VFX Engine Weekly | | Some of the best VFX work is the work nobody notices: the street that belongs in another century, the environment that still holds up when the camera cuts. This week, we're looking at the decisions behind those frames, including when AI earns a place in the pipeline and when the deadline calls for tools you already trust. This week: Framestore's East of Eden breakdown, AI roto you can still art-direct, and India's Namaslay creature work. Plus procedural forest-floor craft, open roles and a reel worth pausing. | The lead | Before / after · Framestore  This California street is a team effort.Framestore's East of Eden breakdown turns practical locations into period California. Watch the Chinatown extensions and a CG house burning progressively across four shots. The shared environment keeps the world consistent between cameras. Read the studio notes. Watch the before / after → | The briefs | AI tool to try · Foundry  Draw the edge. Let AI do the chasing.SmartRoto propagates your roto shapes through a sequence inside Nuke, with editable keyframes. Try it on the repetitive first pass, then inspect the edges. The 30-day trial requires an active Nuke-family licence; Foundry lists Nuke 16.1 and 17.0 compatibility. Try artist-controlled AI roto → | Steal the technique · 80 Level  Roots first. Tiny forest chaos second.Zeqi Mu grows the big root shapes with splines, then layers stones, moss and foliage. Sparse dominant roots help hide repetition. A lovely reminder to solve the large shapes before the micro-detail. Explore the material breakdown → | India desk |  | | Bot VFX · Namaslay |
| They chose artists over AI. Meet the demon.For Namaslay, India's Bot VFX faced a compressed post schedule and chose a traditional Maya, Houdini and Nuke pipeline. The studio explains why predictability won on this project, even as it sees AI helping with roto, tracking and first-pass paint-outs. The interesting bit: where you put AI in the pipeline matters more than whether you use it at all. See the creature work and the studio's reasoning → |
|
Leave Granola and get up to 12 months free of Wispr Flow Notetaker + Dictation
If you have paid time left on an individual Granola plan, we'll match it with a Wispr Flow subscription that includes Notetaker and dictation, and add bonus time, up to 12 months total. Sign in or create a Wispr account and submit proof of your plan to check eligibility.
From the platform 1,023 open VFX roles on the platform Filter by craft, studio, country, or salary. Updated daily. |
Featured job · Tantrum VFX COMPOSITOR Toronto, Canada · Hybrid · Full-time · 2+ years Composite in Nuke, finish in Resolve or Nuke Studio, and take commercial work through final QC. GTA-based or willing to relocate. Resume, reel and cover letter required. Sign in or create an account to submit your application. |
| ▸ Jobs this week |  | Art & Story Intern, Disney Animation: Winter 2027 Walt Disney Animation Studios · Burbank, USA | Apply → |
|  | Rigging Developer: Feat Anim DNEG · Mumbai / Bengaluru, India | Apply → |
|
| ▸ Reel of the week |  | Lead / Senior FX TD with over ten years of experience. Watch his 2026 reel. |
|
| One thing to try | Open yesterday's hero shot. Cut to a second angle. Does the world still hold together? That is your next useful test. | Priyank Murarka Founder, VFX Engine. | |
|