Cause and FX is an independent visual effects studio based in Auckland, New Zealand. With over a decade of experience, we have emerged as one of New Zealand’s fastest-growing VFX studios.

Greg Flannagan
Co Founder | Managing Director

Founding Partner Greg Flannagan heads up operations for Cause, overseeing an ever-expanding team alongside the dynamic technological demands of a growing slate of VFX projects. Greg’s software development background compliments his notable work in compositing and VFX supervision. His experience includes a series of local and international short and long-form projects of pedigree. Greg works closely with clients to ensure Cause’s trademark care, quality, and precision work harmoniously with project timelines and budgets. He understands success is measured by the quality of the client experience, ensuring that a strong relationship and trusted partnership approach are maintained. It’s not just the delivery and quality that matters but also the process of getting there.

Paul Dickson
Co Founder | VFX Supervisor

Founding Partner Paul Dickson brings more than two decades of visual effects experience to Cause and FX. Beginning his Career in London, he relocated to Auckland in 2003 to collaborate with New Zealand’s top VFX talent. Paul has a diverse skill set, with expertise in visual effects compositing and project supervision. Paul leverages his extensive experience to lead the creative team and guide company strategy. He plays a pivotal role in maintaining and nurturing Cause’s high-trust relationships with clients, ensuring a steady stream of exciting projects and returning partners. 

Amanda Davison
Executive Producer

Executive Producer Amanda Davison has over 20 years of international and local production experience. Her journey has included contributions to high-profile projects ranging from photorealistic visual effects to 3D animated feature films and 2D television series. Amanda first worked with Cause and FX in 2017 and has helped the company grow into Auckland’s largest VFX provider, delivering state-of-the-art VFX to clients worldwide. With a sound knowledge of production processes and a genuine passion for the craft, Amanda is the all-important first point of contact for Cause’s existing and new clients.

Tim Capper
VFX Supervisor

Once upon a time, VFX Supervisor Tim Capper was a client of Cause and FX, working closely with the studio on some noteworthy long-form network projects. This successful client-vendor relationship evolved, and he now calls the studio his home. Tim contributes many valuable years of production experience, both on-set and in post-production supervising. He has worked on a wide range of production formats from stop-motion through to 3D and compositing, as well as VFX supervision for film and television. With this broad set of skills across many specialties, Tim is a key member of the Cause creative team.

Puteri Raja Ariff
Head of Production

When Senior VFX Producer Puteri Raja Ariff joined the company, fresh from a stint producing animation in the advertising space, Cause was a small, close-knit team on a wild growth curve. The team has expanded tenfold since. Puteri continues to embrace the challenge, now expertly managing large projects with a larger crew producing cutting-edge VFX. She believes the strength of Cause is its talented people and enjoys watching the hardworking group create outstanding results and loving their work. Puteri works closely with the production team, refining processes to meet the unique needs of each new project and create rewarding experiences for artists and clients.

Shana-May Palmer
Production Supervisor

Production Supervisor Shana-May Palmer has over 20 years of industry experience encompassing broadcast, advertising, on-set, animation and VFX production. She has worked on numerous high-profile international projects in Sydney, Wellington and Auckland. Shana-May is in her element working with the close-knit crew at Cause and FX, traversing all aspects of the production process, optimising resources and ensuring the team are hitting milestones. Her strength is planning, and she particularly enjoys the logistics of aligning schedules and keeping projects moving forward in an environment that can be fluid as clients’ requirements change. Shana-May’s primary focus is to meet those challenges, delivering projects smoothly and on time – and having fun on the way through.

Ambrose Challies
Production Manager

Meet Ambrose Challies, Senior VFX Production Coordinator at Cause and FX. Originally from the southern city of Christchurch, Ambrose studied at Auckland’s Media Design School, initially majoring in Game Art. After discovering a passion for visual effects, he changed direction, graduating with a Bachelor of Art and Design-3D Animation. Ambrose sought a new challenge following successful freelance projects, including animated features, commercials, and motion graphics. He succumbed to the gravitational pull of Cause and FX and joined the ranks as VFX coordinator. Cause presented an opportunity to expand his skill set while drawing on his previous experience as an artist. Today, as Senior VFX Production Coordinator, Ambrose supports the team with his trademark passion for VFX, enthusiasm and technical skill, delivering the best possible results for Cause’s clients and their projects.

Karolina Sipos
Executive Assistant

Executive Assistant Karolina Sipos is a seasoned professional who brings a wealth of business experience to her role at Cause and FX. Karolina joined Cause in 2023, fresh from positions with several prominent education, transport and logistics organisations, where she led transformational digital collaboration and accountability projects. Karolina graduated from the Fachhochschule Ludwigshafen am Rhein in her home country Germany, with a major in Logistics. Her passion for exploration led her to New Zealand in 2016, where she embarked on a six-month campervan adventure. She was captivated by our beautiful country and made it her new home. Karolina’s organisational skills help keep Cause’s management team dialled in, and her knowledge and experience reinforce the wider Cause operation.

Lisa Yeardley
People and Culture Manager

People and Culture Manager Lisa Yeardley comes to Cause and FX with a wealth of knowledge in People & Culture. Her leading objective at Cause is to support a positive working environment, allowing staff and management to navigate the fast-paced and often pressured world of VFX production. Lisa is passionate about enhancing the employee experience, helping create an environment that supports the team’s efficiency and underpins personal success and satisfaction. Ultimately, this strengthens Cause’s ability to dynamically adapt, innovate and deliver VFX magic for its clients.

Sam Scott
Systems Manager

Systems Manager Sam Scott has over 25 years of industry experience, covering all aspects of film and television production and post. His repertoire comprises a unique mix of creative and technical achievements. Sam spent a decade and a half as an on-set and post-production VFX supervisor, working with directors and DOPs, managing effects shooting, providing technical advice for crew, and on-set data and metadata capture. Sam has also worked extensively with visual effects and post pipelines, designing and installing facility infrastructure, and creating and leading artist, programmer, and coordinator teams. He has developed hardware and cloud-based VFX pipelines for both production and vendors. His first-hand production experience, technical design and execution allow Sam to bring innovation to Cause’s technical solutions, underpinning the company’s ability to deliver high-quality VFX.