We’re so excited to share that today, the Television Academy — the organization dedicated to the advancement of the television industry — is honoring Adobe with two Engineering, Science & Technology Emmy® Awards: the Philo T. Farnsworth Corporate Achievement Award, honoring companies whose contributions have made a measurable and significant impact on how television gets made — and a second Engineering, Science & Technology Emmy for the development of Adobe Substance Painter.
Together, the awards recognize Adobe’s 40-year-history powering the creative workflows of editors, animators, visual effects artists, photographers, marketers, studio executives, and more with tools including Premiere Pro, After Effects, Substance 3D, Photoshop, Illustrator, Frame.io, and Acrobat.
“At Adobe, we’re driven by empowering filmmakers to transform their boldest ideas into captivating realities,” said Ashley Still, senior vice president, Creative Cloud. “It’s an incredible honor to accept two Emmys® from the Television Academy this year. These awards are a testament to our talented team, who work every single day to unlock new creative possibilities for the entertainment industry. Those most deserving of acknowledgment are the artists and creative community who rely on Adobe tools to bring their stories to screens of all sizes. We are grateful to be a part of your creative process and are in awe of the incredible work you produce.”
Creators are at the heart of everything we do, and we’re very proud of the role that our tools have played behind the scenes, in the hands of talented video editors and visual effects artists who create groundbreaking television. We are thrilled to see our community of editors and artists celebrated for their own achievements — so let’s turn the spotlight on just a few of the many incredible creators recently recognized for their own Emmy award-worthy work.
Impacting how television comes to life
Kelly Lyon, ACE received two Emmy nominations for “Outstanding Picture Editing for a Variety Special” — one for “ John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s in L.A.“ and the other for “ Tig Notaro: Hello Again ” — both of which were edited with Premiere Pro. Lyon says that “Premiere Pro’s transcription tool (Speech to Text) and text window were incredibly powerful” as part of her overall workflow.
Lyon also used Frame.io: “I love Frame.io,” says Lyon. “For both specials, we used Frame.io to share and review cuts. Collaborators really liked being able to leave comments on the video timeline, so I would always know exactly what changes they wanted and where.”
“I love Frame.io. For both specials, we used Frame.io to share and review cuts. Collaborators really liked being able to leave comments on the video timeline, so I would always know exactly what changes they wanted and where.”
– Kelly Lyon, ACE, editor “John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s in L.A.” and the other for “Tig Notaro: Hello Again” (nominated for two Emmys in Outstanding Picture Editing For Variety Programming – 2024)
Another Emmy-nominated customer is editor Bob Joyce, for his work on Rob Reiner’s latest Emmy-nominated feature, “Albert Brooks: Defending My Life,” Joyce leveraged Premiere Pro, After Effects and Photoshop to bring his creative ideas to life.
“The ability to use mixed formats, varied frame rates and aspect ratios in the same sequence made Premiere Pro the best editing platform for the documentary,” shared Joyce.
The exceptional editing by Joyce not only brought the film’s narrative to life but also earned them a well-deserved recognition within the industry, earning them a 2024 ACE nomination for Best Edited Documentary.
“The ability to use mixed formats, varied frame rates and aspect ratios in the same sequence made Premiere Pro the best editing platform for the documentary.”
– Bob Joyce, Editor, “Albert Brooks: Defending My Life” (nominated for an Emmy in Outstanding Picture Editing For A Nonfiction Program – 2024)
Honoring Substance 3D Painter
Adobe’s Substance 3D team will also receive an Emmy ® statuette for creating and developing Substance 3D Painter. The industry-standard tool, used to create visual effects and animations for thousands of television shows, allows filmmakers to apply realistic textures and materials to any 3D object. Whether a scene or subject requires stylized or hyper-realistic results, Painter can deliver best-in-class textures — from reflexive metallic surfaces on a prop, to rough-hewn brickwork on environments, well-worn leather on costumes, or skin on a computer-generated character. The Television Academy recognizes Painter for empowering artists to quickly and easily create lifelike textures that enrich on-screen visuals.
Painter has empowered editors and visual effects artists to quickly and easily create lifelike textures that enrich on-screen visuals. From Emmy-nominated shows such as “Star Wars: Ahsoka,” “Fallout,” “Avatar: The Last Airbender,” “Shogun,” “The Last of Us,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” “The Mandalorian,” and “Game of Thrones: House of the Dragon,” Substance 3D and Painter gives creators full control to fulfill the needs of directors, producers, and studio executives, and make award-worthy shows time and time again.
DNEG, one of the world’s leading visual effects and animation studios for feature film and television, earned an Emmy for “Outstanding Special Visual Effects In A Season Or A Movie” for its work on “The Last of Us”.
“From the rusted metal of abandoned cars to the gritty, worn facades of dilapidated buildings, Substance 3D empowered us to achieve unparalleled realism. As a result, our visual effects transport viewers into a post-apocalyptic world where every element, from vehicles to buildings, tells a story of decay and survival with astonishing authenticity.”
– DNEG, VFX Studio, “The Last of Us” (winner of the 2023 Creative Arts Emmy for “Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Season or a Movie”)
“We’ve entered the golden age of visual effects in television; the mind-blowing hyperrealism and visual depth of today’s series are unlike anything we’ve seen before,” said Sébastien Deguy, vice president, 3D & Immersive at Adobe, and creator of Substance. “Substance 3D Painter was created for artists by artists. It’s a true career highlight to be recognized by the organization that represents the best of the best artistry in the television industry.”
A steady drumbeat of empowering creative professionals
These Emmy wins, which will be celebrated at the 76th annual Engineering, Science & Technology Emmy Awards ceremony on October 23, 2024 — are the latest recognition of Adobe’s contributions to the entertainment industry by leading technology and creative arts institutions.
In August, Premiere Pro was honored with the Hollywood Professional Association (HPA)’s 2024 Engineering Excellence Award for Enhance Speech. Released earlier this year, Enhance Speech instantly removes unwanted noise and improves poorly recorded dialogue. The AI-powered feature empowers editors to create videos with high-quality audio and get to their final mix in just a few clicks.
This is the second year in a row that Premiere Pro has been acknowledged by the HPA — the industry-leading non-linear editing software took home a 2023 Engineering Excellence Award for the advent of Text-Based Editing. Substance 3D was also honored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences with a Scientific and Technical Award in 2023.
Our top priority is delivering powerful tools that are designed with the artist at the core. These recognitions underscore our work to introduce innovations that free up time and resources so video teams and creative professionals can focus on their craft.