Jul 24, 2023

-Oppenheimer - VFX studio DNEG to lay off dozens of employees at London location.

Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer" grossed $172.4 million worldwide in its debut weekend, but DNEG, the studio responsible for the film's VFX work, is laying off dozens of employees, many of them uncredited, at its London headquarters The company said it was laying off dozens of employees at its London headquarters, many of them uncredited. [According to Deadline, which broke the news of the layoffs, affected departments include lighting, engineering, and rigging; in total, about 70 people are expected to lose their jobs in the job cuts, which are being made not in response to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes but to larger economic headwinds.

DNEG is one of the world's leading VFX and animation production companies. The company has won seven Academy Awards, and its VFX work can be seen in major Hollywood films including: Dune and Dune: Part 2, The Last of Us, The Little Mermaid, Fast X, The Lord of the Rings etc.: The Lord of the Rings," etc. The company is also one of Netflix's favorite collaborators, having animated for several Netflix original films and series, including "Nimona," "Enter Galactic," and the upcoming "That Christmas."

As of August 2021, DNEG employed approximately 7,000 people across its global offices. The U.K. studio where the layoffs are taking place employs approximately 900 staff, which means that by the end of the current round of layoffs, approximately 7-8% of the London-based workforce will have been laid off.

Such stories have become increasingly common in recent months, with many working in the VFX industry noting that the industry has reached a breaking point. Frontline workers face harsh working conditions, unrealistic deadlines, unwarranted criticism from other sectors of the industry, and a lack of trust in their work. It is no wonder that talk of unionization is frequent among workers and on social media platforms.