Update The campaign is 4 days away from its deadline. Currently it has achieved 28% towards a 50% target. In addition to the VFX Assemble website, additional information can be found on Reddit where artist and founder Joe Pavlo is answering questions.
VFX Assemble is taking the unusual approach of using a crowdfunding model to create a new trade union for VFX artists working in the UK. The reasoning goes that artists are not joining unions because they’re waiting until everyone else has done it first. The crowdfunding model, similar to Kickstarter, attempts to remedy this concern by charging union membership only once over half of the VFX workers in a company have joined. This threshold also marks the point at which workers can apply for union recognition, which allows them to campaign for better contracts and conditions. In particular the initiative is targeting the big four VFX houses: DNeg, ILM, MPC and Framestore. You can find out more and sign up on the VFX Assemble website.
