Real SFX Celebrates Award Wins

Real SFX is celebrating a number of recent award wins.

The special effects team, which is based in Cardiff, Wales, won an Emmy Award earlier this year for 'Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Supporting Role' for the 2015 Sherlock special, in conjunction with Milk VFX. The company worked on special effects for 'The Abominable Bride' episode including explosions, atmospheric effects, bullet hits, shatter glass, water effects and fire effects.

Real SFX has also won awards for work on television shows Doctor Who and Sherlock, including a BAFTA Cymru Award, a Cardiff Life Award for the 'Best Creative Company', as well as being nominated for a BAFTA Craft Award.

In addition, the company has celebrated the world premiere of their latest film project, Free Fire, with producer Martin Scorcese and director Ben Wheatley.

Real SFX set up in Wales in 2009 when Company Directors Carmela Carrubba and Danny Hargreaves moved their family from London in order to set their home and business in Wales.

Hargreaves, who moved to Wales in 2005 to start work on Dr Who, said: "I was part of a generation from London who saw an opportunity in Wales and took the plunge to move. Now – the country is an international leader in its field. Everyone just wanted to talk about Wales at the Emmys. They want to know what Wales is like as it's really up and coming in the world of TV and film. We have so many shows being created here and many more coming."

Real SFX's latest film project, Martin Scorcese's 'Free Fire', recently secured the accolade of 'Best Film' at the Toronto Film Festival, and Danny added: "We must surely have broken a world record with that film for the number of bullet shots, explosions and blood rigs all on one location over a period of seven weeks! We've been lucky to travel all over the world with 'Free Fire' and are looking forward to the world premiere at the London Film Festival this month.

"We're proud of our work in Wales – and proud to be taking our Welsh team all over the world with our work. It's taken us twenty years to get to where we are today and we're so happy our hard graft has been recognised. It has been a real team effort. We've had lots of support from Welsh Government and Wales Screen too – without them we wouldn't be where we are today."

Carmela Carrubba added: "We were surprised but thrilled to have won an Emmy for the first time – and delighted to receive a clutch of prestigious awards this year. A lot of work goes into filming a programmes like this so it's great to see our team recognised, and with it the wider creative work that goes on in the industry in Wales. It's encouraging for us too to see how our business has grown since we moved to Wales. We work closely with Sgil Cymru to bring new talent in and it's great to see that successful careers are being forged within a flourishing creative industry."

(JP/MH)