**FREE** Q&Awards: AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH

Sponsored by 20th Century Studios

“Avatar: Fire and Ash,” the third film in the phenomenally successful “Avatar” franchise, opens exclusively in theaters worldwide December 19, 2025. James Cameron takes audiences back to Pandora in an immersive new adventure with Marine turned Na’vi leader Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), Na’vi warrior Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña), and the Sully family. The film, which has a screenplay by James Cameron & Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver, and a story by James Cameron & Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver & Josh Friedman & Shane Salerno, also stars Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Oona Chaplin, Cliff Curtis, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Edie Falco, David Thewlis, Jemaine Clement, Giovanni Ribisi, Britain Dalton, Jamie Flatters, Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, Jack Champion, Brendan Cowell, Bailey Bass, Filip Geljo, Duane Evans, Jr., and Kate Winslet. (Synopsis by 20th Century Studios)

Joe Letteri's (Senior Visual Effects Supervisor) pioneering work in visual effects has earned him five Academy® Awards for Best Visual Effects – most recently for “Avatar: The Way of Water,” following earlier wins for “Avatar,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,” and “King Kong.” 

He has a long-standing interest in creating compelling, realistic creatures and characters – from the Na’vi to Gollum, Alita, and Caesar. He has developed many techniques that have become industry standards for creating photorealistic digital effects. This includes co-developing the subsurface scattering technique that brought Gollum to life (winning an Academy® Technical Achievement Award), and pushing the development of large-scale virtual production.

Under Letteri’s leadership, Wētā FX has continued to expand and improve these techniques through films like “The Hobbit” and “The Planet of the Apes” trilogies. He continues to drive the advancement of Wētā’s technological and artistic innovations. 

Richard Baneham (Lightstorm Visual Effects Supervisor/Virtual Second Unit Director/Executive Producer) or “Richie,” hails from a traditional animation background. He made the transition to CG while working on “The Iron Giant.” From there, he embarked into the world of CG, where he has also won awards for his work as an animation supervisor on “The Lord of the Rings,” “The Two Towers,” and “The Return of the King.” His other credits include “Alita: Battle Angel” and “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.”

Baneham also had the opportunity to dive into the world of theme parks, where he helped design and co-direct the “The Flight of Passage” and “The Na’vi River Ride Journey” at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Florida.

Eric Saindon (Wētā FX Senior Visual Effects Supervisor). “Avatar,” “Avatar: The Way of Water,” “Alita: Battle Angel,” and all three “Hobbit” films are just the tip of the iceberg. He joined Wētā FX in 1999 as a creatures/character supervisor, where he was pivotal in the creation of Gollum for “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.” He first moved into a VFX supervisor role in 2006 for “X-Men: The Last Stand.” Since then, he has served in this capacity for most of his projects, while also managing preproduction and on-set duties.

Between blockbusters, Saindon has shown a deft hand guiding smaller projects, like “Pete’s Dragon” and David Lowery’s “The Green Knight.” He won an Academy Award® and a BAFTA Award for “Avatar:The Way of Water.” He was previously nominated for two Academy Awards and three BAFTAs, and has won four Visual Effects Society Awards. He is an active member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Daniel Barrett (Wētā FX Senior Animation Supervisor) won an Academy® Award and BAFTA Award for “Avatar: The Way of Water.” He was also the animation supervisor for three of the “Planet of the Apes” films: “Rise,” “Dawn,” and “War,” earning him three Oscar® and BAFTA nominations. He joined the team at Wētā FX in 2006 on “Bridge to Terabithia.” The same year, he was lead animator on “The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep,” work that earned him a VES nomination for animated character. Barrett spent three years as lead animator on James Cameron’s “Avatar” on multiple sequences, including the destruction of the Home Tree and the third-act ground battle. He also led the animation team that created the digital Paul Walker for “Furious 7.”