Marvel’s Phase 5 & 6 Announcements Reportedly Depress The VFX Industry

The VFX industry is reportedly depressed after Marvel Studios‘ Phase 5 and 6 announcements. Kevin Feige spearheaded MCU’s San Diego Comic-Con 2022 return as he laid out what’s next for the franchise in the next several years. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will mark the end of Phase 4, and with that, the producer laid out MCU’s full Phase 5 slate alongside a few projects for Phase 6 including two Avengers films with Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. 

Learning about Marvel Studios’ bigger plan after the Infinity Saga was a cause for celebration for fans. Phase 4 has been criticized for being disjointed and directionless without appearing to have a common thread akin to the way the Infinity Saga laid a foundation for the eventual battle with Thanos. Now that the public has an idea about where MCU’s current storytelling is headed, with the next batch of projects dubbed the Multiverse Saga, people can be more patient about these set-ups and wait for some payoff at the end of Phase 6. Still, the direction of the next saga hasn’t been the only thing that’s been criticized. Fans have been pointing out what they have deemed lazy visual effects and the VFX community has also spoken out about Marvel’s treatment of studios working on their films.

Now, an anonymous VFX artist has spoken to Defector about the current state of the industry, including its general mood after Marvel Studios’ jampacked Phase 5 and 6 slate was announced. Unsurprisingly, most of them aren’t thrilled with this, with many already dreading the workload coming their way in the next few years. Read the related quote below:

“The whole industry seems a bit depressed on the heels of Marvel’s Phase Five and Six announcement, specifically just because of the insane amount of work it’ll be on its own. They’re not the appealing client they used to be. A lot of burnout is setting in.”

Recently, more and more VFX artists have come out to criticize the poor working conditions when taking on a Marvel Studios project. Despite all of its success, the MCU isn’t exactly known for great visuals. In fact, it’s one aspect of its visuals that’s usually criticized. Directors Joe and Anthony Russo even had to address Captain America: Civil War‘s washed-out palette, and before that, Taika Waititi pointed out and mocked effects issues on Thor: Love and Thunder‘s Korg scene. According to an artist, Marvel Studios is notorious for changing scenes which demands them to work overtime to finish their deliverables within the previously agreed schedule. Considering how popular the MCU is, they can seemingly get away with these improbable demands.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, location shoots have become more difficult, forcing Marvel Studios to rely more heavily on green screens. This has placed more burden on VFX artists, but, as the franchise expands further by exploring new pockets of the MCU in Phase 5 and 6, the VFX work on their projects would expectedly be more expansive. This is especially true with endeavors that are set in space, or feature characters who use magic like Doctor Strange and Scarlet Witch, or Skrulls in Secret Invasion. Perhaps Marvel Studios can do something to address this issue, otherwise, it will be their projects that will suffer the consequences of overworking VFX artists.