DNEG, VFX & Animation Studio led by Indian citizen Namit Malhotra wins its 7th Oscar for Dune

A team from DNEG, a leading Visual Effects and Animation Studio, has won an Oscar for Dune in the 94th Academy Awards.

This is the 6th Oscar that DNEG has won in the last 8 years, and the 7th Oscar in all, the previous 6 being for Tenet (2021), First Man (2019), Blade Runner 2049 (2018), Ex Machina (2016), Interstellar (2015), Inception (2011)

This year the DNEG teams were nominated for two films in the ‘Best Visual Effects’ category: Dune and No Time to Die

Indian citizen Namit Malhotra is the Chairman and CEO of DNEG, which is a subsidiary of Prime Focus, and Indian multinational and the world’s largest independent integrated media services company, of which Malhotra is the Founder, previous Chairman and CEO, and current Board Member and Director

March 28, 2022: The leading visual effects (VFX) and animation studio DNEG, led by Indian citizen Namit Malhotra, as the Chairman and CEO, has won an Oscar in the ‘Best Visual Effects’ category for its team’s work on Dune, at the 94th Academy Awards.

DNEG had been nominated in the ‘Best Visual Effects’ category for its work on Dune and No Time to Die.

Visual effects supervisors from DNEG'S 'Dune' team who won are, Paul Lambert, Tristan Myles, Brian Connor and Gerd Nefzer.

While accepting the award, Paul Lambert said, “VFX is the achievement of hundreds of people around the world. So huge congratulations to all the artists and production from DNEG.”

DNEG’s VFX work has previously won six Academy Awards for ‘Best Visual Effects’, including five of the last seven.

DNEG has previously won Academy Awards for:

Tenet (2021)

First Man (2019)

Blade Runner 2049 (2018)

Ex Machina (2016)

Interstellar (2015)

Inception (2011)

Namit Malhotra, DNEG Chairman and CEO said about the victory, “Dune has set a new benchmark for what visual effects can mean for storytelling in cinema. I believe there will be conversations in terms of ‘pre Dune’ and ‘post Dune’ in terms of what we do in the arena of visual effects, in the coming years. I am grateful to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences for this Award and these nominations and proud to see our team at DNEG receiving this laurel. When I think that this is DNEG’s 7th Academy Award in the Visual Effects Category, it gives me great pride as its CEO and Chairman, and as an Indian. I started out in this business from a garage in Mumbai and I had to start from scratch in Hollywood. Now I feel there is no barrier that we Indians cannot breach.”

Earlier this month, DNEG won a BAFTA for its VFX work on Dune, further establishing the company as a leader in the global visual effects and animation space.

This BAFTA award, combined with the seven 2022 Visual Effects Society awards that DNEG picked up, makes this year one of DNEG’s most impressive years till date. Winning an Academy Award, for one of its two Academy Award ® nominations for Best Visual Effects (Dune, No Time To Die) will add another glorious feather to DNEG’s already well-feathered cap.

To add to this, Four of the five 2022 BAFTA-nominated films in the ‘Special Visual Effects’ category feature DNEG-led VFX work. These are: Dune, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, The Matrix Resurrections and No Time to Die.

DNEG also received an unprecedented 12 nominations for the 2022 Visual Effects Society (VES) Awards, across six shows, for Dune, The Matrix Resurrections, No Time to Die, Last Night In Soho, Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Foundation.

DNEG has previously won seven BAFTA Awards, as well as 18 Visual Effects Society (VES) Awards and three Primetime Emmy Awards.

The third generation of an Indian filmmaking family, Indian citizen Namit Malhotra is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DNEG. Actively seeking out projects that will expand the strengths of the company and challenge its teams to push themselves to the next level, Namit is devoted to nurturing talent and ambition, and to delivering world-class creative and technical services, and intelligent financial solutions.

After establishing Video Workshop (Prime Focus’ predecessor) in 1995, Namit founded Prime Focus, which listed its shares on BSE Limited and the National Stock Exchange of India and eventually became the parent company of DNEG. Having served as Chairman and CEO of Prime Focus, Namit has been responsible for the strategic growth and success of the company from its modest beginnings in Mumbai in 1997 to its current position as the world’s largest independent and integrated media services powerhouse. He continues to serve it as a Board member and Non-Executive Director.

DNEG (www.dneg.com) is one of the world’s leading visual effects (VFX) and animation companies for the creation of feature film, television, and multiplatform content. DNEG employs nearly 7,000 people with worldwide offices and studios across North America (Los Angeles, Montréal, Toronto and Vancouver), Europe (London) and Asia (particularly India: Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai and Mumbai).