'Avengers: Infinity War' Wins Top Prize at VES Awards

Congrats to Avengers: Infinity War for taking home the top prize at the VES Awards!

This was the 17th awards ceremony from the Visual Effects Society and the first time they have ever awarded the Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature Award to a Marvel Cinematic Universe film.

Infinity War left the event with three other prizes. The movie also won Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture for Thanos (another first win for the MCU in this category), Outstanding Effects Simulations in a Photoreal Feature for Titan, and Outstanding Compositing in a Photoreal Feature for Titan.

Infinity War was also nominated for Outstanding Effects Simulations in a Photoreal Feature for Wakanda, but lost to itself. The movie was also up for Outstanding Model in a Photoreal or Animated Project for the Nidavellir Forge Megastructure, but lost to Mortal Engines for their depiction of London.

According to Deadline, the winner of the VES Award for Photoreal Feature has gone on to win the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects 10 out of 16 times. That was not the case last year, however, when Blade Runner 2049 took home the Oscar after War for the Planet of the Apes won the VES Award.

Infinity War is facing off a strong list of contenders at the Oscars this year, including Christopher Robin, First Man, Ready Player One, and Solo: A Star Wars Story. At the VES Awards, First Man claimed the prize for Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature. Ready Player One took home the Outstanding Created Environment in a Photoreal Feature for their nod to The Shining as well as Outstanding Virtual Cinematography in a Photoreal Project for the New York race scene.

Despite doing incredibly well this awards season, Black Panther has been shut out of the visual effects awards, not earning any from VES in addition to missing out on the Oscar nomination. However, it is the first comic book film ever to be nominated for Best Picture. The movie is also up for Best Original Music Score (Ludwig Göransson), Best Costume Design (Ruth E. Carter), Best Sound Mixing (Steve Boeddeker, Brandon Proctor, Peter J. Devlin), Best Sound Editing (Benjamin A. Burtt, Steve Boeddeker), Best Original Song (Sounwave, Kendrick Lamar, Anthony Tiffith, SZA), and Best Production Design (Hannah Beachler, Jay Hart).

Do you think Avengers: Infinity War will win the Best Visual Effects Oscar? Tell us in the comments!

Avengers: Infinity War is now available on home video and Netflix. Upcoming MCU movies include Captain Marvel on March 8, Avengers: Endgame on April 26, and Spider-Man: Far From Home on July 5.