I recently mentioned the potential benefits of outsourcing visual effects to a client of mine. After summarizing the typical cost benefit, my client lamented, "Unfortunately, outsourcing is not really an option for us since most of our customers are defense contractors. Nearly all of the materials we handle are confidential and can't leave the country". Indeed, this problem exists anytime there is any part of a visual effects contract that is sensitive such as a classified data, branded assets, intellectual property, or even a secret ad campaign. I myself have encountered this problem many times when dealing with Pixar and their peculiar brand of security and caution.
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| The final shot using confidential assets. |
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| The proxy can be a close approximation... |
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| Or the proxy can be a simple cube. |
Outsourcing sensitive materials is indeed tricky, but not in the least a barrier to finding low cost alternatives to in-house production. Many studios use a technique in which proxies are used in place of sensitive materials. An example of this would be a promotional video of a new, high tech fighter plane in an exciting dog fight high above the mountains of Afghanistan. The plane, of course, is still in production and any part of the digital model, even the shape of the fuselage, could be considered highly confidential. But while the video would feature the fighter plane, the majority of the vfx budget would be consumed by assets that have nothing to do with the plane. Constructing the environment (the mountains, trees, volumetric clouds, lighting, etc.) constitutes a huge part of the shot. Another major cost is the animation, particle effects and camera work for the shot. None of these things are confidential... only the fighter plane is. Therein lies an opportunity to outsource the majority of the vfx cost to a lower cost studio.
The trick to making a proxy work is to design good proxies. In the case mentioned above, the technical lead would request a parent node in the final deliverable that contains a low resolution proxy of the aircraft. The level of detail could be anywhere from a perfect duplicate painted flat gray, to a simple cube. Since all of the animation, particle effects and lighting considerations are built around the proxy, dailies will reflect an excellent approximation of how the final shot will look. Once the technical lead is happy with the outsourced shot, the source files are brought back under the internal control of your studio. The proxy can then be replaced with the actual confidential model, and final adjustments can be made before rendering.
The overall cost benefit to using this technique is substantial. If you are producing a 15 second shot with a small, internal team of 1 3D modelers, 1 Animator, 1 Lighting/VFX artist, an Audio Engineer and a Director/Producer, you can expect to complete this shot in about 3-4 weeks, requiring 75 man days. This shot would cost roughly $39k internally, and about $17k if it were outsourced overseas. In the particular case above, fully 60% of the shot could be outsourced. This means the overall cost of this shot could be reduced to (39k)40% + (17k)60% = $25.8k for a savings of $13.2k.
It is important to remember that the example above assumes a working relationship with a reputable outsourcing studio. Searching for and vetting outsourcing studios is a time consuming and expensive process. Furthermore, most outsourcing studios tend to specialize in certain areas and genres. However, once you have found several studios with whom you have established relationships, the savings become quite tangible.
