A Fresh Chapter: Thrain Shadbolt on Creativity, Culture, and Capability in Auckland

In this Q&A, Thrain shares why the timing felt right for a new challenge, what it’s been like returning to Auckland after 30 years, and how Cause and FX is positioning itself as a primary VFX vendor in New Zealand—with the international scale to match.

Q. What drew you to join the team at Cause and FX?

After many years at Wētā FX, I was looking for a new challenge and a change of scene to refresh me creatively. I had the opportunity to meet the team and see the projects they had been working on, and I was impressed with their creativity and energy.

Q. After years at Wētā FX and other global projects, what excites you most about this new chapter in Auckland?

For the past 20+ years I’ve been working in large, well established VFX facilities. Cause and FX is a young, up and coming studio that is doing exciting things. It’s at an interesting stage in development where we can cross over from being a small boutique into a more substantial studio, poised to take on projects of a larger scale. It is a unique opportunity for me to help in this transition.

Q. How have you found the transition into a new team and environment?

There’s always a learning curve when joining a new team, both in getting to know people, processes and tools. But, I’ve been made to feel very welcome here, given a lot of support,, and it hasn’t taken long at all to get up to speed.

Q. What were your first impressions of the talent and capabilities at Cause and FX?

I’ve been very impressed with the level of talent in the team. The crew are multi-faceted, and we have some amazing CG Generalists who can pull together incredible work very quickly because they are cross-disciplinary. We also have experienced specialists who are doing a good job bringing up the next generation of junior crew, helping them learn the ropes.

Q. What’s been the biggest surprise—good or unexpected—about joining a VFX team in Auckland?

Maybe not a surprise, but it’s been great to come back to Auckland after 30 years; this is where I started my career.

Q. You’ve already started working on process development—can you tell us a bit about what that involves and why it matters?

In addition to supervising some of the shows we have in house, part of my brief was to take a look at how we do things in the broader view of pipeline and processes, particularly around Dailies reviews. VFX Supervisors are the interface between the studio and the client, and the reviews we do with the team as we iterate on the work is at the heart of the VFX workflow. With that in mind, anything we can do to improve the quality and efficiency of the feedback we give the crew is going to pay dividends.

Q. How does the team’s workflow at Cause and FX compare to other studios you’ve worked with?

In broad terms the workflow is similar; where I’ve been surprised is in the flexibility we have with artists taking on multiple roles on a shot, which means we can turn things around very quickly, compared to larger studios which tend to have a more departmental approach.

Q. What opportunities do you see for nurturing junior artists or building pipeline efficiencies here?

By the nature of the work, VFX pipelines are never really finished. It’s a constant iteration as the industry and tools change over time. However, there are clear areas where we can make things even more efficient, particularly aspects of the Lighting to Comp pipeline, and around the Dailies reviews. In practice, most VFX artists learn while doing the work; it’s important that they have the support from appropriate seniors while doing that – it helps them get up to speed quicker which ultimately benefits everyone.

Q. Collaboration is key in any VFX studio. What’s been your approach to building that connection with the team?

I’m used to working with all the artists in the team on projects, and going forward we’ll be moving more to this kind of approach. We’ve already started this, and I greatly appreciate having a dialog with the artists directly. I view the collaboration process as a conversation between the Supervisor and the artist, and the tighter we can keep that creative loop, the better the result.

Q. How would you describe Auckland’s place in the VFX industry today, and what should international studios know about the talent based here?

Wellington has had the limelight for a while, but what they should know, and the message we’re looking to get out, is that Auckland now has a growing ecosystem of artists and studios that are competitive on the world stage, you can bring a project here with confidence knowing that there is the talent here to complete it to the highest standard.

Q. As Cause and FX continues to grow its international presence, what role do you see the Auckland team playing in that evolution?

We’ll be leading from the front, with our core team based here in Auckland working with our other crew in New Zealand and Australia to raise the bar for work delivered out of the Auckland region.

Q. Looking ahead, what excites you most about the kind of work Cause and FX is bidding for?

There is a good slate of work in house at the moment, and we are bidding on some exciting shows, including a number of feature film projects. Film is my first love, so I’m excited at the prospect of getting these in.

Q. If you could describe your first few months in three words, what would they be?

Exciting roller-coaster!

Q. What’s one thing you’re looking forward to achieving with the team this year?

Delivering some great looking finals with the help of the team!

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