Visual Effects employees at Marvel Studios are attempting to form the industry's first-ever VFX union.
Today, over 50 VFX workers at Marvel joined together to file for a union election at the National Labor Relations Board. The group will be represented by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE).
“For almost half a century, workers in the visual effects industry have been denied the same protections and benefits their coworkers and crewmates have relied upon since the beginning of the Hollywood film industry," VFX Organizer for IATSE, Mark Patch, said. "This is a historic first step for VFX workers coming together with a collective voice demanding respect for the work we do.”
The struggles of VFX workers have been well documented over the last few years. Just last month, we reported on how strikes across the entertainment industry are impacting VFX artists, who are facing an uncertain future as Hollywood has grinded to a halt. In that story, multiple VFX workers pointed out the lack of a union.
“The WGA strike is just a glaring reminder that VFX does not have a union,” one former visual effects producer said. “Watching a collective fight for better pay, support, and hours is a stark reminder that the VFX industry has never been able to band together to get a union started on our own.”
Specific complaints have also been lobbied at Marvel's treatment of VFX workers in recent years. An artist who worked on Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania said "human greed" led to VFX problems on Marvel projects, while one anonymous VFX worker told IGN last year that Marvel projects tend to run all the way to the very end, causing long hours and intensely stressful working conditions.
"You basically run out of time to work on these things," the VFX artist said at the time. "I had a shot that I worked on that I finished at 9 in the morning, and they had a preview in London that evening. The version that I worked on that [day] was the version they were going to see at the premiere. It's up to the wire. And not to say that every show is like that, but it does happen."
This new push from VFX workers to unionize comes as the entertainment industry is at a standstill. Writers and the Hollywood studios met this week for the first time since the strike began in May, but no agreement was reached. For more, you can check out why streaming is broken, and how the strikes can fix it.
Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN covering video game and entertainment news. He has over seven years of experience in the gaming industry with bylines at IGN, Nintendo Wire, Switch Player Magazine, and Lifewire. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.
