Talks

War for the Planet of the Apes

The Future of Storytelling

Innovation & Avatar: The Way of Water

The Future of VFX

Senior VFX Supervisor Joe Letteri's 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. 

Joe 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 Joe’s leadership, Wētā FX has continued to expand and improve these techniques through films like The Hobbit and The Planet of the Apes trilogies. 

Joe is currently working on the upcoming Avatar sequels and continues to drive the advancement of Wētā’s technological and artistic innovations.