A Budleigh Salterton man will be rubbing shoulders with the likes of Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper and Olivia Coleman next month after being nominated for a prestigious film award.
Theo Jones, 41, who grew up in the town, will be gracing the red carpet in Hollywood after being nominated in the visual effects category of The Oscars for his work on Disney flick Christopher Robin.
He will be attending the 91st Academy Awards ceremony next month where he hopes to pick up his first Oscar.
Theo said: “It’s not the type of film you would normally get nominated for. Although there is a hell of a lot of visual effects in the film it’s not always seen.
“There is an enormous amount of work that goes into a film like this and it is fantastic to get that work recognised.”
The movie tells the tale of a now grown-up Christopher Robin as he gets a visit from old friend Winnie the Pooh.
In his role on the movie with visual effects company Framestore, Theo had a hand in creating 900 shots for the film including characters like Winnie the Pooh, Piglet and Tigger.
If he is to snap up the Academy Award, will have to beat off competition from Avengers: Infinity War, First Man, Ready Player One, and Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Theo, who attended St Peter’s Primary School, in Moor Lane, before moving on to Kings School, in Ottery St Mary, was first introduced to visual effects when the first Jurassic Park movie came out in 1993.
Theo went on to study computer animation at Bournemouth University before taking up his first job with Framestore’s New York office working on films like Tron, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Guardians of the Galaxy Volume Two.
He spent 11 years in the company’s New York office before returning to England. Theo said he and his family, who live in London, are looking to buy a home in Budleigh and hope to bring an Oscar with them.
The winner will be announced at the glitzy awards ceremony in Los Angeles on Sunday, February 24.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here