‘Hobbit’ grabs industry-leading 7 Visual Effects Society noms including Gollum vs. Goblin King vs. Hulk

at 12:12 am by January 8, 201312:12 am by MrCere

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” earned the top nomination for visual effects and six others nominations at the 11th annual Visual Effects Society Awards, set for Feb. 5 at the Beverly Hilton. “The Avengers,” and “The Life of Pi,” are close behind with six nominations each and are also in the top category.

The awards recognize special effect driven films such as those mentioned above in a different category from those features where effects play a secondary role. It recognizes work in animated films, broadcast, commercials, video games and student work. Weta Digital is represented with “The Hobbit” and a work on a few others films as well.

It also recognizes special effect characters pitting Gollum against the Goblin King, Hulk and the tiger from “Life of Pi,” named Richard Parker. There are currently 10 films on the Academy Award list for Best Visual Effects with the official nominations expected January 10. “The Hobbit,” is very likely to be on the final ballot. TheOneRing.net is hosting an awards-night celebration in Hollywood on the nights of the awards. Some tickets remain available.

Nominations for The Hobbit are as follows:

1. Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects-Driven Feature Motion Picture

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Joe Letteri

Eileen Moran

Eric Saindon

Kevin L. Sherwood

2 & 3. Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture

The Hobbit: Goblin King

Jung Min Chan

James Jacobs

David Clayton

Guillaume Francois

The Hobbit: Gollum

Gino Acevedo

Alessandro Bonora

Jeff Capogreco

Kevin Estey

4. Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture

The Hobbit: Goblin Caverns

Ryan Arcus

Simon Jung

Alastair Maher

Anthony M. Patti

5. Outstanding Virtual Cinematography in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Matt Aitken

Victor Huang

R. Christopher White

6. Outstanding FX and Simulation Animation in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Areito Echevarria

Garry Runke

Francois Sugny

7. Outstanding Compositing in a Feature Motion Picture

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Jean-Luc Azzis

Steven Mcgillen

Christoph Salzmann

Charles Tait

For a full story and the complete list of nominations please see The Hollywood Reporter’s story.