VFX Workers from Disney, Marvel, and "Avatar" Ratify First Union Contracts

These union deals are hopefully set to kickstart a movement within the larger VFX community.

Visual effects artists on projects with Disney have ratified their newest IATSE contracts.

What’s Happening:

Variety is reporting that the visual effect artists who work on Avatar, Marvel, and Disney have ratified their first ever labor contract, marking a major milestone for the VFX industry.
In this landmark contract decision, workers will receive standard union protections (such as healthcare, overtime pay, and turnaround times, among others) along with, for the Disney/Marvel contract, contractual pay raises that match those of last year’s IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) negotiations.
These come after a long fight to unionize VFX workers, which is one of the last major groups in the entertainment industry to be unionized.
These negotiations, however, only cover those artists employed directly by Marvel, Disney, or Lightstorm Entertainment (aka Avatar).
Elsewhere, the Avatar-related contract includes language on artificial intelligence (which comes after recent discussions on the topic from director James Cameron), while the Disney and Marvel contracts do not.
Spokespeople from all branches have voiced hope that these contracts will instill confidence in the larger VFX community to fight for unionization.

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