The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power has been honored with 5 awards from the Visual Effects Society and the Art Directors Guild, who both announced their award winners this past week.

Rings of Power won 3 awards at the 21st annual VES Awards:

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn”
Jason Smith, Ron Ames, Nigel Sumner, Tom Proctor, Dean Clarke

OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn”, “Water and Magma”
Rick Hankins, Aron Bonar, Branko Grujcic, Laurent Kermel

OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Adar”, “Númenor City”
Dan Wheaton, Nico Delbecq, Dan Letarte, Julien Gauthier

The Art Directors Guild handed our their awards last night and Rings of Power won in the two categories the show was nominated for:

ONE-HOUR FANTASY SINGLE-CAMERA SERIES

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Adar”
Ramsey Avery

COMMERCIALS
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Title Announcement”
Brian Branstetter

Congratulations to the talented and hard-working artists of Rings of Power who were honored by their guilds!

The International Film Music Critics Association has announced their nominations today. Bear McCreary leads all nominees with 8 nominations, including his score for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power which is the first TV score ever nominated for Score of the Year. High praise for McCreary’s work on Rings of Power from their members was included in their press release:

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power received nominations for Score of the Year – the first television score nominated in that category in IFMCA history since the rule change to allow TV scores to be included was announced in 2022 – plus Best Television score, and for three different tracks in the Composition of the Year category, while McCreary himself was nominated for Composer of the Year.

IFMCA member James Southall called The Rings of Power “a real triumph, undoubtedly McCreary’s own career-defining moment,” and IFMCA member Conrado Xalabarder said that the score was “one of the best in the history of music for television series … a work made from intelligence, commitment and above all respect for Tolkien and the audience. All its central themes work impeccably, coherently, and they develop and interact with each other, creating first-rate narration and dramaturgy.” IFMCA member Jon Broxton similarly praised the score, saying “the level of research and intelligent design McCreary has done in terms of creating the musical structure of The Rings of Power is absolutely astonishing, and is probably unparalleled in the history of television music.”

The nominees are:

SCORE OF THE YEAR

AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER, music by Simon Franglen
THE BATMAN, music by Michael Giacchino
THE FABELMANS, music by John Williams
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary, theme by Howard Shore
NOPE, music by Michael Abels

COMPOSER OF THE YEAR

ALEXANDRE DESPLAT
SIMON FRANGLEN
MICHAEL GIACCHINO
BEAR MCCREARY
DANIEL PEMBERTON

COMPOSITION OF THE YEAR*

“Galadriel” from THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary
“Leaving Home (Hometree)” from AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER, music by Simon Franglen
“Mother and Son” from THE FABELMANS, music by John Williams
“Númenor” from THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary
“Sailing Into the Dawn” from THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary

“The Batman” from THE BATMAN, music by Michael Giacchino

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR TELEVISION

THE ENGLISH, music by Federico Jusid
INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, music by Daniel Hart
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary, theme by Howard Shore
MOON KNIGHT, music by Hesham Nazih
THE ORVILLE, music by John Debney, Joel McNeely, Andrew Cottee, and Kevin Kaska, theme by Bruce Broughton

McCreary also received nominations for Best Original Score for an Animated Film for Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank and Best Original Score for a Video Game or Interactive Media for God of War: Ragnarök. Congratulations to Bear McCreary on his nominations!

The Visual Effects Society announced their film and television nominations today for the 21st Annual VES Awards. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power smashed expectations and leads all television nominees with a total of 7 nominations. Awards will be handed out February 15.

The Rings of Power is competing against themselves in two categories and is the only show nominated with films like Avatar: The Way of Water in one category:

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL EPISODE

House of the Dragon: “The Black Queen”
Prehistoric Planet: “Ice Worlds”
Stranger Things 4: “The Piggyback”
The Boys: “Payback”
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn
(Jason Smith, Ron Ames, Nigel Sumner, Tom Proctor, Dean Clarke)

OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

Andor: “Reckoning; Ferrix
The Book of Boba Fett: “In the Name of Honor; Mos Espa
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Adar“, Númenor City
(Dan Wheaton, Nico Delbecq, Dan LeTarte, Julien Gauthier)
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Adrift”, Khazud Dûm
(James Ogle, Péter Bujdosó, Lon Krung, Shweta Bhatnagar)

OUTSTANDING EFFECTS SIMULATIONS IN AN EPISODE, COMMERCIAL, OR REAL-TIME PROJECT

Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities: Graveyard Rats
Stranger Things 4: Hawkins Destructive Fissures
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn”, Volcano Destruction
(Kurt Debens, Hamish Bell, Robert Kelly, Gabriel Roccisano)
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn“, Water and Magma
(Rick Hankins, Aron Bonar, Branko Grujcic, Laurent Kermel)

OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING & LIGHTING IN AN EPISODE

House of the Dragon: “The Black Queen”, Dance of Dragons
Love, Death and Robots: “Night of the Mini Dead”
The Book of Boba Fett: “From the Desert Comes a Stranger”, Luke Alike
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn”, Tirharad Cavalry Charge
(Sornalingam P, Ian Copeland, Nessa Mingfang Zhang, Yuvaraj S)

OUTSTANDING SPECIAL (PRACTICAL) EFFECTS IN A PHOTOREAL PROJECT

Avatar: The Way of Water: Current Machine and Wave Pool
Black Adam: Robotic Flight
Mad God
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Adrift”, Middle Earth Storm
(Dean Clarke, Oliver Gee, Eliot Naimie, Mark Robson)

Congratulations to the visual effects team from The Rings of Power for their well-earned nominations!

It hasn’t been ten years since TORn last caught up with Stephen Hunter, but it has – astonishingly – been ten years since the first of the three Hobbit movies premiered. Where has the time flown to?? We’ve been remembering press events, red carpets and theatre viewings; so we were delighted to have a chance to chat with Bombur himself, from his sunny home in Sydney, Australia.

Hunter has been very busy lately, with roles in projects such as Ruby’s Choice, Heartbreak High, and The Tourist, as well as his full work load as an acting coach. But that didn’t stop him taking the time to tell us when he last had a chance to catch up with Hobbit cast mates, show us some goodies he has from set, and share his thoughts on The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Second breakfast with fellow dwarves in London, pub crawls with Sylvester McCoy, and Dwarvish lightsabers?! All will be revealed:

Additional guild award nominations have been announced in the past two days with The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power receiving recognition in even more crafts this time around.

Surprisingly, Rings of Power was not recognized by the Make-up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild, but the series did get a nod from SAG (Screen Actors Guild) for their incredible stunt team:

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A STUNT ENSEMBLE IN A TELEVISION SERIES

Andor
The Boys
House of the Dragon
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
Stranger Things

Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series

It’s a competitive category with all worthy nominees. The SAG Awards will be broadcast live on Netflix’s YouTube channel on February 26.

Rings of Power costume designer Kate Hawley was also nominated by the Costume Designers Guild for their 25th CDGA Awards for her outstanding work:

EXCELLANCE IN SCI-FI/FANTASY TELEVISION

House of the Dragon: The Heirs of the Dragon (Jany Temime)
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: A Shadow of the Past (Kate Hawley)
Westworld: Generation Loss (Debra Beebe)
What We Do in the Shadows: The Wedding (Laura Montgomery)
The Witcher: Blood Origin: Of Mages, Malice, and Monstrous Mayhem (Lucinda Wright)

Guild nominations are often an indicator for the Creative Arts Emmy Awards. Those nominations will be announced July 12 and are being held in a non-televised ceremony this September.

Congratulations to all those from the Rings of Power crew nominated!

More guild award nominations have been announced today with The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power receiving recognition in key crafts – sound and production design.

The Motion Picture Sound Editors released their nominations for the 70th annual Golden Reel Awards. The award ceremony will be held at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre on February 26, 2023. Rings of Power received three nominations in the following categories (all 3 they were eligible for):

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND EDITING – BROADCAST LONG FORM DIALOGUE / ADR

Better Call Saul: “Saul Gone”
The Crown: “Gunpowder”
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Udûn”
(Supervising Sound Editors: Robby Stambler MPSE, Damian Del Borrello MPSE
Dialogue / ADR Supervisor: Stefanie Ng
Dialogue Editors: Ailene Roberts MPSE, Ray Beentjes
ADR Group Editor: Gareth Van Niekirk
)
Severance: “The We We Are”
Stranger Things: “Chapter Seven: The Massacre at Hawkins Lab”

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND EDITING – BROADCAST LONG FORM EFFECTS / FOLEY

Andor: “Reckoning”
Better Call Saul: “Carrot and Stick”
Gaslit: “Year of the Rat”
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power “Udûn”
(Supervising Sound Editors: Damian Del Borrello MPSE, Robby Stambler MPSE
Sound Designer: Paula Fairfield MPSE
Sound Editors: James Miller, Chris Terhune, Gareth Van Niekerk, Ryan A. Sullivan, Goeun Everett MPSE
Foley Editor: Richard Wills, Jonathan Bruce, Amy Barber
Foley Artist: Jonathan Bruce
)
Stranger Things: “Chapter Seven: The Massacre at Hawkins Lab”

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC EDITING – BROADCAST LONG FORM

The L Word: Generation Q: “Questions for the Universe”
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: “Alloyed”
(Music Editors: Jason Smith, Michael Baber)
Severance: “The We We Are”
Stranger Things: “Chapter Nine: The Piggyback”
Wednesday: “A Murder of Woes”
The White Lotus S2: “Bull Elephants”

The Art Directors Guild announced their nominations for excellence in production design. The winners will be announced on February 18.

ONE-HOUR FANTASY SINGLE-CAMERA SERIES

“Andor: Rix Road” (Production Designer: Luke Hull)
“House of the Dragon: The Heirs of the Dragon” (Production Designer: Jim Clay)
“The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Adar” (Production Designer: Ramsey Avery)
“Stranger Things: “Chapter Seven: The Massacre at Hawkins Lab” (Production Designer: Chris Trujillo)
“Wednesday: Woe is the Loneliest Number” (Production Designer: Mark Scruton)

COMMERCIALS

“American Horror Stories: Dollhouse” Promo (Production Designer: Marc Benacerraf)
Bud Light Seltzer: “Land Of Loud Flavors” (Production Designer: François Audouy)
“Just Eat & Katy Perry: Did Somebody Say” (Production Designer: François Audouy)
“The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power – Title Announcement” (Production Designer: Brian Branstetter)
Paramount+: “Wildlife Promo” (Production Designer: Maia Javan)

Congratulations to all who were nominated!