Submitted 9 months ago by realcaseyrollins@kbin.projectsegfau.lt to moviesandtv@lemmy.film
https://www.vulture.com/2023/08/vfx-workers-vote-to-unionize-at-marvel-for-the-first-time.html
On Monday, a group of more than 50 on-set employees filed a petition for an election to be represented by IATSE.
So the writers are underpaid, the actors are underpaid, the VFX people are underpaid…
When they blow $200M making a movie, where does the money go?
Investors, bigwigs and big name actors I would guess.
And the companies that act as middlemen.
If they pay a vfx studio 10 million, not even a tenth of that goes to salary. And what does, gets sucked up by executives at the company.
That system should at least mean steady work for the artists, but then they only have jobs while the company has a project
Actually, it's either a) big name actors who are demanding more money upfront because of disappearing residuals, or b) shooting in expensive locations. There are many such cases of both of these factors coming together to create a perfect storm too.
Say what you will about Sound Of Freedom, but that movie was made on a $14.5 million dollar budget by an indie studio shooting at economic locations while not overpaying the main cast. If this was made by a major studio, I bet it would cost about $75 million at least to make the same looking movie with equivalent-calibre actors and similar looking locations. (It should also be pointed out that Angel Studios has already agreed to the Hollywood unions' terms, so it's likely they have already been giving their actors and writers fair residuals for awhile now, due to their low resistance to the terms.)
Hollywood accounting is almost as notorious as Louisiana politics for being crooked, labyrinthine, and nigh arcane.
Seriously, it’s a fucking crazy web of financial fuckery.
Unionize for a better life!
Good! Those movies are 90% VFX. It’s insane that the actors get paid many times more than the artists who make those movies possible.
Fantastic! ✊
Fuck yeah! I’m so happy this is happening! I’m a freelance vfx guy, and although I’m working in Europe and things are not quite as bad here (yet), I’m super stoked our US friends are gaining some traction! Hope they can keep the momentum going, it sure is time for things to change a bit for the better in this business.
Fantastic news! I sincerely hope that they earn what they darn well deserve!
I’m really surprised they weren’t already, even the set designers are unionized under IATSE
ME5SENGER_24@lemm.ee 9 months ago
Good for them. Considering the billions made with little to no practical effects or quality acting, they deserved the bulk of the revenue. Without the VFX those movies would’ve been trash
scrubbles@poptalk.scrubbles.tech 9 months ago
There have been so many selfies from actors working on marvel movies of them just literally working on green screens. There was one, it may have been Julia Louise Dryfus, I don’t remember exactly, but they were on a bridge in LA that was supposed to be Boston, and they literally made everything green screen except for the handrail. It’s nuts how much they’re putting on VFX artists and they absolutely should have a union
Emperor@feddit.uk 9 months ago
Yeah, almost everything in The Volume is VFX by it’s very nature.
Ab_intra@lemmy.world 9 months ago
It’s a shame Marvel and studios alike them are pushing the deadline for production of these movies. I think I heard that these VFX artists gets weeks to finish the job they get. So they have to work 60 - 80 hours a week. That is truly terrifying.
ME5SENGER_24@lemm.ee 9 months ago
I work for “the mouse” and from an insider’s perspective, the company is fucking retarded. The left hand doesn’t talk to the right and neither hand has any idea they’ve got feet. It’s the most siloed company I’ve ever been a part of.
Very_Bad_Janet@kbin.social 9 months ago
This is what I've heard, too. It's always a huge crush to get everything done by an unreasonable deadline. Every single time. They should absolutely strike for more humane working hours and realistic scheduling.
kingmongoose7877@lemmy.film 9 months ago
Are you saying that with VFX those movies aren’t trash?? 🤣
Relax, everybody! I’m joking! (I work in VFX).
!moviesnob@lemmy.film