Visual Effects Pipeline - VFX

Goutam Banerjee
9831631949
What is the Visual Effects Pipeline?

The VFX pipeline refers to the various stages of production required to add visual
effects to a film. The pipeline helps to organize each department, so that every artist
knows their role, and a production can move along within the allocated timeline.
If you want to work as a VFX artist, you need to understand every step of the visual
effects pipeline. Wherever your role sits within the pipeline, you must be familiar with
every department's purpose in order to create the best and most efficient work. If your
work is not completed with each step of the pipeline in mind, it can cause problems
down the line and be sent back to you for redoing. This is costly and can hold up the
process!
Before we start, it's helpful to know that a film project is generally divided into 3 stages:
 Pre-production: The idea for a film is developed, scripts are written (and re-written!),
budgets and timelines are determined, financing is secured, actors and locations
are sourced.
 Production: The filming takes place on set (can be on location, or in a studio with
sets and/or green screens).
 Post-production: Visual effects are applied to the footage, sound, editing and color
grading take place, and the film is ready for distribution.
While the VFX pipeline touches each stage of the filmmaking process, the majority of VFX
work happens in post-production (or, 'post' for short). Let's dive into 10 steps of the VFX
pipeline:
1. Story
The story is the foundation of every great film. The story phase happens in pre-production and it
involves planning out characters, the plot, and the world they exist in. Screenwriters and
producers take ideas from brainstorming sessions, turning them into a complete script. If a book
is being made into a film, a screenwriter may be hired to adapt the story so that it translates well
on screen. Some examples of this include Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter. If you want to get
experience writing scripts, we recommend starting with Celtx, as it is free and has auto-
formatting.
2. Storyboarding and Animatics

During the Storyboarding & Animatics phase, an artist or team of artists create visual
representations of the actions within the script. They analyze the character motion and settings
within the story and use basic drawings to define framing from shot to shot. The results are
subject to change down the line, but these visuals give the production team a chance to start
preparing.
Goutam Banerjee
9831631949
3. Pre-Vis
Growing more popular, pre-vis takes storyboarding a step further. 3D artists create low poly
models and representations of the locations where scenes play out. They work with the
production team to set up camera angles and block out complex scenes ahead of time. This
planning saves time and money on set. Since the artists don’t have to worry about matching
concept art, but just blocking out shapes and composition, this can be done rather quickly with
good direction.
4. Concept Art and Design

Concept art & design is arguably one of the most important phases of pre-production. Here, an
artist or team of artists create the look and feel of a film by drawing fully fleshed out images that
further define settings, characters, props, costumes, lighting, color and more. The mood and
meaning of a film is often defined by what is created during the concept art phase.
5. Layout and Production Design

Layout, also referred to as production design, has a different meaning for different teams. The
end goal is to have a visual representation of what the final sets will look like. This helps
physical set builders figure out and communicate to directors and producers what is physically
possible and what may need a digital set build. For the VFX team, it defines how digital set
builds might have to be incorporated. The layout team and production designers may use
drawings, photos, and 3D renderings to finalize the sets.
6. Research and Development (or, R&D)

As filmmaking gets more complex, R&D becomes increasingly more important. During this
stage, VFX supervisors work with directors to figure out how certain shots can be accomplished.
In the meantime, the VFX artists, technical directors, modelers, animators, and compositors do
their own research. For example, if a film needs explosions that come from a very specific type
of source, like a missile, the VFX artists and technical directors study videos and photos to see
how the fire and smoke behaves. They then create tools within a program to efficiently work on
the final shots when the time comes.
7. 3D Modeling & Texturing

The 3D modeling and texturing teams are essential to creating things that aren’t practical or cost-
effective to have on set. Being one of the first groups involved in the post-production process,
they may have to model assets such as props, buildings, vehicles, and weapons to fulfil the
director's vision. 3D models may also be used to complement something shot on set. If an actor
Goutam Banerjee
9831631949
like Andy Serkis is shot in a motion capture suit, a 3D Modeler would create the character he is
playing. This model is then rigged and animated. 3D Modelers generally use software
like Autodesk Maya and Pixologic ZBrush. Texture artists use digital painting programs like The
Foundry’s Mari.
To learn more about Modeling and Texturing see: What is 3D Modeling? and What is 3D Texturing?
What is 3D modeling?
3D modeling is the creation of a computer-generated representation of an object or character in
3D space.
A 3D Modeler has to build models before they can be animated or VFX can be applied.
Depending on the end goal, they may be working from scratch, concept art, other 3D designs or
even optimizing scan data to create models. A Modeler might also work on the topology, or the
way vertices and edges are arranged, to ensure the model is ready for the next steps in the
pipeline.
Successful modelers have creative ways of getting the job done in the time allotted while
ensuring the accuracy of the final product.
Models are used in almost every type of TV show, movie, game and VR app. In movies like The
Incredible Hulk, modelers were required to re-create the legendary character. In cases like this,
the precision is crucial in keeping the integrity of the original Hulk character, while creating it
with today’s amazing technology standards.
In Blizzard's hit game Overwatch, many of the characters are wearing armor. The character
modelers working on games like this have to be well versed in both hard-surface and organic
modeling.
Hard surface refers to things like spaceships, buildings, weapons, and vehicles. Whereas organic
includes characters, plants, animals, and outdoor environments etc.
What does a 3D Texture Artist do?

A 3D Texture Artist creates stylized or natural textures and materials that are then applied to 3D
models and environments in games, films, or TV shows. They play an important role in the VFX
Pipeline.
Whether texturing game models or film assets, Texture Artists use a variety of texturing software
and techniques. They may use Photoshop or Mari to paint high resolution image textures or use
scanned-in 3D data; or build procedural materials (a network of properties that can be changed
fairly easily) in a program like Substance Designer (see video below for examples).
8. Rigging and Animation

Before an object or character can be animated, a rigging team must build a system of controls, or
a digital skeleton, for the Animator to use. This usually involves adding bones, calculating and
implementing skin weights, and adding muscles to create natural movement. The Animator uses
Goutam Banerjee
9831631949
the custom controls of the rig to bring the character, prop, or vehicle to life. Nowadays, an
Animator may also be working with motion capture data. Motion capture data often needs to be
tweaked to achieve a final look, and an experienced Animator is essential. 3D animation for a
feature film is often done in Autodesk Maya.
8. FX & Simulation
The job of an FX artist revolves around adding simulated elements to a film that seamlessly exist
in the director’s world. At any given time, an FX artist could be working on things like
destruction, fire, liquids, smoke, and particle simulations. They will often work alongside the
animators to ensure natural movement of colliding FX elements. Effects artists often use SideFX
Houdini to create mind-blowing visuals in blockbuster films.
9. Lighting and Rendering

Once the animation and effects teams are done working their magic, the 3D elements need to
have proper lighting to exist within their respective scenes. A lighting artist, or multiple lighting
artists, strategically place lights throughout the 3D scene to ensure light color, intensity, and
shadows match up with the originally shot piece. Each sequence of frames is then rendered out
from the needed camera angles and handed off to the compositor.
. 10. Compositing
This is the final step of the visual effects pipeline. A compositor takes all the elements of the film
and layers them on top of each other. They use elements like color correction, masking and other
tricks to create the illusion that all elements naturally belong together. They may be putting an
animated character into a live action scene, overlaying destruction onto a building, or even
layering a simulated tsunami over a shot of a city street. The possibilities of what a compositor
may be working on are endless, and they are often using the complex tools within The Foundry’s
Nuke to complete their work.

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Goutam Banerjee

What is the Visual Effects Pipeline?

2. Storyboarding and Animatics

4. Concept Art and Design

5. Layout and Production Design

6. Research and Development (or, R&D)

7. 3D Modeling & Texturing

What does a 3D Texture Artist do?

8. Rigging and Animation

9. Lighting and Rendering

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