Sophie Cullen

Sophie Dawes is a visual effects producer at Industrial Light & Magic. She began her journey into the world of visual effects following academic study in illustration and animation at Winchester School of Art. Though she initially intended to become an illustrator, her natural organisational skills and interpersonal strengths—spotting these early while at university and encouraged by her husband, who was already working in VFX—led her toward a different path. She applied for and secured a role as a Production Assistant in a Soho-based post-production company shortly after graduating. Sophie Dawes joined ILM London in 2014 and quickly made her mark—one of her early high-profile assignments was serving as VFX Producer on Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). Over the years, she has continued to contribute to major film projects through her leadership in production. One notable example of her significant work is the Netflix film Bird Box (2018). For Bird Box, Sophie Dawes was part of the VFX production team that garnered a nomination at the Visual Effects Society (VES) Awards. Specifically, she was nominated in 2019 for the VES Award in the category of Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature, sharing this nomination with Marcus Taormina, David Robinson, Mark Bakowski, and Mike Meinardus.