**FREE** Q&Awards: PREDATOR: BADLANDS

Sponsored by 20th Century Studios

“Predator: Badlands,” which stars Elle Fanning and Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, is set in the future on a remote planet, where a young Predator (Schuster-Koloamatangi), outcast from his clan, finds an unlikely ally in Thia (Fanning) and embarks on a treacherous journey in search of the ultimate adversary. The film is directed by Dan Trachtenberg and produced by John Davis, Dan Trachtenberg, Marc Toberoff, Ben Rosenblatt, Brent O’Connor. (Description by 20th Century Studios)

Dan Trachtenberg is a director, writer, producer, and podcast host. He made his feature film debut with 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016), which earned him a Directors Guild of America Award nomination for Outstanding Directing – First-Time Feature Film. He went on to direct and provide the story for the Predator franchise films Prey (2022), Predator: Killer of Killers (2025), and the recent box office smash Predator: Badlands (2025). For television, he directed the pilot episodes of The Boys (2019) and The Lost Symbol (2021), as well as episodes of Black Mirror (2016).

Sheldon Stopsack joined Wētā FX in 2019 as a Visual Effects Supervisor on Ang Lee’s ground-breaking film Gemini Man.

He was recently VFX Supervisor on Jared Hess’s A Minecraft Movie and has just wrapped on Predator: Badlands.

On Gemini Man, he led Wētā’s breakthrough development in the facial technology that was used to create the younger and entirely digital Will Smith and establishing a new industry-standard for CG human characters.

Sheldon has a particular interest in creating digital characters—particularly humans—and led Wētā FX’s work on DC film Black Adam, Jaume Collet-Serra’s action thriller Carry On and an episode of HBO Max Original Our Flag Means Death.

Sheldon supervised visual effects on Terminator Genisys, where he led the pioneering creation of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s photo-real younger digi double. He followed this up by serving as Visual Effects Supervisor on Terminator: Dark Fate and The Tomorrow War.

Prior to Wētā, Sheldon was a CG Supervisor at MPC where he led 3D teams on effects-heavy blockbusters such as Guardians of the Galaxy, X-Men: Days of Futures Past and Total Recall.

Sheldon’s early career started in lighting and look development, leading him to take lead roles on films such as X-Men: First Class, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

Kathy Siegel is a seasoned Visual Effects Supervisor and Producer whose robust career spans more than 35 years. She has played a key role behind the scenes in both blockbuster features and smaller-scale productions.

What sets Kathy apart is her rare, comprehensive background in multiple facets of filmmaking and shot production. She began her career with traditional animation on the seminal series Pee-wee’s Playhouse — grounding her in the fundamentals of visual storytelling, film technique, and intricate craftsmanship. From there, she expanded into not just visual effects but also production and post-production, giving her a unique understanding of start to finish filmmaking. This cross-disciplinary foundation allows her to bridge creative and technical teams seamlessly, anticipate challenges across departments, and drive projects from concept to final delivery with clarity and precision.

Her credits include major studio films such as Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023), Ford v Ferrari (2019), and Maze Runner: The Death Cure (2018), as well as earlier work on Thor (2011) and Captain America: The First Avenger (2011). Her career demonstrates versatility — she’s served as VFX Producer, Producer, and Visual Effects Supervisor, depending on the project’s scope and needs.

In addition to major theatrical releases, Kathy has contributed to commercials, television series, and even music videos — applying her creativity and visual-effects expertise broadly across the entertainment industry.

Most recently, Kathy served as Visual Effects Producer on Predator: Badlands (2025), reflecting both her ongoing influence in high-profile productions and her sustained commitment to creative excellence.

Trained in the visual arts, music and economics Kathy came to visual effects by chance but finds it offers the exact combination of science, math and art that excites her boundless creativity.

Karl Rapley - Karl joined Wētā FX at the end of 2006 as a junior previs artist on Steven Spielberg’s The Adventures of Tintin.

During the three-and-a-half years he worked on this enjoyable and fun project, where part of his role was to come up with gags and crazy action sequences with the team and he was promoted several times and emerged as a Senior artist.

Karl worked on the last two Avengers films - Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame as a Lead Animator and Sequence Animation Supervisor and continued in the MCU as Animation Supervisor on Black Widow and on The Marvels.

Most recently, Karl was Animation Supervisor on Predator: Badlands.

Karl won an Annie Award for Best Character Animation in a Live Action production in 2021 for his animation supervision on Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Born and raised in Warkworth New Zealand, Karl grew up inspired by films like Jurassic Park, Terminator 2 and just about anything that had a behind-the-scenes feature on the disc.

He particularly enjoys working on projects where he can assist the film makers in creating amazing action sequences from previs to final animation.

Olivier Dumont is an award-nominated visual effects supervisor whose career bridges the artistry of European visual storytelling with the scale and precision of Hollywood filmmaking. A native of France, he began his career at the pioneering Paris studio BUF Compagnie, contributing to visually ambitious films such as Oliver Stone’s Alexander, Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige, and the Wachowskis’ Speed Racer. His years at BUF built a comprehensive foundation across all facets of visual effects—design, animation, compositing, and on-set supervision.

After relocating to Los Angeles, Dumont joined Method Studios, where he oversaw major sequences for visionary filmmakers including Terrence Malick on The Tree of Life and reunited with the Wachowskis for Cloud Atlas. He later transitioned to the production side, first as associate VFX supervisor on James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy and later as overall VFX supervisor on James Mangold’s Ford v Ferrari, managing VFX integration from set through final delivery. The latter film became a hallmark of his philosophy of “invisible visual effects,” seamlessly merging digital and practical elements to preserve realism and emotion.

Dumont subsequently joined Luma Pictures, where he supervised high-profile projects for Marvel Studios including Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. His leadership there continued to reflect his hallmark versatility—balancing large-scale, effects-driven spectacle with nuanced, story-enhancing visual work.

Recognized with multiple industry nominations, including honors from the Visual Effects Society, Olivier Dumont is celebrated for his collaborative leadership, technical mastery, and cinematic sensitivity. Whether orchestrating expansive CG worlds or crafting photoreal, invisible effects, he remains dedicated to ensuring that visual effects serve the story above all.