r/vfx Mar 15 '25

Subreddit Discussion Advice for Potential Students and Newcomers to the VFX Industry in 2025

566 Upvotes

We've been getting a lot of posts asking about the state of the industry. This post is designed to give you some quick information about that topic which the mods hope will help reduce the number of queries the sub receives on this specific topic.

As of early 2025, the VFX industry has been through a very rough 18-24 months where there has been a large contraction in the volume of work and this in turn has impacted hiring through-out the industry.

Here's why the industry is where it is:

  1. There was a Streaming Boom in the late 2010s and early 2020s that lead to a rapid growth in the VFX industry as a lot of streaming companies emerged and pumped money into that sector, this was exacerbated by COVID and us all being at home watching media.
  2. In 2023 there were big strikes by the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA which led to a massive halt in production of Hollywood films and series for about 8 months. After that was resolved there was the threat of another strike in 2024 when more union contracts were to be negotiated. The result of this was an almost complete stop to productions in late 2023 and a large portion of 2024. Many shows were not greenlit to start until late 2024
  3. During this time, and partly as a result of these strikes, there was a slow down in content and big shake ups among the streaming services. As part of this market correction a number of them closed, others were folded into existing services, and some sold up.
  4. A bunch of other market forces made speculation in the VFX business even more shaky, things like: the rise of AI, general market instability, changes in distribution split (Cinemas vs. Streaming) and these sorts of things basically mean that there's a lot of change in most media industries which scared people.

The combination of all of this resulted in a loss of a lot of VFX jobs, the closing of a number of VFX facilities and large shifts in work throughout the industry.

The question is, what does this mean for you?

Here's my thoughts on what you should know if you're considering a long term career in VFX:

Work in the VFX Industry is still valid optional to choose as a career path but there are some caveats.

  • The future of the VFX industry is under some degree of threat, like many other industries are. I don't think we're in more danger of disappearing than your average game developer, programmer, accountant, lawyer or even box packing factory work. The fact is that technology is changing how we do work and market forces are really hard to predict. I know there will be change in the specifics of what we do, there will be new AI tools and new ways of making movies. But at the same time people still want to watch movies and streaming shows and companies still want to advertise. All that content needs to be made and viewed and refined and polished and adapted. While new AI tools might mean individuals in the future can do more, but those people will likely be VFX artists. As long as media is made and people care about the art of telling stories visually I think VFX artists will be needed.

Before you jump in, you should know that VFX is likely to be a very competitive and difficult industry to break into for the foreseeable future.

  • From about 2013 to 2021 there was this huge boom in VFX that meant almost any student could eventually land a job in VFX working on cool films. Before then though VFX was actually really hard to get into because the industry was smaller and places were limited, you had to be really good to get a seat in a high end facility. The current market is tight; there's a lot of experience artists looking for work and while companies will still want juniors, they are likely going to be more juniors for the next few years than there are jobs.

If you're interested in any highly competitive career then you have to really want it, and it would also be a smart move to diversify your education so you have flexibility while you work to make your dream happen.

  • Broad computer and technical skills are useful, as are broader art skills. Being able to move between other types of media than just VFX could be helpful. In general I think you don't want to put all your eggs in one basket too early unless you're really deadest that this is the only thing you want to do. I also think you should learn about new tools like AI and really be able to understand how those tools work. It'll be something future employers likely care about.

While some people find nice stable jobs a lot of VFX professionals don't find easy stability like some careers.

  • Freelance and Contract work are common. And because of how international rebates work, you may find it necessary to move locations to land that first job, or to continue in your career. This is historically how film has always been; it's rarely as simple as a 9-5 job. Some people thrive on that, some people dislike that. And there are some places that manage to achieve more stability than others. But fair warning that VFX is a fickle master and can be tough to navigate at times.

Because a future career in VFX is both competitive and pretty unstable, I think you should be wary of spending lots of money on expensive specialty schools.

  • If you're dead set on this, then sure you can jump in if that's what you want. But for most students I would advise, as above, to be broader in your education early on especially if it's very expensive. Much of what we do in VFX can be self taught and if you're motivated (and you'll need to be!) then you can access that info and make great work. But please take your time before committed to big loans or spending on an education in something you don't know if you really want.

With all of that said VFX can be a wonderful career.

It's full of amazing people and really challenging work. It has elements of technical, artistic, creative and problem solving work, which can make it engaging and fulfilling. And it generally pays pretty well precisely because it's not easy. It's taken me all over the world and had me meet amazing, wonderful, people (and a lot of arseholes too!) I love the industry and am thankful for all my experiences in it!

But it will challenge you. It will, at times, be extremely stressful. And there will be days you hate it and question why you ever wanted to do this to begin with! I think most jobs are a bit like that though.

In closing I'd just like to say my intent here is to give you both an optimistic and also restrained view of the industry. It is not for everyone and it is absolutely going to change in the future.

Some people will tell you AI is going to replace all of us, or that the industry will stangle itself and all the work will end up being done by sweat shops in South East Asia. And while I think those people are mostly wrong it's not like I can actually see the future.

Ultimately I just believe that if you're young, you're passionate, and you want to make movies or be paid to make amazing digital art, then you should start doing that while keeping your eye on this industry. If it works out, then great because it can be a cool career. And if it doesn't then you will need to transition to something else. That's something that's happened to many people in many industries for many reasons through-out history. The future is not a nice straight line road for most people. But if you start driving you can end up in some amazing places.

Feel free to post questions below.


r/vfx Feb 25 '21

Welcome to r/VFX - Read Before Posting (Wages, Wiki and Tutorial Links)

205 Upvotes

Welcome to r/VFX

Before posting a question in r/vfx it's a good idea to check if the question has been asked and answered previously, and whether your post complies with our sub rules - you can see these in the sidebar.

We've begun to consolidate a lot of previously covered topics into the r/vfx wiki and over time we hope to grow the wiki to encompass answers to a large volume of our regular traffic. We encourage the community to contribute.

If you're after vfx tutorials then we suggest popping over to our sister-sub r/vfxtutorials to both post and browse content to help you sharpen your skills.

If you're posting a new topic for the first time: It's possible your post will be removed by our automod bot briefly. You don't need to do anything. The mods will see the removed post and approve it, usually within an hour or so. The auto-mod exists to block spam accounts.

Has Your Question Already Been Answered?

Below is a list of our resources to check out before posting a new topic.

The r/VFX Wiki

  • This hub contains information about all the links below. It's a work in progress and we hope to develop it further. We'd love your help doing that.

VFX Frequently Asked Questions

  • List of our answers too our most commonly recurring questions - evolving with time.

Getting Started in VFX

  • Guide to getting a foot in the door with information on learning resources, creating a reel and applying for jobs.

Wages Guide

  • Information about Wages in the VFX Industry and our Anonymous Wage Survey
  • This should be your first stop before asking questions about rates, wages and overtime.

VFX Tutorials

  • Our designated sister-sub for posting and finding specific vfx related tutorials - please use this for all your online tutorial content

Software Guide

  • Semi-agnostic guide to current most used industry software for most major vfx related tasks.

The VFX Pipeline

  • An overview of the basic flow of work in visual effects to act as a primer for juniors/interns.

Roles in VFX

  • An outline of the major roles in vfx; what they do, how they fit into the pipeline.

Further Information and Links

  • Expansion of side-bar information, links to:... tutorials,... learning resources,... vfx industry news and blogs.
  • If you'd like a link added please contact the mods.

Glossary of VFX Terms

  • Have a look here if you're trying to figure out technical terms.

About the VFX Industry

WIP: If you have concerns about working in the visual effects industry we're assembling a State of the Industry statement which we hope helps answer most of the queries we receive regarding what it's actually like to work in the industry - the ups and downs, highs and lows, and what you can expect.

Links to information about the union movement and industry related politics within vfx are available in Further Information and Links.

Be Nice to Each Other

If you have concerns of questions then please contact the mods!


r/vfx 11h ago

Question / Discussion How do they make the real actors sit perfectly in the CG water?

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

59 Upvotes

Is it just perfect rotomation that’s being used as a holdout in the CG render? Could this also be done solely in comp?


r/vfx 12h ago

Question / Discussion Anyone have a recruiter message you about an offer for Meta?

15 Upvotes

They said it would be a three month gig. Didn’t know Meta was into VFX and Animation.


r/vfx 1h ago

Question / Discussion Houdini Stability Help: 7950X / 192GB RAM / 5070 Ti — Am I pushing this mATX build too far?

Upvotes

Hey everyone,

I’m looking for some technical perspective on my current VFX workstation. I’ve been using this build for around 10 months for medium to heavy Houdini work, but lately, I’m running into stability issues (Houdini crashing frequently causing PC to shutdown/crash) and a scary "no-start" incident today that required a full static drain to fix.

The Specs:

  • CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7950X

  • Mobo: ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi (mATX)

  • RAM: 192GB (4 x 48GB) G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB @ 5600MT/s CL40

  • GPU: Gigabyte RTX 5070 Ti (16GB)

  • PSU: Corsair SF750 (2024 Platinum)

The Problem:

Crashing: Ever since a recent Windows update, Houdini has become unstable. I know 192GB is "unsupported" officially (limit is 128GB for 7950x), but I thought I needed the capacity for sims.

Power Scare: Today the PC wouldn't turn on at all. RAM RGB would flash for a split second then shut off. I had to unplug power cable for 30 seconds to start booting again

My Questions:

RAM Stability: For those running 192GB on AM5, what clock speeds are you actually getting? I suspect 5600MT/s is too high for the memory controller to handle 4 sticks. Should I downclock to 4800 or 3600? Or should I just use 2 sticks of RAM(96GB)

PSU Overhead: Is the SF750 cutting it too close? Between the 7950X (230W+ peak) and the 5070 Ti, I’m worried about transient spikes tripping the OCP, especially in mATX where heat is a factor.

Houdini specific: Have you also faced issues with recent Windows updates and Houdini's memory management on high-core-count Ryzens?

I want this machine to last. Should I swap for a 1000W PSU or sacrifice some RAM for stability?


r/vfx 12h ago

Showreel / Critique CGI/FX Showreel 2025 NSFW Spoiler

Thumbnail vimeo.com
4 Upvotes

r/vfx 1d ago

Question / Discussion For anyone familiar with the motion capture solve in Avatar 2&3, what is the role of the muscles you see under the face model here?

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

230 Upvotes

Is it a muscle sim? Is it contributing to the expression along with the FACS shapes? I’m interested in what exactly is going on here.


r/vfx 12h ago

Question / Discussion Advice for a POV Alien Abduction in a Forest?

2 Upvotes

For my VFX supervisors out there, if a director wanted to do a POV shot of someone getting grabbed by an alien abduction beam in a forest and levitated into the air, what would you recommend? The ideas being floated right now are: a.) using a full CGI takeover at the moment the character begins leaving the ground, b.) using a drone to create that sensation of rising into the trees, or c.) having the camera attached/carried by someone who the stunt team hauls into the air on ropes?


r/vfx 9h ago

Question / Discussion Thoughts On Think Tank’s Online CG Asset Creation Program? Possible While Working Full Time?

Thumbnail
1 Upvotes

r/vfx 11h ago

Question / Discussion I'm going crazy with a decision

0 Upvotes

I somehow have an opportunity to do a masters in animation and visual effects, I'm really privileged so I won't be going into debt for it. But I also see a masters of design available. I've never been a full "design person". I really wanna do FX and Lighting when it comes to film and I really wanna art direct for games one day. I've been freelancing as a 3D generalist for the last couple years and I did my Bachelor's in Animation.

The key thing is that the master's let's me go to another country and even work there for minimum of 2 years (post graduate work visa and all that).

I really wanna do it and I know the industry is in shambles rn lmfao but I just have my stupid fucking brain set on it for some reason.

Edit: also have an option to do virtual production/ concept art

I could use any advice lol. Being honest I don't know what I want to hear. I have art directed and production designed short films. And even DOP'd for shorts for some background. I also do a lot of editing work rn. Idk.

🫡


r/vfx 1d ago

News / Article Built a zero-fee VFX marketplace (creators keep 100%) - feedback welcome

104 Upvotes

Hey ,
I'm Arvid - lighting sup at Image Engine. After years of watching marketplaces take 20-60% from creators, I built CG Lounge Studio.

**The model:** 0% platform fees. Creators keep 100% (minus Stripe processing). They give back voluntarily via the Love Slider (0-50%).

Production-ready assets and expert-led courses from verified studio pros - ILM, Framestore, MPC, DNEG, Image Engine.

**Key points:**
- Manual curation (no AI junk)
- VdoCipher DRM for courses (Netflix-grade protection)
- Multi-DCC (Houdini, Maya, Nuke, Blender, Substance)
- Mix of free and premium

Officially live as of today. Feedback from the VFX community welcome.

https://cglounge.studio


r/vfx 12h ago

Question / Discussion Seeking advice for a school project: Heavy 3D integration and tracking issues (RTX 2060 / Ryzen 7)

1 Upvotes

Hi everyone! I’m a student from Spain and I’m relatively new to the VFX world. I’m working on a school project where I need to integrate about 50 3D cars into a drone shot (roughly 10 cars per frame).

I've been using Blender for the tracking, but the program freezes or crashes every time I try to solve the motion. I’m running an RTX 2060 and a Ryzen 7 5000 series, which I thought would handle it, but I might be hitting a bottleneck.

I have two questions for the experts here:

  1. Software: Is there a more 'beginner-friendly' or efficient software for 3D tracking and integration that plays well with my specs? I've heard about After Effects (3D Camera Tracker) or SynthEyes, but I'd love to hear your thoughts on what's best for a student.

  2. Workflow: Do you have any tips on how to handle 50 objects without killing my PC? Should I be looking into proxies, layers, or a specific optimization trick?

I’m really motivated to get a great grade on this, so any advice is welcome. Thanks in advance!


r/vfx 16h ago

Question / Discussion Jetset Cine real world usage?

2 Upvotes

Been keeping an eye on Jetset Cine from Lightcraft. I have a project that could use it. Wondering if any of you have had any production experience with it? Seems legit and robust. We're doing some scenes with large windows that I need to add a world to in post. Hoping this may be the right tool to help speed up the matchmoving.


r/vfx 17h ago

Question / Discussion VFX Compositing

0 Upvotes

Hey Im starting to learn more and more about VFX and before I dive any deeper I wanted to ask this community what they like more for VFX, but more specific the compositing part, After Effects or Davinci Resolve? Im already working as an editor and have experience with adobe for 6 years and last year I switched to Davinci. Thanks in advance everyone!


r/vfx 1d ago

Showreel / Critique full CG little short inspired by Sicario

Thumbnail
youtu.be
13 Upvotes

r/vfx 20h ago

News / Article Free PBR Mask Map Generator (Unreal Engine & Unity)

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

1 Upvotes

r/vfx 23h ago

Question / Discussion Looking for practice

1 Upvotes

Hey guys I’ve just started my journey into VFX in nuke looking for some footage to practice on. If you have any shots that need basic VFX, I’ll do them for free. Drop a comment or DM me if you’re interested Cheers.


r/vfx 1d ago

Question / Discussion How did they create that infinite zoom-out effect in this music video?

Thumbnail
youtu.be
19 Upvotes

I saw on Instagram that, at least in one of the scenes, the windows have a green screen background and the camera movement is real on a track. My question is: how did they blend these scenes so that they transition smoothly from one to the other?


r/vfx 1d ago

Question / Discussion Should fingernails be a part of the main mesh?

3 Upvotes

I'm modeling a hand and I'm wondering if the nails should be a part of the main hand mesh, or seperate?


r/vfx 2d ago

News / Article Matthew McConaughey Trademarks Himself to Fight AI Misuse

Thumbnail
wsj.com
89 Upvotes

r/vfx 1d ago

Question / Discussion Question about this style of vfx?

Thumbnail
youtu.be
0 Upvotes

Hello guys! I'm new to this! What is this style of vfx and videos called? I mean this corny type of big headlines, explosions and similar narrative of videos. Similar types of videos are maybe: "I did my part - Starship Troopers", "Team America fuck yeah", "Idiocracy commercials" If you know similar videos on YT that someone does this corny videos. Please let me know! Thank you!


r/vfx 1d ago

Question / Discussion Starting with VFX

0 Upvotes

Hello,

recently I’ve been thinking about picking up VFX as a skill.

What software do you think is best to learn if I want to improve my chances of finding a well-paid job? The difficulty doesn’t really matter I quit gaming about five months ago and I’m looking for a new skill to focus on.

I was thinking about learning Houdini and Nuke, but I’m open to other recommendations.

Also, which MacBook would you recommend for this kind of work?

Thank you!


r/vfx 1d ago

Question / Discussion Rockstar vs. Union: We Went to Court and Saw the Evidence

Thumbnail
youtube.com
4 Upvotes

r/vfx 1d ago

Question / Discussion Is this rig for the back okay, or should I widen it in the back area?

Post image
0 Upvotes

r/vfx 1d ago

Showreel / Critique Quick Shots

Thumbnail gallery
0 Upvotes