Refuge: Artist Capacity Planning with whatifi Scenario Services

Refuge, an Emmy Award-winning visual effects studio based in Portland, Oregon, is renowned for its specialization in creating lifelike digital characters and creatures. Founded by industry veteran Fred Ruff, the studio has contributed to high-profile projects such as Hulu’s Shōgun, Amazon Prime's The Peripheral, and the hit Fallout series. With a dynamic team of 50 to 70 artists, Refuge faces the same issues that most project-based industries struggle with - fluctuating award amounts, staffing uncertainties, project delays, and ensuring consistent delivery on client expectations.

Unpredictability

Fred, with his background at Autodesk, understands the power of technology in solving creative and operational challenges. He sees whatifi Scenario Services as a critical partner to help navigate the sheer complexity of running a Visual Effects studio in today’s unpredictable entertainment landscape.

The Challenge: Navigating the Uncertainty of VFX Production

‍

In the VFX industry, no two projects are alike. Each production presents unique challenges, from shot complexity to shifting deadlines, making it difficult to apply a one-size-fits-all approach to capacity planning. Refuge VFX needed to address key questions:

Capacity & Resource Utilization:

🎨 How do we efficiently allocate artists across multiple shows? Ensuring that resources aren’t under-utilized or stretched too thin.

🔄 How do project start and end dates impact hiring? Refuge must make staffing decisions even when the information is unclear.

🚀 How do we manage in-house vs. freelance talent? Understanding when to hire locally and when to leverage external resources to maintain flexibility.

Financial & Operational Planning:

📈 What’s the financial impact of different award scenarios? Refuge needed to test multiple revenue and staffing models based on fluctuating project timelines.

📉 What happens if a major project gets delayed? Identifying risk factors and developing contingency plans for potential slowdowns.

🔮 How can we forecast staffing needs as the industry shifts? With the post-strike rebalancing and changes after Peak TV, strategic workforce planning is more critical than ever.

Traditional spreadsheet-based models couldn’t keep up with these complexities, necessitating a more dynamic solution to model multiple variables in real-time.

The Solution: Advanced Scenario Modeling with whatifi

‍

By leveraging whatifi Scenario Services, Refuge gained a unique, data-informed insight into their past project data and how it could influence future resource planning.

With whatifi, Refuge was able to:

✅ Analyze historical trends - Identifying key patterns in project timing, staffing needs, and profitability.

✅ Visualize top-down and bottom-up capacity planning - Offering leadership a high-level strategic overview while enabling granular project-level adjustments.

✅ Forecast staffing needs in uncertain conditions - Making data-driven hiring decisions even when information is incomplete.

✅ Model financial and staffing scenarios - Testing multiple hiring, revenue, and workload strategies to ensure financial stability.

✅ Optimize in-house and freelance workforce allocation - Finding the right balance between local staffing and external resources.

‍

Unlike traditional planning tools, whatifi allowed Refuge to dynamically adjust their models in real-time, ensuring they were prepared for multiple future scenarios.

The Impact: Strategic Planning for a Changing Industry

‍

By integrating financial forecasting and capacity planning into a single interactive model, Refuge was able to make more confident decisions. The film and TV industry went through a demand explosion for several years because of Covid and the boom of "Peak TV". Demand outstripped supply. The Writer's Strike, coupled with a significant scale back of new TV shows, means that VFX studios are now competing for projects. The Netflix and the Amazons and the HBOs of the world are running their productions as lean as possible and the margins are tighter than ever.

To survive and thrive, creative studios need to know their numbers. Inside and out.

🔍 Improved Staffing Decisions - Leadership can now see how different hiring strategies affect overall production efficiency and profitability.

🔄 Greater Resource Flexibility - The studio has a clear understanding of when to scale up or down based on real-time project demands.

⚠️ Stronger Risk Management - By identifying potential pitfalls in staffing and project timelines, Refuge is better prepared for industry shifts.

🚀 Future-Proofed Growth - With a more strategic approach, Refuge is well-positioned to navigate the evolving landscape of post-strike VFX production.

"whatifi helped us bring clarity to our complex resource planning. We can now evaluate multiple award scenarios and adjust staffing needs in real-time, ensuring we have the right talent at the right time."

Alex Thiesen - Executive Producer

‍

‍Take Control of Your Studio’s Future

‍

whatifi assists VFX studios like Refuge in mastering capacity planning, resource allocation, and financial forecasting. Whether balancing in-house versus freelance staffing, modeling different award scenarios, or optimizing hiring timelines, our platform provides the insights needed for smarter decisions.

🚀 Book a free strategy call today and see how whatifi Scenario Services can transform your business.

‍