What was Best Visual Effects called at the VMAs until 2011?

At the VMAs, Best Visual Effects was called Best Special Effects until 2011.

The category began in 1984 as “Best Special Effects in a Video,” reflecting the era’s emphasis on practical effects, optical compositing, animation, and inventive music-video production. After the category was briefly omitted in 2007, it returned in 2008 under the shorter name “Best Special Effects.”

In 2012, MTV renamed it “Best Visual Effects,” the title it uses today. The award recognizes the visual-effects artists or companies responsible for a video’s effects, along with the artist and manager in the category’s crediting structure.

A common mix-up is treating “Best Special Effects in a Video” and “Best Special Effects” as entirely separate awards. They are successive names for the same VMA craft category, with the wording shortened during 2008–2011 before the modern title arrived.