Ghoul created with Autodesk Maya and Arnold peeks over the desert landscape.
On February 15th, the Visual Effects Society (VES) celebrated its 21st annual awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. This prestigious event honors the most outstanding visual effects across film, television, and other media from the previous year. Among the many nominees, the "Outstanding Visual Effects in a Student Project" category stood out, once again supported by Autodesk for the 16th consecutive year.
A remarkable student team from Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg was honored on stage by Autodesk’s Chief Marketing Officer, Dara Treseder, for their work on the short film "A Calling. From the Desert. To the Sea", directed by Murad Abu Eisheh. Their submission featured a detailed VFX breakdown of the film, available here.
The short film tells the story of two young sisters embarking on a journey through the desert in search of a better future. Haunted by nightmares, the younger sister is tormented by a terrifying desert monster that emerges from her dreams, symbolizing an inner enemy. Through their journey, the sisters eventually break free from the creature and reach a hopeful horizon, showcasing the power of resilience and hope.
VFX Supervisor Mario Bertsch led a team of 30 artists over two years to deliver 28 visual effects shots for the film. Lennard Fricke and Max Pollmann were responsible for VFX production, while Till Sander-Titgemeyer, Lukas Löffler, and Lukas Kapp worked closely with Bertsch to create the stunning desert landscapes and lifelike creature. The team used Autodesk Maya for animation, Arnold for rendering, ShotGrid for project management, and RV for shot review, demonstrating a strong command of industry-standard tools.
"We are incredibly proud to receive this award," said VFX producer Lennard Fricke. "It's a huge honor for our crew, who worked tirelessly on this project, as well as for Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg. We had a great time working together and learning, and we can't wait to see where this opportunity takes us in the future."
Dara Treseder added, "We are in awe of the next generation of visual effects artists and excited to support them as they shape the future of our industry. We’re grateful to the Visual Effects Society for recognizing their incredible talent. Congratulations to the team behind "A Calling. From the Desert. To the Sea" on their win. We look forward to seeing more stories brought to life in ways that move, inspire, and challenge us all."
The event also celebrated other impressive student projects, including "Boom", "Macula", and "Maronii". These films showcased exceptional digital artistry and storytelling, highlighting the growing talent in the field of visual effects.
Ghoul created with Autodesk Maya and Arnold growls, representing the enemy that lies within.
Discover more about "A Calling. From the Desert. To the Sea" here.
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