While COVID-19 increased demand for post production, the AI era has now turned everything on its head. As we enter 2026, streaming giants no longer need to entertain millions stuck at home, and Hollywood producers are still cautious after the strikes.
For many post production studios, this means times are tough. There is less work to go around, and new AI tools are changing the VFX landscape on what seems like a weekly basis. Nobody knows exactly what’s going to happen in the future, but as the market reshapes, I believe the key to thriving will be about finding balance, rather than focusing purely on unlimited growth.
At our full-service post studio PFX, we believe this balance can be achieved by being open to both local and global jobs. We operate in six different European countries, and ever since we founded the studio, we’ve been open to working on local jobs in each of these countries, even on short-form projects, like commercials. At the same time, we’ve also delivered Hollywood features and television shows like The Naked Gun, Foundation and Knives Out.
This benefits us in many ways. We can give local clients the best possible service in their local language, while still being able to offer incentives, like cashback to global producers, as we can take advantage of tax breaks in the countries we are in. We can also offer a very personalized service.
When clients ask us about AI, for instance, we can talk to our R&D team, which is made up of in-house AI experts across six different countries, then give the client an in-depth recommendation based on what AI tools could be useful for their shots, and how not to rely on AI for too much.
As a result of this balance between local and global projects, we’re also able to diversify our income. That means we can run the business sustainably and, most importantly, in a way that promotes great working conditions for all our artists. I hope that the next year will be even better than this year, and that the market becomes a little more stable. But in the meantime, I know we’ll be okay.
Tomáš Srovnal is chief executive producer at PFX, a full-service post production studio operating across the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Germany, Italy and Austria.