ABSTRACT
A successful journey starts with a good plan—you wouldn't go on an Everest expedition without adequate preparation. Filmmakers know this, of course. They know that making a movie, while not exactly a mountaineering adventure, can be as challenging as crossing the Khumbu glacier. They know that the best way to successfully overcome the challenge is to carefully plot a path around obstacles and crevasses in advance. That's why filmmakers spend months, sometimes even years, planning, going over every shot and camera angle, designing the set and props and costumes, scouting for locations, refining the script, budgeting, casting, rehearsing … yet in too many films, all too often, the visual effects are pushed to the back end of the pre-production process. VFX producers, by nature of their role, do not necessarily need to know every nut and bolt in the VFX machine, but they certainly must have a deep understanding of the process.
