VFX Deal Memo

When starting a project you should see about getting a document detailing your work agreement. This is sometimes called a deal memo.  Sometimes it’s a full contract. This is so you and the visual effects company have the same understanding and neither assumes something else.  It’s better to find out before you get your first paycheck. These are the items that should be discussed in any final interviews. Even if you’re currently employed you may want to read through this.

Update 8-3-2014
The deal memo may be one of the most important documents you need. It will likely be worth tens of thousands of dollars as a minimum and months or years of your life. Do not take it lightly. And it should be as inclusive as possible to cover not only the expected actions but the unlikely or unexpected issues that might arise. Think of your insurance policies. They are very clear about things and when not specific they have a boilerplate statement that covers those areas.

Be sure to get it taken care of BEFORE incurring major expenses or starting the project.

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This helps to avoid any misunderstanding and may provide some clarification if the situation or management changes. This agreement should be updated if you’re shifted to another type of job that has different duties or pay.

If the company is large they likely have a Human Resources (HR) Department.  If the company is small you may be dealing with one of the co-owners or the manager.

If you’re a vfx supervisor or other high end vfx person you may have an agent.  They will make sure there is a contract and these issues are reviewed but it’s best to double check what’s being agreed to.

For most vfx artists the vfx company becomes your manager. How good or bad your deal is, your title and credits are in their hands and only you will be able to negotiate what you think is fair.

Below I cover a wide range of issues but not all of these will be covered in a memo or basic agreement.  In some cases there may be other documentation or the company may not provide any paperwork.  You’ll have to determine what are the key issues you want to have in writing.  Please make sure you actually read your deal memo or contract since it relates to you and has specific clauses that could be very important to you.

If there were a VFX Union then many of these would be more consistent.

(I'm still not a lawyer so take this simply as some advice.  If you need legal advice please seek a qualified lawyer. This is also US centric and even then many employment requirements vary by state. But I hope it provides some guidance no matter where you're located.)

Key items:

VFX Company
Are they the ones actually hiring you?
Is there a holding company that actually hires you?
Is the studio or a production company hiring you directly?
Is the vfx company a subcontractor to another vfx company?

Project
What is the project you were hired for? Are you working on a specific project or will you be working on anything and everything?

If you’re expecting to work on project X but they’re putting you on project Y it would be good to know ahead of time.

Title
Be careful here that the job title actually matches what you do and matches what you’re told the job is.  Since there is no VFX Union there are no standard titles and descriptions.  The Visual Effects Society has a list of titles but no specifics. There are some defacto titles that experienced vfx artists use and that better companies follow but new, smaller companies or especially those on the fringes of vfx may use titles in a much different manner.  This can hurt your future employment if it’s not accurate.  Also note that this should be used as your credit title but may not. (See credits later)

At some non-vfx companies titles are handed out like candy.  Vice President of the Front Office (receptionist), Vice Present of Environmental Cleanup (janitor), etc.  The reason this happens and can happen at vfx companies is many people are obsessed with titles. From a companies perspective if they can make you happy with a fancy title and pay you $10 less an hour, so much the better. At some vfx companies everyone is a lead artist.  So in that sense is anyone there an actual lead artist?

A small company that specializes in dirt and scratch removal may call everyone working there a vfx supervisor.  There’s nothing to prevent them from doing so.  But is that truly what you’re doing?  Could you step on a stage of live action and supervise the shoot, work with the director and DP, and then manage 100 vfx artists from a number of disciplines?

If you’re a supervisor of any type, producer or a lead artist you may be considered management.  In some cases that may mean just managing one other person. Be aware that if you’re considered ‘management’ then you may be considered a salaried employee without some of the state/federal protection afforded hourly employees. This means no over time. Now you can see why the company may be eager to consider you part of management and is willing to bestow a corresponding title.

In some cases you may be given a title below what you’re actually doing.  This may happen because you were moved up or over during the course of production and your official documents didn’t get updated. Or this may happen because the company wanted to start you at a lower pay rate than someone in that actual title.  You could be given the title Assistant Animator “just for now”.  Unfortunately if you’re actually a full animator that’s not good for you, especially if the deal memo isn’t updated.

The job title should be specific if it needs to be specific.  An Animator could be a character animator, an effects animator, a simulation animator, etc. A modeler could be a hard surface modeler. If the type of company is unique (game development, web based, etc)  it may be worth putting that aspect in front of the title to make it clear looking at your list credits what you actually did on the project.

If the title doesn’t match what you were doing then it’s tough when you go to interview for your next job.

Interviewer: “I see on your resume (or IMDB) you’re a Production Assistant.” 
“Actually I’m an animator and did extensive work with the main character on my last film. They just didn’t update my title.”
Interviewer: ??  “Well if we have any openings for a PA we will call you.

The opposite is also a problem.
Interviewer: “I see on your resume (or IMDB) you were a Senior Compositing Supervisor.”
“Yes.”
Interviewer: “So were using Nuke or another compositing package?”
“I was using Mocha”
Interviewer:  ???? “So how many people were you managing?”
“I just worked on my own.”
Interviewer: “Well we’ll call you if we need you”.

Now some people try to bluff their way through but if you’re hired for a job you don’t have the experience, knowledge or skill set to do, you’ll be out the door very quickly.  (Never to return there).

You can volunteer that the title was incorrect and that you actually did something else but that is certainly awkward and confusing to all future employers.

You can see why having an accurate title is necessary.

The key test is if you were to leave the company today, what title would the company use in the job posting to get someone to do the job you were doing?  Would people coming in with your present job title expect to be doing what you were doing there?  When you go to look for your next job will it be using the title you were given at your previous company?

Update 8-3-2014
I've now seen a few job postings with Supervisor in the title (CG Supervisor, Production Supervisor, etc) and then discover that some of these are considered Coordinator level positions, even though the posting implies supervising people. I find this very confusing and it may be strictly to get these people classified as management to avoid paying overtime.

To be clear - a supervisor position is just that, supervising others in terms of assigning tasks, overseeing the work, guiding them, etc. They need to know the creative and technical aspects of the area they're covering and should know as much more or more than those they are supervising.

A coordinator typically is one who gathers and dispenses information at the request of a producer, supervisor or others. Their role is to help coordinate or sync different people and departments to make things run smoothly. They work with others but do not typically manage others (possible production assistants) And they should not be considered supervisors.

Job description or job duties
This is where the company states in a sentence or two what you are to do.  If this doesn’t match the title or it doesn’t match your understanding then that’s a problem.  You don’t want to be hired as a compositor and find out part of the job duties are to get coffee for the executive.  Since there’s no standard it’s best to have this included so you’re clear what the title they’ve given you means to the company.

Start date
When are you to start at the company?

Expected end date
When do they expect you to complete the project? Or is this a staff position?  This should be spelled out.

Are you considered an employee or a contractor?
Be aware that as a contactor you have to pay additional taxes, have minimal state/federal protection, have no company benefits and likely will get no overtime.  A contractor may not get any crew gifts or invite to the Christmas party.  Every company is different with regard to how contractors are treated, even if you're requested to do the same exact work as a regular employee. Also be aware that by federal law there are very strict rules about what qualifies you as an independent contractor.  Most independent contractors hired in vfx  should not be classified as an independent contractor.

[Update 11/19/2012  Employee vs Independent Contractor ]

Work hours
What’s a normal workday? Do they start at 8am and go to 8pm? Are they expecting you to work a night shift?

Work day/week
What days are you expected to work? Monday-Friday? Saturday?
How many hours will you be expected to work? 40? 50? 60? 72? 90?
What’s typical? What do they expect as worse case? How long will that be?

Hourly rate
What is your hourly rate?  Is that in local currency?

Or are you on a flat?  And if so, are there any caps? (i.e. 5 day flat, 14 hrs days, 60 hrs, etc)  Note that with a flat there is no overtime within the coverage period and there may be none, ever. There may be minimum state/federal protection for those who work on a flat rate deal.  It's not unusual for a vfx supervisor and/or producer to be on a flat, especially if they're freelance.

How are the number of hours recorded? Do you have a time card and time clock? Do you logon and log off special software?  The company should certainly be tracking your hours.  If they don’t you should so you have a record of the hours you put in.  Remember, the only hours the company will use for any calculations will be the hours they record. See Credits for another area where recorded hours can become an issue.

Classification
In some areas, such as Canada, there are some classifications (such as technician) that may affect your overtime and other deal memo points.
[Update 11/19/2012  VFX Artists are not High Tech Employees  ]

Overtime
Do you get overtime?
When does it kick in? After 8 hrs?
What are the rates? 1 ½x after 8 hrs and 2x after 12 hours?
What about the 6th day? The 7th day? Does the clock reset every Monday in regard to overtime?
Note that state/federal regulations cover some of this.  Is the company offering you less than mandated by law?

Even if you won't be paid overtime you need to consider it when trying to determine your rate. A 60 hour week is equivalent to 70 hours of pay if you assume time and half for over 8 hours.
Here's a video that illustrates how this works.

If you aren't paid overtime (you're management, on a flat, etc) then the more you work the lower your average hourly rate actually becomes.  It's not unusual for those around you to be making more money during the time you're putting in the most hours.


If the company is planning to ‘exchange’ overtime or extra days for time off then that needs to be clearly spelled out and there needs to be a means to monitor it. This type of approach seldom works in vfx. Toward the end of production you may be putting in a lot of extra time.  Your only option is taking the time after the project is over.  Once the project is over, unless you truly are a staff person and they plan to retain you, then the company may simply say the projects over and they can’t pay for any additional time.  Or the vfx producer on the project has wrapped and they have no knowledge of any arrangements.

[Update 8/18/12]

In the US working overtime and being compensated with days off is called Comp Time. In the UK and other places it's called Time Off In Lieu (TOIL) (An apt acronym)  Does this apply to only weekend days or does this apply to actual overtime during the week as well? (time over 40 hrs)  As noted make sure you get this is writing as part of your legal document with someone in charge at the company signing the document. Otherwise you'll never see any comp time. 

Keep in mind comp time and similar arrangements doesn't provide any incentives for the companies to do a better job avoiding massive overtime. It's only in the companies interest. They can take a 6 month project and turn it into a 3 month project with no added cost incurred to them or their clients. But the artists putting in 16 hrs days are certainly incurring a cost to their health, well being and impact on their families. One of the reasons for increased overtime pay is to truly compensate workers and to make it less rewarding for companies to simply work fewer people very long hours.

[Update 11/19.2012  Must read for those in US - Got Overtime? ]

Update 8-3-2014
Some places that use Time Off In Lieu (TOIL) instead of actually paying overtime, simply reduce your contract by the amount of in Lieu you've accumulated. So even though you have a 6 month contract you may find that the company has trimmed your contract with or without your knowledge.
As always, get in writing how overtime works and and how contract extensions or reductions work. Do they need to get your approval to change contract lengths? What if you want to cut it short?

Report to and direction
Who will you be reporting to? Who provides you direction?  If you have multiple people telling you what to do, you want a clear understanding of who your main manager is.

Who approves overtime?
At most companies if you don’t get approval ahead of time then you likely won’t be paid it.  Who can authorize your overtime requirements? Your lead? Your manager? The VFX Producer?  The company manager? Any of these?  You don’t want to work a weekend only to find someone else determines that they won’t pay you for the time you worked after the lead requested you stay and finish a shot.


Benefits
What type of benefits does the company provide if any? Health benefits? Does it cover dental or eye?  Does it cover your family? What are the details? How much do you pay out of your paycheck? How much do you pay for medications, doctor visits or emergency room? Do you need clearance before you go to an emergency room?
When do health care benefits kick in?  If you’re hired for 2 months but it takes 3 months to qualify then you have no health benefits.
Are there any other benefits beside health?
What if you have a disability or become disabled during the project?
What if you get pregnant?

Holidays, Vacation, Pension 

Ha - I just put this in here to see if you were paying attention.  These are covered under union agreements but unless you’re considered full staff at a vfx company you may not see any of these at most places.

Termination

Is there a required termination notice?  Projects change and what was entered as your end date may be pushed back or pushed forward.  Do they have to provide any type of advanced warning or can they simply tell you you’re off the project at the end of today?

Can they terminate your agreement without penalty before you even start?   Is there a minimum number of weeks they are required to pay? Let’s suppose you moved across the city/state/country to work on the project.  You’ve rented an apartment, bought a car, etc based on being employed for 9 months as outlined in the agreement.

The day before you start you get a call the project has been canceled.

Three weeks into the project it’s canceled.  The project is delayed and they tell you it will start any day.  2 months go by without a call.

What happens in any of these cases? Is this covered or are you out of luck? 

Likewise what are the requirements for you to give notice?  Do you need to give a 2 weeks notice? What if you get an offer for a better project for more money before the project starts? Halfway through the project? What are you legal responsibilities? What are your moral responsibilities?

Time Off
If you have something planned where you will need time off, bring it up as soon as possible. If you know you'll need specific time off before the interview you should bring it up and discuss it.

Management
Are you to manage anyone?
If so, how many people?

Reimbursement
Do you expect to incur expenses for the company?  Picking up supplies, etc. What’s the process to do that?

Travel
If you need to travel for the job how is that handled?
Local car mileage reimbursement if you have to travel across town or to another town on business?
Do you get per diem or do you have to keep all receipts and turn them in? Is the per diem based on the location you’re going to?
Do they arrange for flights, rental cars and hotels?
If you’re flying is there a minimum flying class? (i.e. will you be traveling by air for 18 hrs in coach?)

[Added 11/9/2012
Moving
Are you moving to a new location/state/country to do the project?
Is any of this covered in your employment agreement? Does the company pay to relocate you? What are the terms? Do they require x amount of time or subtract it from your salary?
Be sure to consider the cost of moving and cost of living if you are moving.
See Expatisian to compare expenses. ]

[Update 8-3-2014
Is your visa or other paperwork all taken care of? What are the costs and who handles that? What if there's an unexpected problem? (You can't get it, you need to leave the country before the project ends, etc)

The VES has a Travel and Relocation links that should be checked.

Also don't forget to check with the local labor laws to make sure the deal memo is legal and that you know what is/isn't considered correct where you work.

Items to check - classification (employee, contractor), legal protections, maximum hours, Overtime pay, health and safety regulations, time off, minimum wages, etc.
(The below links are simply a starting point. Please do your own research as necessary.)

BC Labor Laws
Ontario Labor Laws
Quebec Labor Laws
UK Labor Laws (EU)
UK Labor Laws
UK Employment Laws 
NZ Labor Laws
NZ Minimum Labor Rights
California Labor Laws
US Labor Laws
US Labor Laws 2 
State Labor Laws
U.S. vs. U.K. Employment Law: What's the Difference?


Equipment
Are you expected to supply any of your own equipment?
If so, is there any extra fee for that or are you expected to provide it as part of your standard rate? If you have to bring in your own computer or other gear you have to consider your expense, upkeep, software licenses and replacement costs that the company doesn’t have to.
Will it be covered by their insurance or do you need to cover it?
Check your homeowners insurance for business use.

Credits
Not everyone who works on a movie or television project will get a credit on it. Typically the studios mandate the number of credits a company may have based on the amount of work the company is doing on the project and how important they consider the work.  If you’re company #14 of 14 you may get 5 credits or only a company credit.  All of that is worked out in the contract between the company and the studio.  If your company is a subcontractor to another vfx company then the chances of getting many credits is likely further reduced.  The studios do not like to give out credits and use them as part of their contract bartering system.

And yet official credits on a film, resume and IMDB (Internet Movie Database) are important to the artist  to get work.

I’ve seen people forgotten from the credit lists and people being assigned a credit to a project that they didn’t work on simply because the company couldn’t get them credit on the project they spent a year working on.  I’ve seen a supervisor who didn’t work on a show be co-listed on a project for marketing reasons.  I’ve also seen people who worked through Christmas vacation to make the vfx for a film possible and then be dropped off the credits because the owner didn’t want any staff listed.

If a company does a fair amount of work on a project then they will usually be provided a number of credit slots.  Typically the key personel on the project will get credit (supervisors, producers, key leads, etc). At some companies the owners or main management may be given credits regardless of how much they were involved once the project starts. Support staff (IT, R&D, etc) at many of the large vfx companies are cycled through so they  are listed on a feature a year. Now comes the tricky part of deciding who get’s credit on a film or not since it’s almost impossible to list every single person who worked on a project.  The vfx producer, vfx supervisor and company management may go through the list of names and try to make selections based on the artist’s contributions to the project. They may want to make sure some are selected from each department.  The list of names includes job title and the number of hours worked.

Whether contractor’s are treated differently than employees for credits will depend on the company.

Hopefully your agreement states your true title and not a lower one that you might have been hired under (if that’s changed).  If not, you may be over looked or be placed lower on the list.

If your title is actually above your true position then the vfx producer may reduce it for the real credits or the vfx producer at the studio may trim them back to make them more inline with the other companies.

When it comes down to filling out the last few spots they may refer to the number of hours each person put in on the project.  They’d rather give it to someone who worked 6 months than someone who filled in for a week to help out during the crunch period.  Remember those times you worked longer hours for free to try to help your department head?  Not only did you not get paid for that time but it’s likely your lack of documented hours bumps you off the credit list. Bazinga.

Demo reel
Are you allowed to use material for your demo reel?  Many studios obviously don’t allow any material out before the release of the movie. What if the movie is shelved after you worked on it? Will you ever be able to show anything? Can you use in progress material to show before and after to make it clear what you did?  Do you have to wait for the DVD to come out (possibly a year or more after you worked on it) and rip it to create your demo reel or can you get materials from the vfx company?

NDA
Many companies will require an NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement).  The studios tend to enforce mandates to prevent the release of photos or information regarding the project.  Do not cross this line by posting or sharing photos, videos, scripts, etc.  If you do so you may not only be fired but there will be a legal action against you with likely heavy fines.  Check the FBI warning at the start of a DVD. $250,000 They’re not kidding.  Is your job and future worth it to be ‘cool’ by posting something?  Here’s a story from years past: On STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE, the night animation cameraman called into a radio station to make a request. Of course he was asked what he was doing at that hour.  The cameraman asked if this was off the record and when he was assured it was he proceeded to discuss the project.  When the head of the studio was going to work that morning he was listening to the radio when they proceeded to play back the entire recording.  He was not happy.  Luckily the cameraman was only given a warning and continues to work.  Today I doubt if he’d be as lucky.

The company may also have NDA’s for proprietary info related to the company and the processes there.  Check to make sure they don’t go overboard.  In some cases they may state they own all your ideas or any information learned unless you list the items that you already know.

Non-compete clauses
Some non-vfx companies have do not compete clauses to prevent key employees from starting a competing company or going to a competitor.  No vfx company should have this in their agreements unless it’s an extreme and unusual situation.  VFX artist by their very nature are freelance so this type of thing would prevent you from working elsewhere. As always, double-check any paperwork you have been provided.

Development
What if you develop something at the company?  A new methodology? A new technique? Software? (Assuming you have not been hired specifically for these tasks).  Do you own any of this? Does the company have an exclusive to it?

Trial Probation
Is there a trial or probation period for new employees?
If so, what does that mean?
(Don’t let a company tell you that you need to work for free so they can see if they want to hire you.)

Employee handbook
Larger companies will likely have some type of employee handbook, which may cover some of the items here.  They’ll likely cover the items their insurance requires for liability reasons or the government such as inappropriate behavior, etc.

Job Reviews
Is there a job review process?  For a short-term project you might not get a job review but if you’re on staff or on a long project they may have job reviews.  What’s the actual process, who will be reviewing you and what are you being judged on?

Promises
If any benefits or extras were discussed during the interview process they should be listed in this document.  A promise from a company is only as good as the signed document it is on.  If they made promises during the interview to do or give you xyz and it’s not in writing then it doesn’t exist. Sometimes people interviewing you will regale you with all of these enticing things that they have no power to actually provide. (Potential things like credits) You don’t want to take the job only to find out all of that was fictional.

The document should be signed and dated by you and an official rep for the company to give the document some validity.

[Update: 11/6/2012 Please make sure to have HR provide you all the paperwork for your Health Care Coverage before you sign your deal memo. Check for maternity, pre-existing conditions, exclusions, vision care, disability, etc. so you understand what is included and what isn't. Check on cost of options to get more coverage if you wish.
Here's a sad example of the fine details: Lucasfilm Employee Terminated After Tending To Pregnant Wife
Here's another article on it: Lucasfilm Faces New Accusation of Pregnancy Discrimination ]

Update 8-3-2014
So what does the deal memo say if there's a snag?
As mentioned what is your start date and what if that project is delayed or canceled before you start but you have already accumulated expenses or quit your other job?
What if you're to move to another country and there's some type of visa or paperwork hangup or if you don't qualify for some reason? Who covers expenses incurred?

Some of these things are happening more and more and should be included in the deal memo.
The only person looking after your interest is you. The company will be focused on their interest and as such the deal memo language will almost always be in their favor and will likely take little responsibility if you have expenses or a snag that's not spelled out.

As mentioned the deal memo is like an insurance policy in that it should cover the not only the expected issues but also the unexpected issues. Don't let the company simply wave away any questions or issues as 'no worries'. You could be the one paying dearly.

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Related:
Getting a Visual Effects Job 
Visual Effects Positions

Related elsewhere
Workplace issues - vfxlaw
Deal Memo Example form  - vfxlaw

Visual Effects Career

Getting started in a career in Visual Effects.


[For anyone considering visual effects career please check out this article:
VFX in Los Angeles – 100 hour weeks & homeless  Puts things in perspective.  Much has changed from when I wrote the original article]

The pros and cons as well as learning and applying for jobs.

1:39 The Upside
2:49 The Downside
7:30 Education
13:04 Self Education
14:33 Hands on
17:58 On the job training
18:32 Company Projects
19:49 Hiring practices
20:50 Applying for a job
23:21 Demo Reels

Transcript:

Today I'll be talking about Visual Effects Careers. This is primarily for those considering visual effects careers but there may be some items of value for those already in the business.

The big question
The first question is do you really want to do Visual Effects for a living.
Just because it sounds kind of cool isn't a good enough reason.

Fame and fortune – forget it, this is not the place for either of these.

If your main goal is to do something else such as direct or write I would not suggest starting in visual effects. It's no shortcut to other jobs in the industry, especially since you're exposure to the live action side of production will be minimal.

The upside:

If you enjoy creating visuals whether it's art or photography then visual effects can be a good fit.
Moving images can be very compelling and provide even more room for creativity.
It involves technology and problem solving with art so can be rewarding for those who have an interest in both of these areas and like a challenge.
There's a wide range of jobs from computer programming to art direction so your interest level can be quite diverse.
There's certainly a sense of accomplishment when you finish a shot and a project.
Your work is likely to be seen by millions of people whether it's a commercial or a feature film.
If it's a feature or TV show there's a record of your work in the form of a DVD that others can still see years later.
The work is usually a combination of individual and teamwork.
Each show and most shots have different challenges so you're not likely to be bored.
The money is good.

The downside:
Some people work 8 hours a day in this field but most work 10 to 12 hours a day. That's 50 to 60 hours for a 5-day week. The number of hours can go up toward the end of a project. If you're involved in live action shooting you'll be working 12-hour days. That's 50% more hours a day than a typical job.

Sometimes you have to work Saturdays and even some Sundays, especially toward the end of the project. I worked 90 days straight at 12 hours a day at the end of Star Trek The Motion Picture. I've also worked a few 24-hour days. Luckily it's usually not quite that crazy in the digital age. [Update: It's actually now worse in the digital age than it was before. 24hr work days not as rare as they once were. Certainly 16-18hr days are on the rise.] Needless to say this can put a damper on social events such going to concerts or sporting events. If you're married it can be difficult on you and your family. If you're not married it can be difficult to have a social life

There are only a few locations where visual effects for features are done on a large scale. Los Angeles, San Francisco, London and New Zealand are the largest. There are other pockets of work throughout the world, especially if you work in TV or commercials. That means it's likely you'll need to relocate to one of these metropolitan areas with all their pros and cons. Some of the downsides include a higher cost of living and heavy traffic with longer commute times. 12-hour days combined with an hour travel to work and hour back gives you only 10 hours to sleep and spend time with your family.

In the future more work may be able to be outsourced so it may become possible to live elsewhere. Some matte painters are able to do this.

In the digital age you will probably spend the majority of your time sitting in front of a monitor working on very detailed issues.

Much of the work is ultimately freelance. You may get a staff job at an effects facility but a sizable number of people are hired on a project-by-project basis. . You may work long days at the end of a project and have no break to the next project or you could find yourself out of work for 6 months. How much you work at one facility will be dependent on how efficient management is on obtaining new projects and scheduling them.

You may have to switch to different companies to keep working. This is when it becomes problematic to be working in a location with only 1 or 2 effects companies. You'll need to make contacts and start developing a credit list to try to keep working. The higher level you go (such as an animation lead) the less number of jobs there are available. It's not unusual for a director of photography to be without work for 1 to 2 years. So keep that in mind when looking at wages. This also causes problems maintaining health insurance. ILM is one of the few places (maybe the only place?) that have some of their employees, including CG, in a union. One of the reasons for Hollywood unions is to allow for the freelance nature of this business.

The business of visual effects goes through cycles of feast or famine. You may get multiple job offers one week and at other times there may not be anything available for 6 or more months. Some facilities reduce to a skeleton staff just to keep the doors open when there's no work. Other times they'll be turning down work since they can't expand and handle it.

Even with the expanding need for content, the number of jobs available is less than the number of people trying to break in. This is probably better than filmmaking in general where hundreds of schools are now producing thousands of film school graduates for a very limited number of jobs.

Out sourcing- with the speed of the Internet it's becoming easier for companies to start outsourcing work to less expensive locations such as Asia. This happened with 2D animation and now the same process is occurring for 3D animation and lower level or entry-level visual effects jobs.

[Update 8/8/2010 - Be sure to check out the links on the right under the heading VFX INDUSTRY - STATE OF THE INDUSTRY.  All of these are worth reading for those considering visual effects as a career. Today there is much more outsourcing and more work going outside the US due to tax incentives and other factors. How easily you can get a career in vfx will be very dependent on where you are located. If you're in Canada, England, India, China and a few other places you're likely to have an easier time than someone in the U.S. currently.   See Globalization and VFX for more info.]

[Here's another insight into the work place: Letter to the Animation Guild]

[Update: 11/19/2011 Worth reading: 7 Reasons You Don't Want To Work in the Video Game Industry - There is some overlap of Visual Effects and Video Games and some people move between the two.  Visual Effects isn't quite this bad but there are some sad similarities]

[Update 5/3/2012 I've posted What happened? that explains some of the facts of life in the visual effects industry. Check the comments as well.]

[Update 11/19/2012 Lesson in perspective is a note from a creative person in advertising. Same issues. ]

[Update: Most areas have now reached a saturation point of visual effects artists. That means it's becoming more and more difficult to not only get a job in visual effects but to keep it long enough to make it a career. All this in contrast to what some school recruiters and web sites may want you to believe.  It's important to understand what you're up against before you commit to a career in it and potentially spending a lot of time and money on specific education that may have limited usefulness outside visual effects and video games. Even though places like the UK are pushing for more students they too will become saturated shortly and the incentives there will not last forever.]


I've covered this not to scare you but to give you an idea of what the realities are. If you have a real desire for it, have some talent and are willing to work hard then you have a reasonable chance possibility of succeeding.

Education
When I started there were few film schools and certainly no effects classes. While in high school I shot Super-8 and 16mm film, was a newspaper photographer for the local paper and was a theater projectionist. Since film schools at that time required you to be a junior before doing any film work I opted to go from high school directly into visual effects. I was fortunate to find work as Doug Trumbull's assistant and to work on Close Encounters.

You don't have to have a college degree to work in this business and having a masters in film is not going to get you a job by itself. If you're planning to focus on the pure technical aspects such as computer programming a college degree will more likely be required. Many of the larger effects companies have Human Resource departments and they're the ones likely to put college requirements in job postings even though they're not required by the people who would actually be your boss.

Having said that there are certainly some advantages to going to college and getting a degree. If you have problems getting work in visual effects or wish to switch to a different line of work a college degree may be required for an alternate job. A good college should be exposing you to a wide range of ideas and experiences. I would suggest a college that has film and other liberal arts classes.

There are now a few specialized schools that offer visual effects and animation training. I don't have any direct experience with any of these.

The specific school is up to you but you might contact some of the effects houses and see if they have any preference. For a time a number of animators at ILM came from Sheridan College in Canada. Some effects companies send recruiters to specific schools but that's certainly not a guarantee. Be sure to check out information and opinions for the school as much as you can before you commit. If the school is near an effects company it may be possible to intern there or that someone may come to you school to speak.

[ Visual Effects School post]


While you're in a school (high school, college or tech school) take full advantage of it. You're unlikely to get the chance again once you graduate. Make friends and start networking with your fellow classmates. You never know who might call you at a later date with a job. Help out on a variety of film and video projects.

Don't limit yourself to only classes in your specific film area.
And please don't focus all your attention on one piece of software. There are no standard software packages that all companies use. A company may have their own in house software. It's important for you to understand the underlying principals and develop your eye. If you know the reasoning you can learn to use any software but if you only know how to push specific key commands then you're going to have a tough time. When ILM was doing Casper they were hiring 2D animators and training them to use the software. It's much faster and easier teaching someone to use a tool than to develop the artistic skills and underlying concepts.

Take art classes to get a better understanding of color, composition and developing your visual sense. You don't have to be an expert artist but you do want to be able to communicate ideas with sketches and doodles.
Make sure you cross train yourself.
Animators should take TD and composting classes if they offer them. TD's and compositors should take animation classes.
Take editing, writing, sound and other film classes. You're part of the filmmaking team and it's good to understand these related disciplines.
If you want to be an animator take acting and dance classes.
If you want to be a TD or compositor take photography and cinematography classes to understand how the real world appears. There are a lot of people entering this area who don't understand such things as depth of field or image compression caused by telephoto lenses. Since you're trying to recreate a virtual photoreal world or to augment a real world on film it's vital to understand these factors. Learn to really look at shadow from different sources. See how lighting and bounce light affect the image. Observe atmospheric haze.

Explore Theater classes. Set lighting is good for TDs. Set building may be worthwhile for modelers.

Team up with others in your class. If someone is a great modeler and someone else is a great animator you could work together to make demo material.

If your school has guest speaks from the film industry go to see them.

Chances are you school has video and film cameras so you can shoot some tests or shorts on them. They may have some advanced computer or editing systems that you can take advantage of.
As a student you also have access to a lot of software and computer hardware at education pricing which can be 1/3 or ½ of the retail price. Take advantage of this to learn and work with these packages.

Take some art and film history classes to get a frame of reference.

Self-Education
There are a number of other sources of information to explore whether you're in school or already working and want to cross train.

If you have a software read the manual it comes with and do the tutorials.

Publishers have a large selection of books covering specific packages to general techniques. Some good, some not so good so you should review it in a bookstore if you can. Does it provide real information and examples? I've posted a few I recommend in the effects corner store and I'll be adding to this. If you have any recommended books or other info you can post it on the effects corner website.

In addition to books on specific software packages there are plenty of DVD and even online learning available. Do an Internet search for material and reviews by users. Many feature films with effects have extras on their DVD's that you can rent or buy. Some provide more details than others. Some foreign films do a good job as well. The Japanese film Avalon had some nice behind the scenes.

For magazines there's similarities does a good job of covering visual effects.

Always take any of this information with a grain of salt. It's very easy to make even a process such as dirt removal sound very grandiose and new, especially in the world of sound bites.

Hands On
The fortunate thing about the current state of digital technology is that you can do it all at home reasonably easy. When I was in high school if I shot a stop motion animation test the film would have to be dropped off at the drug store and then I'd have to wait a week to see the results. 3 minutes of film without sound would cost $20. Today you can shoot an hour of MiniDV for $5. All visual effects had to be done in the camera when you're dealing with Super-8. Optical printing was not feasible for personal projects.
Yusei, a matte painter at ILM, learned how to machine to build his own Super-8 optical printer so he could do his own matte painting composites. So a MiniDV camera and even a simple home computer will provide a better starting point than previously available.

If you want to do compositing or matte painting get some hands on experience with Photoshop. If budget is an issue take a look at Gimp or other applications. Make sure to explore all the different composite modes, creating masks, blending and layering of images. If you have a digital still camera then go ahead and plan out a shot and shoot the pieces for it. Assemble it as a final still image. Does it look real? Does everything fit together as planned? Did you take into account the lighting of the background and foreground? By working on stills to start with you can focus on the actual final image and the process to create it.

Once you've done this a few times you now have a taste for some of the complexities involved in doing a real composite. You might have had to make some compromises or do a lot of hand paintwork to get it it finsihed. If you hand cut paths then you know how tricky this can be.

As Dave Stewart used to say "Now show me frame two." Dave was a motion control operator on Close Encounters who unfortunately passed away a few years ago. The point being that when you add motion the difficulty suddenly increases since you have to make 24 perfect images for every second of film.

If you have access to a MiniDV camera shoot some test footage. Experiment. Pick up a piece of green poster board at a craft store if you want to try green screen tests. Some people are locked into doing nothing until they have the ultimate system with the perfect camera. Don't wait, start doing. These are tests for you.

If you have access to compositing or 3D software go ahead and put it to the full test. Don't worry about making a full short, just try different scenes.

A note here: Please don't pirate software. People have worked long and hard to create it. The more a program is pirated the less it will be developed. And I'm sure you'll want to be paid for your own work.
As mentioned if you're still in a school of some type you can get an educational discount. Most software is available in a demo form that you can try out. Some, like Maya, are available as a downloadable learning edition.

On the job training
If you're not in a major effects center you might see if there are any related companies or jobs around. Anything to do with film or video would be useful. Look at working at a tv station or small post production company if one exists where you live.

As mentioned look into internships with effects companies. Be warned that some are more paperwork than hands on. These days most companies have a web site that has contact info as well as internships and job information.

{Update 5/3/2012 Be aware that some companies that are not totally legal or ethical may have you doing productive work for no pay. If you're in college then some intern jobs offer credits in return for interning. However if this is displacing someone that's a problem. And it's even more of a problem if you're paing for schooling and working for free. Internship issues. Paying to work.]

[Update 8/12/2014  Do you legally qualify as an intern and what are your rights as an intern?]

Company projects
Here's an average scenario for an effects company.
There's no work. Then there's a possible job. That goes away. Suddenly they get a greenlit picture and need to start immediately. They bring on the key people and the art dept. Now each area will be hired on as needed, usually in limited time windows. Modelers are hired early on but animators, TDs and compositors are brought on when the edited shots are going to be turned over. The project may continue with the staffed crew and then if a major crunch happens toward the end they may farm out some of the work or bring on additional crew for a short time.

Depending on the company they may not even be reviewing resumes and reels during the down time.

Most big effects films come out in the summer or Christmas time and take anywhere from 6 months to 2 years in total. The summer is usually the slowest for getting projects started and hiring people.

Hiring practices
Employment in the visual effects industry goes something like this:

When a company has a project they will employee the people that already work there first. Next on the list will be people who have worked there but had been laid off or temporarily working elsewhere.
The next level recruited will be people from outside the company who are recommended (and have worked with) by someone on the current crew.
Next on the list will be people with credits and experience on feature films.
Last on the list will be the people with no experience.

Companies know that most people without hands on experience are going to need some additional hand holding and possibly training. Note that even those employees who have come from other places will need some training to learn the systems and possibly any specialized software used at the new company.

If two inexperienced people are up for the same job and are similar in other qualities, they will give the job to the person that knows their software (assuming it's not proprietary software)

Applying for a job
Check the company website to see what jobs are currently available and what their requirements are. If you don't quite match the qualifications or if your job isn't listed you can still submit an application just note this on the cover sheet. Large companies will have a human resource department or possibly a department manger that will do the initial review.

You can apply to multiple companies at the same time. You might as well start with the biggest ones rather than submitting only to small or obscure companies.
Keep track of when you sent it and who, if anyone, you spoke to. You can follow-up with them if you haven't heard in a few weeks. Some companies will have a ‘we'll call you if interested' policy since they receive so many applications.

Many companies recruit at SIGGRAPH and other conferences. SIGGRAPH is a computer graphic conference held once a year in a different city. There are also large animation conferences around the world. Check on the company web sites and see if they will be recruiting. They may require you to signup or submit your resume and reel before the show since they will have a limited time to interview people. Recent Visitor Activity

[Update 5/3/2012  The Visual Effects Society (VES) now has a yearly career fair that is held in major visual effects centers around the world. Be sure to check this out since it's specific to visual effects.]


Don't contact a supervisor or crewmember that you don't know. If they don't know you it's unlikely they'll make a recommendation. Also note that most of the crew is either 1. Not working 2. Shooting on location 3. Very busy so your submission may end sitting on a desk for months. Better to get it to the actual people doing the hiring.

The main things you will need to provide are a resume and a demo reel.
Your resume should be focused on any and all applicable work experience you've had. If you've worked on any productions be sure to list these credits. Be clear about what it is (student film, feature currently in production, etc) and what you did (compositing, PA, etc) Your work experience and credits are more important to these people so cover that first before your education. You want to make everything sound good but do not lie on your resume. This will bite you at some point in the future. If you say you know specific software and don't then they will find out even sooner.

[Update 5/3/2012  Please read about getting a Deal memo with the company who is hiring you. You don't want to move across country or to another country only to find out it's not what you thought.]


Demo reels
If you're an experienced effects artist with a list of credits a demo reel probably isn't necessary but if you're inexperienced this can be more important than your resume. This demonstrates to them several things. The range of work you've done, the complexity of the shots you've worked on, and the quality of your work.
Hopefully you've been working on some great pieces while in school and working on your own.

There are no standards for reels so I'll just run through some of my own preferences.
Check the company web site to see if they have any specifics for demo reels. These days they're on DVDs and usually 3 to 5 minutes in length. Put only your best work on the reel. It's better to have 3 great minutes than 5 minutes padded with poor shots.

Be honest. Would these shots hold up in a feature film or TV commercial? If they aren't then your odds of getting hired are much lower since you'll be competing against people who do have polished work.

You don't need to create a short as your demo reel. If you've already done a short that has won a number of awards then you might consider including it or a snippet of it but don't bother writing and completed a full short just for the purposes of a visual effects demo reel. It may be a little bit more appropriate for animation but take a hard look at it.

When you create a short you're going to be spending a lot of time, money and effort on things unrelated to what you're applying for, which is visual effects. A short will end up being judged to some extent on how good the short is, how well the music works, etc. You're unlikely to show a range of different techniques or processes in one short and more likely to be showing a number non-effects scenes. If it's animation then you'll only be showing one style of animation.

Put that same amount of time and effort into different shots that show case your work.

Avoid using tutorials, no matter what their source. A tutorial just shows that you were able to complete something with the help of a teacher or book. When a company hires you they expect a professional who can figure out what steps are needed to do to finish the shot. You also want your work to stand out but if 30 other people from a class submit a demo with the same tutorial it doesn't make a good impression.

Try editing your shots to determine what shows off your work the best. You might want to show the finished shot and then the original image and then back to the finished shot. This is showing the before and after so it's clear what you changed or added. If it's a complex shot you could quickly show the build up of each element. Look at some of the behind the scene DVD's to get a sense for this. Don't spend the entire DVD breaking down one shot. The point here is to show the complexity and finished quality of a number of shots, not to teach them.
Include one to three seconds of black between sections. You can include a shot or two before and after if it is from a larger project and if it's relevant to the visual effects shot.
Don't turn on auto-run for the DVD and don't have motion menu that shows them the demo in a thumbnail. You want them to see it at full quality all at once.
Don't go fancy with the titles and transitions on the DVD. Keep it simple.
You don't need to run your name at the bottom of the DVD image. You don't have operators standing by and the potential employer doesn't have a limited time to call in. Just a simple start menu with your name and contact info is fine.
Include your name and contact info on the DVD case and the DVD insert as well as your resume.

If you have long segments consider putting chapter markers and or an index so they can jump ahead.

I suggest printing on 5 x7 paper for the DVD inside insert. List the shots that will be shown and list what you did on each. You want to be clear about what role was on each shot.

Sound track – Many people watching will turn off the sound but sound does play an important roll when viewing visuals. Keep it simple. Avoid things like electronic trance or heavy metal since that quickly becomes grating when watching dozens of demo reels. Likewise don't put them to sleep with very slow classical or new age music. Keep the music level down, especially if you have sound effects.

You can use a permanent marker to write your contact info on the DVD cover and the DVD itself. If you have the option you might consider printing the cover label to make it a bit cleaner. They sell DVD cover in matte and glossy finish for inkjets. The DVD can also be printed on if you have a printer that can do this. Watch out for stick on labels since they can cause problems playing the disk.

Don't bother doing a full mass produced disk. You probably have access to a computer than can burn DVDs. Check each one before sending it out and put it in a bubble pack for shipping. Don't use the paper filled padded envelops.

Don't get fancy with the final package. A hand carved wood case isn't going to mean anything if the content of the reel is poor.

Well that concludes this weeks Effects Corner podcast. There may be some delays with the next few podcasts with the holidays.

As always this podcast is copyright by Scott Squires 2005

Another reference: Demo reel notes from vfxhack
Making a Demo Reel that Doesn't suck

And Digital Tutors has a helpful page on making visual effects demo reels.
Making a Demo Digital Tutors Demo Reel help

Making Demo Reels for technical directors and riggers tips
Rigging Demo Reel tips


Additional Notes-
For printable DVD (Not required but certainly nice looking)
Epson R200 Printer
Epson R220 Printer
Epson R300 Printer
Epson R320 Printer

Latest which is relatively inexpensive and much improved DVD transport
Epson Artisan 50 Color Inkjet Printer (C11CA45201)

[Just a heads up for those with Mac 10.5 or newer. Epson seems to have a hard time updating their print drivers and their tech support is very poor so make sure whatever printer you select runs on your system and can print to DVDs]

Printable DVD's
Avoid Memorex since they have their name printed on them.
Ridek have the nicest printing surface.
Fuji is fine in a pinch (available from some local camera stores)
Discmakers Premium have the smoothest edges but aren't as opaque

Latest:
Taiyo Yuden WaterShield - 50 x DVD-R - 4.7 GB 16x - white - ink jet printable surface - spindle - storage media


Check the disc order. Since some of these come with no spindle order a cake box for the discs or you're likely to see them spill over your floor. Dirty discs aren't great for burning.

If you plan to print photos on the cover of your DVD case get Meritline Photo Gloss DVD case inserts. Avoid Memorex- printing quality and look is substandard for any photos.

Related posts:

Visual Effects Positions

Getting  A Visual Effects Job
What to do when you're laid off

 What makes a good visual effects artist?
 Visual Effects union, Tk 2

Other site:
Why is the VFX business failing at its moment of greatest success?
Tom Cruise info on schools, companies and software for vfx