Board Chair and the VES Member Assistance Program is the latest demonstration of that investment,” said Lisa Cooke, VES Board Chair. “Our members have access to a free and confidential support network 24/7, including private one-on-one counseling services. And we’re so proud that MAP is available to every VES member in 40-plus countries worldwide – culturally appropriate and in their native language.”
Life. Family. Health. Work. Money. Whether it’s stress management, parenting and childcare, finances, legal matters or health issues, the VES Member Assistance Program provides help. In addition to personalized service, LifeWorks offers a wealth of online resources, webinars and events.
“We care not only about how our members are performing as practitioners, but how they are thriving as people – mentally, emotionally, physically,” said Emma Clifton Perry, VES 1st Vice Chair and Health and Wellbeing Committee Co-Chair. “This enormously valuable benefit is the result of the Board and staff coming together to fill the gap in accessibility to support networks for many of our members. I’m immensely proud that this latest investment in our members is now a reality.”
“I’m beyond excited about our newest member benefit,” said Philipp Wolf, Health and Wellbeing Committee Co-Chair. “Whatever concerns they have, our members now have experts standing by to take their call. This service is here to empower our members and give them help whenever it’s needed. The VES Member Assistance Program offers so much, and I hope our members worldwide will take advantage of this significant service.”
VES 2021 Hall of Fame Inductees
Roy Field (1932–2002) was a visual effects supervisor and director of photography, highly regarded as a special effects legend. He is best known for his work on Labyrinth, The Dark Crystal and Superman, which earned him an Academy Special Achievement Award and BAFTA for Visual Effects.
John P. Fulton, ASC (1902–1966) was a special effects supervisor and cinematographer with a body of work including 250 films spanning nearly four decades, earning him three Academy Awards for Special Effects on Wonder Man, The Bridges at Toko-Ri and The Ten Commandments.
Phil Kellison (1918–2005) was a visual effects supervisor and designer with a 40-year career that ranged from the George Pal Puppetoons to industrial films, commercials and feature films. His specialties include stop-motion animation forced perspective, which he dubbed “Magnascope.”
Auguste Lumière (1862–1954) and Louis Lumière (1864–1948). The Lumière Brothers were manufacturers of photography equipment, best known for their Cinématographe motion picture system and the short films they produced between 1895 and 1905, which places them among the earliest filmmakers.
John Whitney, Sr. (1917–1995) was an animator, composer and inventor, widely considered a father of computer animation. He used mechanical animation techniques to create sequences for film and television title sequences and commercials, most notably his collaboration with Saul Bass on the title sequence for Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo.
TOP LEFT TO RIGHT: James Cameron Gary Demos Brooke Breton, VES Mike Chambers, VES Rita Cahill Van Ling, VES Nancy St. John, VES Gene Kozicki Richard Winn Taylor II, VES VES celebrated a distinguished group of VFX practitioners at its festive VES Honors event this past November, held at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. Visionary filmmaker James Cameron and CG pioneer Gary Demos were named Honorary VES Members. This year’s venerated VES Fellows bestowed with the post-nominal letters “VES” were Brooke Breton, Mike Chambers, Van Ling and Nancy St. John. New VES Hall of Fame honorees included Roy Field, John P. Fulton, ASC, Phil Kellison, the Lumière Brothers and John Whitney, Sr. (See photos on opposite page.)
Previously announced VES 2021 honorees include award-winning Visual Effects Producer Mike Chambers and venerated international business and marketing consultant Rita Cahill, who were named recipients of the 2021 VES Founders Awards. The Society also designated digital production manager and noted VFX historian Gene Kozicki, acclaimed creative and cinematic director Richard Winn Taylor II, VES, Mike Chambers and Rita Cahill with Lifetime VES memberships.
Honorary Member James Cameron is an acclaimed, Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and VES award-winning filmmaker, known for his expansive vision and innovative visual effects-driven films, which have repeatedly smashed boxoffice records. A recipient of the VES Lifetime Achievement Award, Cameron received an Academy Award for Best Director for Titanic (which won 11 Oscars) and his films Aliens, Avatar,Terminator 2: Judgment Day and The Abyss each received Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects.
Honorary Member Gary Demos is a pioneer in the development of computer-generated images and digital image processing for use in motion pictures. He is the recipient of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Scientific and Engineering Award and the Gordon E. Sawyer Oscar for lifetime technical achievement. The inventor of approximately 100 patents, Demos is a SMPTE Fellow and recipient of the SMPTE Digital Processing Medal.
Fellow Brooke Breton, VES has been involved in prominent live-action films, animated films, television series and theme park projects, which have received Academy, BAFTA, Emmy, Annie and VES awards and nominations. A three-term VES Board member, Breton is a member of the Academy’s Visual Effects Branch, Visual Effects Executive Council, and Science and Technology Council.
Fellow Mike Chambers, VES is an award-winning freelance Visual Effects Producer and Independent VFX Consultant specializing in large-scale feature film productions. He has contributed to the visual effects on numerous Academy and BAFTA award-winning films, and is the recipient of three VES Awards for Best Visual Effects on Dunkirk, Inception and The Day After Tomorrow. A 20-year VES member, Chambers served six years as the Chair of the VES.
Fellow Van Ling, VES is a renowned visual effects supervisor, graphic designer, editor and digital artist. His diverse credits range from films to theme park attractions to designing and creating THX trailers and innovative laserdisc/DVD/Blu-ray formats. In addition to his service on the VES Board and Committees, Ling is a member of the Academy’s Visual Effects Branch.
Fellow Nancy St. John, VES has a VFX and computer animation career that has spanned over 38 years, and VFX teams under her leadership have garnered Academy Awards for Babe and Gladiator. In addition to her service on the VES Board and Membership Committee, St. John is a member of the Academy’s Visual Effects Branch and VFX Executive Committee.
