VFX, post, animation diversity in spotlight

The UK’s visual effects (VFX), post-production and animation industries are doing better when it comes to diversity than other areas of the industry but still have a long way to go, according to a report by UK Screen Alliance.

UK Screen Alliance, the trade association representing those industries, surveyed more than 1,150 workers across the UK.

The report revealed a significantly higher percentage of ethnic diversity in VFX, post and animation than in the wider film and TV industry. In VFX, people of colour make up 19% of the workforce.

In animation, BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic) representation is 14% and in post-production it is 18%. All three sectors exceed the 14% UK average percentage for people of colour in the working-age population.

But when it comes to creative artists’ jobs, only 8% of BAME are represented in senior management roles.

While the results for ethnic diversity are encouraging, they are more complex when it comes to gender and ability.

The report found the representation of women in VFX is well below parity, at 33%, but in animation it is 51%.

Twelve percent of the report’s respondents identified as having at least one physical disability, mental or neurological condition, with 6.5% having Dyslexia.

“There’s a skills shortage and therefore a strong commercial imperative to discover latent talent from all communities,” said UK Screen’s CEO Neil Hatton.

Access: VFX is an industry supported inclusion initiative. Its chair, Simon Devereux, described the report as a “breath of fresh air.”

“It reports genuine inclusion data from the front line of visual effects, animation and post-production,” he said.

“The honesty from all the respondents has been overwhelming, and we now have a true working document and dataset that provides an exciting opportunity for recruitment campaigns and better targeting for our talent outreach work.”