A Story of Cloud Rendering for the Future of VFX

Oasis VFX: Innovating the Future of Visual Effects

Oasis VFX is dedicated to seamlessly integrating visual effects from concept to screen. Embracing Cloud Rendering for the Future of VFX, we enable agile, cost-effective production without traditional infrastructure. Whether a project starts on a film set or in the director’s imagination, our commitment to high-quality VFX remains the same. This is the story of how founder Andreas Maaninka tackled resource constraints to unlock new possibilities in rendering.

Before founding Oasis Visual Effects, Andreas spent several years as the VFX supervisor and Acting Head of Studio at a boutique VFX company. Unlike his previous roles at larger studios, this position gave him a firsthand look at the business side of visual effects—budgeting, client negotiations, and talent acquisition. But beyond the business and staffing hurdles, he also faced relentless technical pressures. He saw how smaller studios often struggle to maintain internal render farms, which require dedicated hardware, staffing, and physical space. These limitations placed a cap on creative potential, making it difficult to take on ambitious projects without stretching resources to their limits.

When Oasis VFX was approached to create cinematic CGI for a high-profile project for a globally recognized IP, Andreas saw an opportunity to challenge the traditional production model. He quickly assembled a remote team of artists—a task made easier in the post-pandemic era, where global collaboration is the norm. With support from AMD and Lenovo, the team had the hardware to produce high-quality CGI. Everything seemed in place: the artists, the tools, and the creative vision.

But as the project gained momentum, two major obstacles emerged—shot pipeline and rendering. While the team had the talent and technology, they lacked a streamlined pipeline and the processing power to complete the final step of production. Without a smooth flow of creative assets and access to high-performance rendering resources, even the most visually stunning concepts risked remaining unfinished. The challenge wasn’t just cost—it was resource flexibility, scalability, and the infrastructure needed to bring creative visions to life.

The Challenge: Pushing Creative Boundaries with Limited Resources

On April 2, 2024, AWS (Amazon Web Services) announced AWS Deadline Cloud, a service shaping Cloud Rendering for the Future of VFX by enabling cloud-based infrastructure for CGI and VFX production. While cloud services are often associated with storage, AWS is actively expanding its role in Media and Entertainment, making rendering a key part of its strategy.

As Andreas searched for a way to overcome rendering limitations, he was introduced to AWS through his network, built over 20 years of experience in the industry. The timing couldn’t have been better—AWS was actively seeking partners to showcase the potential of their cloud-based rendering service. Their first meeting went surprisingly smoothly. Impressed by the quality of work Oasis VFX could deliver, AWS recognized the collaboration as a valuable opportunity and agreed to support the project.

Andreas knew this partnership had the potential to eliminate traditional rendering bottlenecks, giving independent artists and small studios the freedom to focus on creativity rather than hardware constraints.

“Pipeline and rendering are hidden gatekeepers of VFX creativity. Without a smooth pipeline and efficient rendering, your ideas stay locked behind technical barriers. This initiative is about breaking those down.”

— Andreas Maaninka

Navigating Small Studio Pipelines and the Shift to Cloud Rendering

Transitioning to cloud-based rendering wasn’t without its challenges. For artists with a creative background, mastering the technical aspects of rendering is already a steep learning curve—it wasn’t just about uploading files. The first test run revealed critical issues, including broken texture links, effect properties not rendering as intended, and missing 3D objects, cameras, and animation constraints in Maya—along with several other unexpected errors.

These problems weren’t caused by AWS Deadline Cloud itself but stemmed from the lack of an established pipeline, workflow, and production tracking tools. As a result, valuable rendering resources were spent on back-and-forth quality control.

Anticipating the need for expert guidance, Andreas connected with Jason Fotter, founder of Bind Studio and former CTO at FuseFX. With Jason’s technical input, Oasis VFX worked through the complexities of AWS Deadline Cloud, troubleshooting each issue and refining the workflow. While each shot presents its own unique challenges and many more are sure to arise, each step forward has provided invaluable insights into optimizing cloud-based rendering for small studios.

Oasis VFX continues to explore solutions for a streamlined, cost-effective pipeline—one that allows small teams to operate efficiently without sacrificing creative control. The journey is ongoing, but the vision remains clear: to make high-quality VFX production more accessible, flexible, and scalable.

A New Era for Independent VFX Studios

This initiative isn’t just about Oasis VFX—it marks a step toward Cloud Rendering for the Future of VFX, reshaping how visual effects are produced. By removing the burden of hardware ownership, independent VFX artists, filmmakers, and small studios can compete on a level playing field with larger companies. Freed from the constraints of maintaining costly infrastructure, they can focus entirely on the creative battle—pushing artistic boundaries without being weighed down by technical limitations. The ability to scale resources as needed unlocks new creative possibilities, making high-quality VFX more accessible than ever.

At NAB 2025 in Las Vegas, Andreas will share the journey of overcoming these challenges step by step at AWS’s podcast booth. We’re proud to showcase a state-of-the-art solution that empowers creatives to push the boundaries of storytelling. This marks the beginning of a new era—one where technology serves creativity, not the other way around.

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