Academy Honors 15 Scientific and Technical Breakthroughs for 2026 Awards
RMN Stars Awards Desk
New Delhi | February 27, 2026
LOS ANGELES, CA – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced that 15 scientific and technical achievements, representing 27 individual recipients, will be recognized at the annual Scientific and Technical Awards ceremony on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
These prestigious honors, which have been awarded since 1931, celebrate the innovators whose discoveries have made significant and lasting contributions to the art of filmmaking. Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Lynette Howell Taylor noted that these extraordinary achievements “continue to shape the art and craft of filmmaking,” enabling the industry to bring powerful stories to global audiences.
Advancements in Safety and Realism: A major focus of this year’s Technical Achievement Awards is the development of lead-free pyrotechnic devices, which have modernized the industry standard for on-set bullet hits. Brent Bell, Josef Köhler, and Ian Medwell are being recognized for their respective work in creating non-toxic, reliable alternatives to traditional squibs, meeting rigorous environmental and safety standards while maintaining the visual quality of practical effects.
Revolutionizing Visual Effects and Animation: The Academy is also honoring several breakthroughs in digital rendering and stylized animation. Andrea Weidlich and Luca Fascione will be recognized for their work on Wētā FX’s Manuka renderer, specifically for layered material systems that have raised the bar for photorealism. Similarly, teams from Industrial Light & Magic and Framestore will receive awards for their modular layered shading systems, which allow artists to create physically plausible appearances without complex coding.
In the realm of animation, tools developed at Sony Pictures Imageworks and DreamWorks Animation are being celebrated for enabling a wide variety of custom artistic styles and painterly effects that have inspired the industry.
Sound Restoration and Lighting Innovations: The awards also highlight critical improvements in post-production. Benjamin Graf is being honored for dxRevive Pro, a tool that has transformed dialogue restoration by maintaining the realism of on-set performances. Additionally, Paul Debevec will be recognized for his pioneering work in high dynamic range (HDR), image-based lighting techniques, which have significantly improved the realism of computer graphics in feature films.
Scientific and Engineering Excellence: The Scientific and Engineering Award will be presented to Jamie and Dyami Caliri for the development of Dragonframe, a software suite that has transformed stop-motion animation by providing a precise, integrated toolset for filmmakers.
Unlike other Academy Awards, these honors are not restricted to achievements developed within the last year. Instead, they must demonstrate a proven record of significant value to the motion picture process. “Whether through enhancing the safety of practical effects… or pushing the limits of stop-motion animation and sound restoration, these technologies are now fundamental to the craft,” said committee co-chairs Darin Grant and Rachel Rose.
