The Last of Us Emmy success for graduate

Nick Marshall, pictured front left, said hearing the team being announced as the winner was "phenomenal"

A graduate used skills honed in the north-east of England to land an Emmy for his work on an acclaimed television series.

Nick Marshall was part of the team that crafted the post-apocalyptic scenes at the heart of The Last of Us.

The "outstanding" visual effects they created for the series were honoured with an Emmy in January.

After picking up the award the Teesside University graduate paid tribute to the region's cinematic history and filmmakers like Ridley Scott.

'Total shock'

After graduating from Teesside in 2009, Mr Marshall started "at the bottom rung of the ladder" as a runner for a visual effects studio and worked his way up to becoming an expert in digital effects.

The Emmy win recognised Mr Marshall's work as DFX supervisor overseeing the creation of visuals on the HBO series, which was an adaptation of the PlayStation game of the same name.

The accolade was still sinking in, Mr Marshall said while the award was "still in a box somewhere".

He added: "It's a very strange thing, very surreal.

"Going into it, I certainly wasn't expecting to come away with a win.

"The calibre was so high that there was absolutely no shame in walking away without a victory.

"To actually hear our name called out was phenomenal, a total shock and a great surprise."

The post-apocalyptic drama series is based on the 2013 video game of the same name

Mr Marshall said working on the acclaimed show, which starred Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, had been a great experience.

"Working on it, you could tell there was something a little bit special about this one," he said.

"Everyone was rooting for its success from day one and it feels great now, seeing it so well received."

He said the "discerning" gaming community were fans too.

"They also understand visuals very, very well, so creating that visual content it was an added pressure knowing you're not just trying to impress the general public," he said.

"You've got gaming fans very well versed in what good visuals should look like."

'Best grounding'

Now working at the DNEG visual effects and animation studio in Canada, Mr Marshall, who is from Huddersfield originally, said his time at Teesside University helped to prepare him for a career in the film industry.

He said: "I loved my time getting to know the area.

"There's a good history of filmmakers, like Ridley Scott, and it gave me an opportunity to explore different areas - there weren't any constraints on what I could explore.

"It gave me the best grounding in the industry."