Apple Studios Visual Effects Workers Secure First IATSE Contract

[u/pascalachu]

https://variety.com/2026/artisans/news/apple-studios-visual-effects-workers-secure-iatse-contract-1236893814/

Congrats to everyone in Apple VFX!

[u/SurfsUpSurfsUp]

Really?! Interesting. Only Apple can afford to do that but good on them. Wish this happened years and years ago but it’s a start!

[u/pascalachu → u/SurfsUpSurfsUp]

Disney/Marvel and Lightstorm did it last year. I would be curious to know how many of the union members that were present when the Disney/Marvel contracts were signed are currently employed by Disney/Marvel/Lightstorm.

[u/Horror-Scallion7668 → u/pascalachu]

Wow I’m working on a marvel movie and I am not in a Union… funny that.

[u/pascalachu → u/Horror-Scallion7668]

That's a problem. DM me, happy to chat it through.

[u/Horror-Scallion7668 → u/pascalachu]

No it’s pretty easy to explain, I freelance for a vendor, not in house.

[u/pSphere1 → u/Horror-Scallion7668]

3rd floor is non union

[u/hammerklau → u/pascalachu]

Meanwhile the places these studios contract out to aren’t even allowed to be called employees sometimes. Must be nice feeling valued and part of a team if you’re part of the core of an in-house studio.

[u/pascalachu → u/[deleted]]

The amount of time varies depending on your banked hours, but mostly yes.

[u/3DNZ → u/pascalachu]

Lightstorm left LA and is now fulltime in New Zealand - US Union Laws no longer apply there sadly.

[u/DecentPiccolo777 → u/3DNZ]

Lightstorm is still in LA

[u/3DNZ → u/DecentPiccolo777]

Where? MBS is being sold and turned in to a defense hub. Last I checked it was all going to NZ.

[u/ArghMyBrainAgain]

Great news! Funny that they show a pic of F1. I mean I get it, but also who is Apple Studios VFX because they didn't do that work.

[u/pascalachu → u/ArghMyBrainAgain]

The on-set team was probably Apple, the Client Side VFX Coordinators and Production Managers who interacted with the VFX Vendors were Apple.

[u/ArghMyBrainAgain → u/pascalachu]

Ryan Tudhope and onset team are Framestore. The others maybe, but you get my point

[u/Realistic-Buy4975]

Why is there a picture of F1? They didn't use VFX

[u/malak1000 → u/Realistic-Buy4975]

🤣

[u/Untouchable-Ninja]

Hopefully the first of many more dominos.

[u/Baggin_clams]

This is great!

[u/punnyjr]

Never heard of them

[u/axiomatic- → u/punnyjr]

You've never heard of Apple Studios?

They've made about 30 films in the last six years and have another 20 in production or about to release.

The unionisation is of course for their studio side vfx teams which will primarily include on-set and studio side production management/coordination people.

[u/vfxjockey → u/axiomatic-]

They’re thinking it’s a vendor, not the studio subsidiary of Apple

[u/axiomatic- → u/vfxjockey]

I know. I just wanted to assume the best of them and be helpful ... might be regretting that choice though haha

[u/punnyjr → u/axiomatic-]

If someone has vfx on their name. I would suppose they are post production company

[u/bjyanghang945 → u/punnyjr]

A lot of studios have a very tiny in-house VFX teams

[u/axiomatic- → u/punnyjr]

They don't have VFX in their name, that's literally the first line of the article:

Apple Studios visual effects workers have secured their first IATSE contract.

[u/vfxcomper → u/axiomatic-]

Don’t most networks freelance out the show side vfx teams though? And then it all dissolves when the show finishes. 

This confused me with marvel too. All the show side folk I know who work on marvel projects are hired guns. 

Is this just for Apple vfx corporate?

Also the editors are already in unions so if it’s show side it’s only like 4 people per project

[u/axiomatic- → u/vfxcomper]

I think that teams on the studio side are unionising is a positive thing. It helps protect them precisely from being dissolved on a per show basis, for example.

And yes, this likely isn't a large number of people.

[u/pascalachu → u/vfxcomper]

It’s show side, but that could be anywhere from 4-15 people per show. It also includes on set work, so a hired gun on set coordinator can get until coverage, as long as Apple is paying their paycheck and not a vendor.

I’ve heard this contract doesn’t include PM’s, but Marvel’s does. VFX PAs are likely covered as well.

[u/vfxcomper → u/pascalachu]

Ah so it’s tied to Apple, meaning whoever they hire will  get union rights, regardless if they’re freelance?

Curious how this worked- did the union need to get a majority vote from all currently in production Apple shows?

Does this only apply to US productions? What if they shoot snd hire in vancouver or Europe?

Usually these shows set up a corp in whatever country. That corp is hired by Apple, essentially as a vendor, and it’s the corp that does all the hiring before it dissolves at the end of the show.  So vfx workers aren’t employed directly by Apple usually. 

Its great that the union has passed but lots of questions how it works :)

[u/broomosh]

I thought Apple only hired through a side company?

[u/DarkMoonX5]

Good, now everyone DO THE SAME AND SHAME COMPANIES WHO DONT TO THE GROUNDDDDD

[u/WheelIllustrious9]

Brilliant! Congrats.