New Year Honours: Effects pay off for Weta Workshop co-founder

Richard Taylor, who was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, is the co-founder of Weta Workshop and Weta Digital, one of the most successful special effects studios in the world. It was Taylor's studio that produced the award-winning effects for the films Brain Dead, Heavenly Creatures, The Frighteners and The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

In 2002 he won two Oscars and two British Academy of Film and Television Arts (Bafta) awards for best visual effects and best makeup and nominations in both awards for best costume design for the Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. In 2003 he received Oscar nominations for best visual effects and best makeup. His next film project will be the Peter Jackson-directed remake of King Kong.