The Production Team
VFX PIPELINE
Roles and Relationships
VFX Producer
Production Manager
Production Coordinator
VFX Editor
Data Technician
Runner
These staff will have access to the intellectual property/script/main production team resources, they will develop a VFX pipeline including planning for all the necessary shots and data capture.
This workflow is passed through various Pre-production meetings with the other VFX departments and then organised into timescales ready to be worked on.
Production Management Department
This department is responsible for arranging production meetings, securing contracts and presenting final products to clients for feedback.
The VFX Producer liaises with the Producers/Director of the main production as well as communicating to actors and crew on set regarding what is needed by the VFX team. They are responsible for organizing the VFX team and their workflow/deadlines and other important details with any other VFX Production coordinators.
VFX editors also work closely with the production team and actors on set, they ensure that footage is captured correctly for VFX to work with later on. Runners and assistants work behind the scenes to assist in production/filming as well as later on with post-production/VFX.
Pre-Production Department
This department works on early development work and concept art/previsualization to help other members of the VFX team understand the script or story being told. Key scenes/landscapes and characters along with other sketches and paintings influence the tone of a film so concept artists speak with the director/other relevant producers to get it right. The concept artist can also assist 3D modelers and designers in post-production with bringing characters and scenes to life.
Pre-visualistation artists take the concept art along with other data and are able to create a 3D dynamic/animated storyboard (animatic) that can be referred to by the other VFX staff. If a concept artist's vision isn't clear enough, or isn't what the client wants then there will be delays and issues later on in the pipeline when CG artists and compositors attempt to put shots together.
Roles and Relationships
Concept Artist
Previsualization Artist
These staff are given the brief along with any relevant production notes to develop visual ideas and artwork to assist with the other departments like CG development. Often concept artists work as freelancers but could work for longer periods at one specific company to develop a series of games/TV series/film franchise with the same style/team. The concept artist may also work on previsualizations in a smaller team however the previz requires heavier use of 3D and compositional software. These staff need to have a strong knowledge of character design, colour, mood and atmosphere as well as building/architecture or vehicle design in some cases.
The VFX producers will feed-back from the client any changes or positive feedback on the artwork before it is finalized, characters in particular may take longer to design and be happy with.
Roles and Relationships
VFX Supervisor
Data Capture Technician
This department works with the main production team on set to be the eyes and voice of VFX.
Data captured will usually include any Motion Capture, camera lens sizes and camera types, filming quality, lighting set-ups and positional data to rebuild later in a digital space. This data is invaluable to CG staff who spend the next weeks/months creating visual effects that must be seamlessly incorporated in post-production. The Production Management department will make sure these staff are aware of what they need to supervise on set as the main crew won't want to re-shoot footage or waste money paying actors and crew overtime if VFX haven't been able to capture the correct data.
On-Set Department
The on-set team usually include a VFX supervisor and data capture technician, these job roles require precision and a knowledge of the VFX processes/techniques. Information about lighting, camera position and lens type are vital in re-creating scenes digitally to look realistic, colour space would also be recorded for matching up of other compositional elements. They also monitor rotoscoping position and actor placement which saves artists a lot of time later on.
Computer Generated (CG) Department
The CG department is where all the digital manipulation takes place; CG Supervisors work with a team of technical directors (TDs) to research/develop techniques to determine how the visual effects should look on screen. Look development artists ensure the VFX are consistent with the feel of the film while a variety of artists work on different elements of VFX. An environmental artist usually recreates landscapes/scenes digitally so that other VFX artists in charge of characters/effects can place them within an accurate scene.
Modelling artists create digital 3D models using reference images and concept art, generally they use software like Blender, ZBrush, Autodesk Maya/3DSMax. A texture artist/specialist may then enhance these models to make them more detailed and realistic or stylized...
...A lighting artist will make sure that scenes are correctly lit, they will need to match the lighting on any 3D models/digital environment with that of the original footage to seamlessly incorporate them into the composition. Both scientific knowledge of light behavior and artistic flair are helpful in this role.
A Matchmove artist is in charge of matching up the CG characters/effects with the raw footage, actor movement/reactions and expressions should gel together correctly. Any issues in this dept. could mean that audiences are taken out of the action and notice further inconsistences/errors throughout the film. A layout artist also works on the final composition of raw footage and digital elements; They will liase with the director on the position of virtual cameras within a scene and the language/feeling this communicates to the audience.
Roles and Relationships
Computer Graphics Supervisor
Look Development Artist
Modelling Artist
Animator
Texture Artist
Environment Artist
Layout Artist
Lighting Artist
Matchmove Artist
This department work from all the data and ideas captured at earlier stages of the production process.
Roles and Relationships
Pipeline Technical Director
Rigging Technical Director
Creature Technical Director
Effects Technical Director
Assistant Technical Director
Software Developer
This department oversees the various CG/VFX staff and helps to overcome any issues during post-production, research and development staff often develop code or procedures that can speed up/improve VFX shots. Fur Simulation, Particle Physics Simulation and other complex processes are perfected here.
Technical Department
There are several key roles within the technical department, one of which is the Pipeline Technical Director. This role involves a lot of problem-solving and supporting various VFX departments to ensure a positive outcome. They need to have a thorough understanding of multiple departments as well as software/programming. There will generally be an Assistant Technical Director who can assist in these duties and oversee the VFX departments.
Rigging Technical Directors are in charge of overseeing the rigging of characters/structures within the digital VFX pipeline. They can identify issues/development needs and have a strong understanding of scripting/compositing software and scientific study of movement/skeletal systems. Similarly, a Creature Technical Director needs to have an understanding of biological science and nature as well as rigging, they add muscle, skin and other surface additions to characters and make sure they interact currently with their environment (E.g. hair, feathers etc...).
...An Effects Technical Director controls the standard and style of effects used during composition. They are able to write scripts and run particle simulations that can be tailored to the needs of the VFX team. They are ever-evolving in knowledge and keep up to date on latest software and techniques to stay cutting edge.
The Software developer will assist the department by developing specific code/programming used by the technical team. The Pipeline Technical Director will usually oversee this and offer ideas/creative solutions when needed. The codes developed may help the rigging, environmental or other character/3D model artists.
Compositing Department
The most common roles in this department include a Compositing Supervisor who oversees the flow and continuity of shots within a composition, they need a strong understanding of cinematography and film language. A Prep Artist is an entry level position that involves cleaning up pieces of raw footage filmed on set, ready for compositors to add to a final shot alongside any CG elements/effects. This means any accidental boom mica caught in frame, reflections or juddery camera work can be corrected early on before audiences notice. Rotoscpoe artists are also employed to create mattes for raw footage to be used by compositors, knowledge of Adobe After Effects, Photoshop and Illustrator are essential for this role, as well as a lot of patience and abilty to work fast under pressure for clients/other departments. These roles are frequently filled by freelance artists.
Compositors are the other key role within this department; these VFX artists are able to compose a scene using a mixture of mattes/live actor footage, CG elements and lighting effects, they generally use software like Nuke, After Effects, Maya, Houdini and 3DSMax. Compositors frequently use Chromakey for green screen/blue screen footage to isolate elements needed. The compositing supervisor oversees the final product.
Roles and Relationships
Prep Artist
Rotoscope Artist
Compositor
Compositing Supervisor
This department is responsible for combining all elements of a shot; the raw footage taken on set, along with 2D and 3D assets are tracked in together and combined to form a full composition. Before this is rendered a colour grading process is done over the composition to achieve the correct atmosphere/lighting. At this point the VFX supervisor and other art department staff are able to input feedback/final ideas before a shot is processed and released. There is generally a feedback session with VFX internally as well as the main television/film/game team. Suggestions/re-edits may be tried until everyone is happy with the result.
Depending on the size of the team and other factors like VFX specialisms/expertise within the team, VFX team members may have overlapping responsibilities within the production pipeline. Generally a team is built up of both technically minded and artistic/creatively minded staff, good communication between these different people and some mutual understanding of computer graphics and other technical skills help the VFX production process to become more streamlined and efficient.
Some people prefer to specialize in one area of VFX (E.g. Concept Artist or Software Development) whereas others may generalize in order to pick up more work while freelancing or get a more well-rounded understanding of the VFX Pipeline for future career moves. When great VFX shots are put together they will usually always have a good combination of artistic flair and clever physics/movements and composition.
There is a shared responsibility among the pipeline production staff to work within timescales set out by the VFX Supervisor, if a department struggles to complete their work in time, other departments will find it difficult to composite or combine assets and create a cohesive piece of work. There should be open communication between departments so that VFX staff can keep up with any changes being made to the project and avoid delays as this costs the company a lot of money and can cause client complaints.