Disney VFX Coordinator Discusses Difficult Lengthy Hours as Sector Strives for Unionization

In October, Disney's in-house VFX (Visual Effects) personnel unanimously voted to unionize under the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE). This follows a similar move by Marvel's VFX workers in September. The demanding nature of their jobs and lack of standardized rights drove them to Unionize, says Mack Robinson, a VFX coordinator at Disney with over a decade of experience.

The employees are seeking a contract that would offer health care plans with portability, retirement benefits, overtime pay, and rights analogous to the ones possessed by their unionized coworkers. However, one common issue for both Disney and Marvel workers appears to be the relentless work schedules, known as the 'crunch'.

According to Robinson, the crunch generally intensifies over the last three to four months of a project. Examples include long working hours, stretching from early morning to late at night, seven-day work weeks, and 18-hour days during significant productions.

Typically, there's a concept of "golden time" where unionized workers get paid conspicuously more after working 14 consecutive hours in a day or through the week, which is absent in the VFX sector. It's not uncommon for employees to have to work for two or three straight months during delivery, which means giving up their life during that period.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the problem, causing a surge in workload with a diminishing workforce. This led to the training of new recruits who were largely inexperienced.

The employees' next move will be to form a negotiating committee to identify contract priorities, then move into negotiations. Robinson and Patch also expressed their hope for other, third-party VFX groups to join the movement, emphasizing the need for fair treatment and respect.