DAVE School Graduate Credited on Disney’s ‘Encanto’, Best Animated Feature Film at the 94th Annual Academy Awards

The 94th annual Academy Awards were hosted at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday, March 27th, 2022, and DAVE School graduates were credited on many nominated projects. Out of the projects nominated, one of these projects, Disney's Encanto, took home an Oscar at the end of the night. Disney Animation Studios' acclaimed film Encanto took home the prestigious honor of Best Animated Feature Film, and DAVE School graduate David Maldonaldo worked on the movie as a stereo artist. His duties on Disney's Encanto were stereo cameras and compositing, roto, clean plates, paint fixes, tracking, keying, proprietary tools, Linux environment, stereography in Maya, and stereo conversion of 2D elements in Nuke.

About the Film:

The Disney film Encanto tells the story of the Madrigals, who live in a magical house in a colorful town in Colombia called Encanto. The town's magic has given each child in the family a unique gift, except for one child named Mirabel. She discovers the magic of Encanto is in danger, and Mirabel decides that she just might be the family’s last hope.

To win an Oscar means that the project has won the highest honor within the filmmaking industry and undergoes an extensive voting process.

How does the Voting Process at the Academy Awards work?

Each Academy Awards category is judged under the seventeen (17) different voting branches, where the members nominate and vote for the winners within their fields. The only category where everyone has a right to nominate and vote is the Best Picture category. 

What are the branches that participate in the nomination and voting process?

The branches that participate in the nomination and voting process are the following: actors, costume designers, cinematographers, documentaries, directors, editors, music, makeup artists and hairstylist, production designers, producers, short films, and feature animation, sound, visual effects, and writers. Each of these brands has at least one Oscars category. Three branches are not represented with awards: executives, casting directors, and marketing/public relations.

How does a person become a voting member?

A person can apply if they have film credits under their belt. Each application is then approved by the executive branch committee and submitted to the board upon approval. 

Who does the Academy board consist of?

The Academy board consists of three members that are elected from each branch as well as three governors at large who are appointed to their positions.

Visual Effects Diploma Program

Visual Effects (VFX) is the essence of a movie or TV show once the filming is complete, the explosions, the falling helicopters, or the transformation from 21st century New York into 1920s New York. Scenes that are too hard or dangerous to film, such as smoke, water, oceans, or worlds and environments, come to life through Visual Effects.

The DAVE School Visual Effects Diploma program spans 12-months and offers scheduled starts each Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. Its uniquely flexible, hybrid format combines nine months of live, online classes with three months of in-person learning here at our Orlando, Florida campus. Students get to refine their skills in an immersive combination of project-based workflows and applied studio skills, preparing them for their advancement into the Visual Effects workplace.

About The DAVE School

The DAVE School was founded on June 8, 2000, by two Industry executives looking to create #CareerReady artists with a practical animation school. Today, The DAVE School offers specialized training in Visual Effects, Game Production, Virtual Production, and Digital Graphic Design with extensive practice under industry-level supervision.

Located on the backlot of Universal Studios Florida®, The DAVE School has an 18,000 square foot facility that includes learning and interactive labs, a dedicated Virtual and Real-Time production stage, a Vicon motion capture system, 3D printing, and VR/AR labs, and secure student access 7 days a week.

NUC University (NUC) is an accredited institution and a member of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) www.msche.org. NUC’s NUC University – IBC Technical Division (NUC-IBC), NUC University - Florida Technical College (NUC-FTC), and The Digital Animation & Visual Effects School (The DAVE School) are included in this accreditation. NUC’s accreditation status is Accreditation Reaffirmed. The Commission’s most recent action on the institution’s accreditation status on 2019 was to reaffirm accreditation. MSCHE is an institutional accrediting agency rec

*sources: https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/oscars/a621921/who-votes-for-the-oscars/ 

https://variety.com/feature/who-votes-on-oscars-academy-awards-how-voting-works-1203490944/