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- If they could do that, why aren't they already doing that? It's already cheaper to do VFX in other countries, yet for some reason they need US
- If work is already being outsourced anyways, Unions could actually create bargaining power to prevent that, IATSE can have rules on how much VFX needs to be local, right now there's literally nothing stopping companies from deciding to do all their VFX in other countries.
- Somehow the animation guild is managing to survive without them just outsourcing all animation work to other countries, so... what are they doing that we can't do?
(EDIT- Adding additional point) I'm hearing in the comments that people who work where labor is cheap actually want to move to countries where they would be paid and treated better, a union could actually help bring workers here
- DISCLAIMER: I do not represent IATSE nor am I part of any current organizing effort, I just want to stand in solidarity for better conditions for film industry workers
So, I work for a studio that's owned by a parent company that also has locations in Georgia (the state), NY, 3 across Canada, Colombia, India, Spain and Australia (and, of course, LA). A few months before the writers strike there were a round of layoffs and we were told that we would have to start pushing work towards the other foreign studios, essentially because those artists were cheaper and they were getting rebates by having the work come from those studios. Now, with the strikes, even more LA artists are being furloughed. We even received work, at one point, from another studio because that LA location was shutting down while it's foreign offices were remaining open. So, this is already happening. These larger, investment corporation owned studios are already moving their work to other countries and leaving, if at all, a small team with supervisors in their LA offices because this is where the clients are. ILM did this a few years ago. I know so many people right now who have been out of work for months even before the strikes. So, I don't understand this response that well if they were going to do it why aren't they. They are.
To be clear, I believe that this industry needs to unionize, but let's be realistic about the situation and that for vendor side artists it's going to be a much bigger challenge and I would appreciate it if people were just being honest about it.
Yah, sorry, just wanting to be clear. Fwiw, I don't think VFX is dead, yet, in LA like a lot of doom and gloomers are saying. There's still life left, I think. We just need to get through this strike in one piece, though, obviously.
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Well, I'm not arguing against unionizing because there's outsourcing, I'm not arguing against unionizing at all. I'm just saying let's not be disingenuous that it's happening, that it's happening in a very serious manner and that it's gonna be a serious uphill struggle for artists in the US who are vendor side, so people should moderate their expectations, cause I think it's gonna get worse before it gets better.
I hope you're right (about bringing work back to the US), I really do.
What I think would really help is if a few of the major VFX houses unionized, cause THOSE vendor studios have the real leverage. 100 small to medium vendor studios might not be enough (random number generated, btw) to make a difference, but a few majors def could, to pave the way.