An Oscar win, emergency surgery, and the road back to moviemaking

Flashing cameras, dazzling movie stars, and decadent parties are at the forefront of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science's annual awards.

But for 2023 Oscar winner and Washington State University alumnus Eric Saindon, the glitz and glamor was cut short by a medical emergency that rapidly took him from center stage to a surgeon's table.

After his much-publicized whirlwind night and at times perilous recovery, Saindon is back doing what he loves: crafting breathtaking digital worlds for blockbuster films. His current project, the upcoming third film in the Avatar franchise, is likely to be one of industry's tent-poles of 2025.

A little more than a year after his first Oscar win, that night and the weeks after remain surreal for Saindon.

"When our name was called, we all stood up and my wife gave me a big hug," he recalled. "The pain in my mid-section was so intense that everything went blurry after that."

I don't know how I got up on the stage, and once we were backstage and everyone wanted to talk to us and take our photos, all I could think about was, 'Who am I going to throw up on?'

Eric Saindon
WSU alumnus and Academy Award winner

He continued, "I don't know how I got up on the stage, and once we were backstage and everyone wanted to talk to us and take our photos, all I could think about was, 'Who am I going to throw up on?'"

An unexpected journey

Saindon grew up in Maine, about as far from the Palouse as possible within the continental United States. His love of snowboarding prompted him to consider Washington as a destination for college, though he admits not really looking into the landscape around WSU before picking it.

While Pullman lacked mountains to shred, WSU did boast a strong architecture program, a common base for visual effects artists of his generation.

In his final year at WSU, Saindon shifted his career ambitions. He learned about the film industry and the evolving role of computers in moviemaking from former WSU professor Kim Singhrs. And while many visual effects artists of his generation point to Star Wars as a major inspiration, Saindon says it was the sprawling opening of Disney's The Lion King that had him imagining the worlds and creatures he could create.

Shortly after graduating, Saindon took a job working on The Lord of the Rings film adaptations, and has remained in New Zealand ever since. While working at WetaFx, Saindon met his wife and the pair worked to bring Gollum to life on the big screen.

In his two decades at Weta, Saindon has worked on fantasy epics, sci-fi adventures and heartfelt dramas, and was twice nominated for Oscars as visual effects supervisors on the first two Hobbit films.

The prospect of winning the Oscar felt more tangible with the James Cameron-directed sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water.

"I had to think about things like does my tuxedo still fit and whether my wife needed a new dress."

[Link]Eric Saindon on the set of the film Pete's Dragon with actor Robert Redford and director David Lowery. (photo courtesy of Eric Saindon)[Link]Eric Saindon on the set of The Hobbit film trilogy alongside visual effects artist Joe Letteri. [Link]Eric Saindon on the set of The Hobbit film series. (photo courtesy of Eric Saindon)WSU alumnus Eric Saindon has been creating magical creatures and fantasy worlds including Pete's Dragon, The Hobbit, and Avatar: The Way of Water.

The night in question

After a pre-awards dinner in Los Angeles with Cameron and crew, Saindon woke up on the day of the Oscars with stomach pain, which he chalked up to nerves. As the ceremony drew closer and the pain worsened, he asked the front desk at his hotel about seeing a doctor.

One trip to the emergency room later, Saindon was told that additional scans would be needed to determine exactly what was happening, but that kidney stones were the most likely culprit. Painkillers in hand, he and his wife hopped in a limo with just minutes to make it to the venue before doors closed.

"We told the driver we had 15 minutes to get across town," Saindon recalled. "He said he could get us there, but that we couldn't tell his boss what he was about to do. To his credit, he got us there on time."

About 90 minutes into the ceremony, Saindon and his colleagues heard their names called as winners of the 2023 Best Visual Effects award. With the pain in his abdomen becoming unbearable, Saindon told an awards staffer that he needed an ambulance. He gave his Oscar to a colleague, asked that he pass it on to his wife along with a message that he was going back to the hotel, and left for the hospital.

What he didn't realize at the time was that he was bound for an operating table.

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