In the past couple of years, numerous VFX studios shut down. This includes both independent studios and major, world-famous VFX houses. Between 2023 and 2025, the following studios closed their doors: Misc Studios, Tippett Studio, Scanline VFX (German office), ON Animation Studio, Jellyfish Pictures. However, the biggest shocker happened in February 2025: Technicolor began to shut down its operations. In the US, the company closed The Mill, Mikros Animation, and MPC. It shut down most of its operations in the UK as well. When a company this monumental lays off countless employees globally due to financial challenges, it becomes clear that the industry is in a really dark place.
Many VFX artists and other industry professionals say the industry has been slowly eating itself from the start. The way VFX as a field functioned has been faulty for years on end, and a crisis was inevitable. It was only a matter of a major shakeup that would start this chain of tribulations within the industry. And it happened twice within the past five years.
While many studios were not new to the WFH format, to some of them, the sudden transition from in-office work to remote work was stressful. Big production studios like Framestore that relied on constant in-person collaboration between hundreds of professionals had to change their pipeline dramatically in just two weeks. The massive office spaces these studios occupied turned into endless square feet of rental costs that remained empty for weeks or even months. Plus, due to lockdown restrictions, filming was put on hold as well. VFX studios that relied on the projects that froze at this step of production had their schedule and budget completely jumbled.
However, lots of small and big VFX studios quickly adapted to the new workflow. They eventually benefitted from switching to remote and hybrid work. Firstly, this significantly decreased office-related costs: rent, equipment maintenance, snacks, and everything in between. Secondly, this allowed production studios to expand the pool of talent and hire overseas professionals. Depending on where the studio was based and where the artists were from, VFX companies could also pay smaller salaries for the same quality of work.
The 6-month-long strikes distressed the entire filmmaking industry, including VFX production. It started with the Writers Guild of America strike, when over 11,000 screenwriters joined a picket line demanding better working conditions. Writers who worked for streaming media were constantly overworked and underpaid, especially compared to those who wrote for broadcast media.
Just 2 months into the strike, the SAG-AFTRA strike began. Just like screenwriters, their main concerns were working conditions and pay, specifically for those who were involved in production for streaming services. One more key topic of the SAG-AFTRA strikes was the use of AI technologies in the industry. Protection of their identity against the excessive use of AI that goes uncompensated is still a pain point for many actors and actresses.
As a result of these strikes, numerous large-scale TV and movie projects were suspended. Many of them relied on VFX heavily, which meant the entire production process, from filming to post-production was delayed significantly. While most of them resumed once the strikes ended (Deadpool & Wolverine, Venom: The Last Dance, Blade Runner 2099), some of them were cancelled or put on hold indefinitely (The Peripheral, Metropolis, Blade).
While the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2023 Hollywood strikes were the catalysts of the VFX industry crisis, there are several significant issues artists have been mentioning for years. They kept growing and slowly leading the industry towards a state of crisis it ultimately faced.
In the field of VFX, big projects go to those who offer the best price. Each client wants high-quality VFX shots for a reasonable price, done within an acceptable timeframe. VFX studios interested in taking on a particular project make their bids based on the script. The bid depends on the estimated number and complexity of VFX shots, as well as project deadlines, and other factors. The studio that ends up offering the best price gets to work on a project. However, to stay afloat and secure fruitful projects, VFX studios often underbid. As a result, artists get underpaid, and studios frequently barely profit from completing an ambitious, demanding project.
Thanks to numerous enticing tax incentives around the globe, many studios have their offices scattered across various locations to maximize financial efficiency. It’s not uncommon for a large production studio to have a head office in the US and several branches overseas. The latter are frequently based in India, South Korea, Spain, and other locations. Despite setting up offices in more affordable locations, studios often eventually lose money as a result of this decentralization. Instead of assembling a big team of experienced artists under one roof where they can collaborate in real time, studios create countless smaller subsidiaries. This inevitably disrupts the workflow in the long run and creates hidden costs that outweigh the initial tax benefits.
Even though there were attempts to unionize among VFX artists, they did not lead to the formation of a solid labor union. VFX Union, a.k.a. the IATSE VFX Union (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Visual Effects Union) was originally formed in 2012. Up until the early 2020s, it consisted of a few hundred artists who joined a Slack channel. However, after the 2023 Hollywood strikes, it encouraged North American VFX artists to unionize. So far, unionization in the industry is still in the making. In the past couple of years, most artists voted for unionization, but it still isn’t happening at a pace and scale the state of the industry calls for. Unionization would help artists protect their rights, ensure more appropriate working conditions, and more.
Aside from low salaries that come with underbidding, another harmful consequence it has is working overtime. The absolute majority of projects set unrealistic deadlines for VFX studios. Considering that VFX shots often need to be corrected or remade entirely, the schedule can become so tight that the artists are forced to work day and night. Average working hours have never been the norm in the industry, where many artists often hit 80 hours weekly. Needless to say, they are regularly pushed to do work during their lunch breaks and rest hours without getting compensated for doing the extra work. This is not as dreadful for solo artists who set their own deadlines and control the speed of their work. Though considering the unrealistically high expectations set for VFX artists, many clients expect shorter project completion times. As a result, artists who are willing to work longer hours to finalize the shots quicker are more likely to land a project.
Okay, none of that sounds inspiring, so what is there to do? We get it, aspiring VFX artists are questioning their career choice, while junior and senior VFX artists are contemplating switching career paths. Right now, it might feel like things are not likely to bounce back anytime soon. It seems like waiting for the industry to recover is risky and pointless. But the VFX industry is not going anywhere, simply because there is always a demand for high-quality VFX shots. Even movies and TV shows that are not packed with visual effects use a bit of CG here and there. Take one of the latest Netflix shows — Adolescence: in the chase scene, the window the camera went through was pure CGI. Overall, the 4-episode miniseries featured 80 VFX shots done by Absolute Post. However, despite VFX still being very much in vogue, there are points to consider before entering the industry.
Now is not the time to hyperfocus on the artistry. Make sure you expand your computer skills because these will always be a considerable advantage regardless of your future career choices. Whether it’s coding, programming, hardware maintenance, or any other non-VFX computer skills, they are worth perfecting. With a broad range of tech abilities, you get access to a wider selection of jobs that pay well. Plus, with tech skills under your belt, you can grow from being a VFX artist to a Tech Lead, CG Supervisor, etc. You can start with VFX-oriented courses on coding and ML to make the transition to the tech side easier. Check out Math for VFX Artists and Introduction to Machine Learning.
It’s always been quite tough in the area of 3D art and VFX. When VFX was all the rage just 5 years ago, many people began learning it, whether at schools or on their own. Once the mass layoffs at VFX studios started in 2023, the job market became flooded with VFX artists of all backgrounds and levels of expertise. On top of the numerous freshly graduated junior artists, there are now experienced senior artists who are looking for a job. That said, landing a job is trickier than ever before. You have to be both immensely skilled and immensely passionate about VFX to push through this and secure a stable position at a studio.
Because things at many VFX studios are a bit unpredictable now, it’s become harder to get a job as an in-house artist. Freelancing and project-based gigs have been common in the field of VFX for years. Being a full-time 9-to-5 office employee is more of an exception in VFX. However, freelancing and working contract jobs come with their own challenges. Your income, your working hours, the number of projects you take on, and everything else depend on you. Some artists would choose this over working full-time any day — it’s only a matter of your personal preferences and your ability to organize your own workflow efficiently.
Do not rush into purchasing top-notch equipment and buying all the top-rated VFX courses. Start small, invest gradually, and spend money wisely, otherwise, you might end up nearly penniless with no job prospects in sight. The beauty of VFX is that you can learn a lot using free resources like YouTube tutorials. Plus, you won’t need Hollywood-grade hardware as a beginner — you can always upgrade your PC as you go. After all, with the current uncertainty in the industry, you might find yourself doing, say, coding instead of VFX. With that in mind, make sure your spending is proportional to your estimated profit.
It feels nearly unethical to say it’s darkest before the dawn, but this is very true in this context. What the recent closure of several VFX studios and never-ending layoffs taught us is that the current business model isn’t sustainable long-term. It demonstrated that a union within the VFX community is a necessity to make sure the artists’ rights are protected. And finally, it showed that the bridge between VFX production and other steps of video production needs a thoughtful revision to make sure the budgets, deadlines, and expectations from the end result are realistic. For years on end, these major points have been shrugged off, and the consequences of this finally hit the whole industry like an avalanche.
Right now, things are already starting to stabilize little by little. Studios are implementing new business models, VFX artists are unionizing, freelance creatives are redefining their terms to back away from the damaging cycles of overworking and underbidding. Now might be the most exciting time to enter the industry because after the fall, it’s being born again.
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Spencer Lueders, the acclaimed FX Supervisor and newest instructor joining the Rebelway team!
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