
The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers , the worldwide leader in motion-imaging standards and education for the communications, media, entertainment, and technology industries, today announced that SMPTE members have been recognized with top awards - including two Oscars - from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). The Academys Scientific and Technical Awards honor the men, women, and companies whose discoveries and innovations have contributed in significant, outstanding, and lasting ways to motion pictures.
SMPTE member Larry Hornbeck of SMPTE Bronze Sustaining Member Texas Instruments earned the Academy Award of Merit - an Oscar representing the highest Sci-Tech Award bestowed by the Academy - for his invention of digital micromirror technology, which is at the core of the TI DLP Cinema projectors that have become the industry standard. SMPTE member David W. Gray also earned an Oscar, the Gordon E. Sawyer Award, for technological contributions that have brought credit to the industry. Gray is vice president of global services and industry relations at Dolby Laboratories, a SMPTE Diamond Sustaining Member, where he has worked on cinema sound technologies ranging from stereo optical soundtracks to digital sound on film to Dolby Atmos .
SMPTE Fellow Steven Tiffen of SMPTE Bronze Sustaining Member The Tiffen Company was recognized along with colleague Michael Fecik. They received an Award of Commendation for their efforts in developing dye-based filters that reduce infrared contamination when neutral density filters are used with digital cameras. The optical filters resulting from this work have become a staple for professional cinematographers.
Scientific and Engineering Awards were given to SMPTE Fellow Iain Neil for the optical design of the Leica Summilux-C series of lenses and to SMPTE members Brad Walker, Bill Werner, and their colleagues at Texas Instruments for the design and refinement of TI DLP Cinema projection technology. SMPTE member Reiner Doetzkies was honored with a Technical Achievement Award for the implementation engineering in the development of that same TI projection technology.
SMPTE members have been at the forefront of digital cinema technologies, developing innovative solutions from camera to screen and speaker, and we are very proud of the SMPTE members honored by the Academy for their groundbreaking work, said Barbara Lange, executive director at SMPTE. We add our own congratulations to Larry, David, Steven, Iain, Brad, Bill, and Reiner for their fine contributions to the motion-imaging industry.
The 2015 awards were presented Feb. 7 at the Academys Scientific and Technical Award ceremony at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. An excerpt from the ceremony was included in the Feb. 22 Oscar ceremony broadcast. During that broadcast, an Oscar was presented to Birdman cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki (Chivo), who has been a friend of the Society since he took part in the 2014 NAB Shows Technology Summit on Cinema session on Gravity, produced in partnership with SMPTE. The award was his second Oscar, following his win in 2013 for Gravity.
Further information about SMPTE is available at www.smpte.org.
About the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE )
The Oscar and Emmy Award-winning Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE ), a professional membership association, is the preeminent leader in the advancement of the art, science, and craft of the image, sound, and metadata ecosystem, worldwide. An internationally recognized and accredited organization, SMPTE advances moving-imagery education and engineering across the communications, technology, media, and entertainment industries. Since its founding in 1916, SMPTE has published the SMPTE Motion Imaging Journal and developed more than 800 standards, recommended practices, and engineering guidelines.
More than 6,000 members - motion-imaging executives, engineers, creative and technology professionals, researchers, scientists, educators, and students - who meet in Sections throughout the world sustain the Society. Through the Societys partnership with the Hollywood Post Alliance (HPA ), this membership is complemented by the professional community of businesses and individuals who provide the expertise, support, tools, and infrastructure for the creation and finishing of motion pictures, television programs, commercials, digital media, and other dynamic media content. Information on joining SMPTE is available at www.smpte.org/join. All trademarks appearing herein are the property of their respective owners.
###
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
31/10/2026
Combines powerful sequencer with classic drum machine samples
Rapid Flow's latest release puts their sequencing expertise to work in a powerful new virt...
31/10/2026
Reproducing spatial binaural audio over speakers
In April 2025, we ran some news on Audioscenic, a UK-based company who specialise in delivering binaural au...
31/10/2026
Sonnet Announces Compact Three-Slot Thunderbolt 5 to PCIe Card Expansion System
Brie Clayton October 31, 2026
0 Comments
Echo SE III T5 Connects Three...
31/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
31/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
31/10/2026
Riedel Communications today announced that live event production company FOH Productions has built a portable camera switching and control flypack that uses Rie...
30/10/2026
A highlight clip goes to air after a person says yes. What would it take to say how often that yes had to be earned?
Andreas EhstandA common design for automat...
30/10/2026
SNF's Chiefs-Seahawks leads the week with 26.3 million, Prime Video's Pa...
30/10/2026
The company aims to be more horizontal and not vertical' in managing sports rights and producing events
GRUP MEDIAPRO has begun charting a new course that...
30/10/2026
Player mics, an in-arena drone, enhanced replay operations, and a full onsite pr...
30/10/2026
By Ramona Flume
Each harvest season brings a sense of renewal and possibility. ...
30/10/2026
(L-R) Peter Dinklage, Alexander Skarsg rd, and Olivia Colman attend the Q&A for Wicker by Eleanor Wilson and Alex Huston Fischer, an official selection of the...
30/10/2026
Creates melodies from wavetables
BangZilla is the new plug-in division of The Audio Programmer, and their debut offering comes in the form of Wave Theory, a...
30/10/2026
30 October - 1 November 2026
This years AES Show is just around the corner, with this year's event marking the annual convention's first appearance ...
30/10/2026
Company launch new digitally controlled analogue hardware
Neve have just entered the world of digitally controlled analogue in style with not one, but four ...
30/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/10/2026
GB Labs Wins Future's Best of Show Award for Core.ONE, Presented by TVBEurope at IBC 2026
GB Labs, a leader in scalable, shared storage solutions, has rec...
30/10/2026
Lightware is introducing GPIO Button control for its Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows (MTRoW) integration, giving users a simple, one-touch way to switch betwee...
30/10/2026
Lightware has added AVIXA Renewal Units (RUs) to its D sseldorf in-person training program, allowing AV professionals to earn recognized professional developmen...
30/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/10/2026
Creative software developer Foundry today announced Nuke Stage now supports macOS, making the end-to-end virtual production and in-camera visual effects (ICVFX)...
30/10/2026
While science fiction lore tells us that humans will meet extraterrestrial life ...
29/10/2026
Jameis Winston and Willie Colon are among current and former players hosting pro...
29/10/2026
After arriving in Fayetteville with dreams of calling games, the Arkansas native found her passion in the control room, building a promising future in replay an...
29/10/2026
The National Hockey League is taking on a larger role in local game production w...
29/10/2026
Media Links has appointed Mikhail Zavalin Market Development Technical Specialis...
29/10/2026
Gravity Media delivered the live broadcast and media infrastructure for the 2026...
29/10/2026
Rise AV has announced the 23 women selected for the second year of its Elevate program, a six-week management and leadership development course. The cohort incl...
29/10/2026
The F d ration Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and Amazon Web Services (AWS) have announced a global partnership under which AWS becomes the Official A...
29/10/2026
Advanced Systems Group (ASG) has appointed Bob Daniel Storage and Workflow Solutions Architect within its Enterprise Storage team. Daniel has more than 30 years...
29/10/2026
FloSports and the Pac-12 Conference have entered a media partnership that will b...
29/10/2026
TSN will launch Film Never Lies Grey Cup Playoffs Watchalong, an altcast hosted by TSN football analyst Luke Willson, for two CFL Grey Cup Playoffs games. Wills...
29/10/2026
For decades, broadcasters have designed production around one rule: build for th...
29/10/2026
Live event production company FOH Productions has built a portable camera switch...
29/10/2026
Gravity Media is marking its 25th year facilitating the host broadcast for the M...
29/10/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
29/10/2026
LA28 has named film producer Kathleen Kennedy Head of Ceremonies and Content for the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Kennedy, an eight-time Academy Award nom...
29/10/2026
In-house local telecasts have added new camera angles, graphics package, and dee...
29/10/2026
In this SVG New Sponsor Spotlight, Jake Blount, EVP, Sales, ICAT Logistics, disc...
29/10/2026
Mastering plug-in treated to ground-up rebuild
With a few plug-in releases now under their belt, Musik Hack have revisited their debut offering and kitted i...
29/10/2026
New modular full-range monitoring system arrives
Following a few weeks of teasers, HEDD Audio have just revealed the latest addition to their high-end monit...
29/10/2026
SGL Carbon LLC ( SGL Carbon ) has received an additional order for the supply of nuclear graphite from X-energy Reactor Company, LLC ( X-energy ) in accordance ...
29/10/2026
Rohde & Schwarz introduces MXO AI Connect for AI-assisted oscilloscope workflows Rohde & Schwarz connects AI assistants to its MXO oscilloscopes through MXO A...
29/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...