Cover image for Industrial Light & Magic
Logo

Industrial Light & Magic

Is this your company?

Industrial Light & Magic

Add a Review

Industrial Light & Magic Reviews

4.3
92% Recommend to a Friend
Industrial Light & Magic President and General Manager Lynwen Brennan
91% Approve of CEO
4.3
92%
Recommend to a Friend
91%
Approve of CEO
Industrial Light & Magic President and General Manager Lynwen Brennan
Lynwen Brennan
111 Ratings

What are your colleagues talking about?

Find your private company bowl on Community, join the hottest conversation with your colleagues anonymously.
Join the Conversation

Top Review Highlights by Sentiment

Excerpts from user reviews, not authored by Glassdoor

Pros
  • "Great people to work with(in 37 reviews)
  • "This text field required me to write at least five words so I am writing this sentence because the only thing I really want to put here is Good Benefits.(in 11 reviews)
  • "Great projects, teams and artists.(in 9 reviews)
  • "Friendly colleagues, and sharing of information.(in 8 reviews)
  • "People and culture are great and they pay really well compared to most studios.(in 7 reviews)
Cons
  • "I would highly recommend looking elsewhere for work, VFX is a dead end industry that is failing due to poor management and outsourcing.(in 14 reviews)
  • "Low pay and lots of overtime(in 12 reviews)
  • "Growth bottlenecks and low salaries for the industry.(in 12 reviews)
  • "long hours but that is common(in 11 reviews)
  • "Managers are not aware that this only deepens the current problem.(in 6 reviews)

Ratings by Demographics

This rating reflects the overall rating of Industrial Light & Magic and is not affected by filters.

Want more demographic options?
Verify your email to use filters. Having problems? Resend email

Found 238 of over 319 reviews

Updated Sep 17, 2023

    1. 5.0
      Mar 20, 2023
      VFX Artist
      Current Employee
      New York, NY
      Recommend
      CEO Approval
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      Good, good, good, good, good.

      Cons

      No downside, really, really, really.

      1. 1.0
        Jun 17, 2023
        Producer
        Former Employee, more than 3 years
        San Francisco, CA
        Recommend
        CEO Approval
        Business Outlook

        Pros

        The campus is utterly, never-seen-before amazing. Your co-workers are also utterly, across-the-board amazing in terms of talent. Although the pandemic has made for very interesting configurations of desks and occupancy.

        Cons

        One single person is in charge of all aspects of your project, and this is the Visual Effects Supervisor. While this person is extremely talented with many years of experience and accolades to their credit, most often this individual is drunk on power. Workers are either directly targeted or witness to shame and humiliation and continual feelings of being less-than, at the hands of this individual. This is especially as deadlines approach. It is very out of control in this regard. Work hours will often extend well past midnight, especially so for projects with an extremely high profile and a deadline which is locked in. Because many people and managers who work at ILM have been there for almost their entire careers, they are often not aware of how negative their work environment is. It is unfortunately seen as normal. Indeed, infractions that in any other work environment would be considered for termination are at ILM, merely compared to previous ILM times, before #metoo, where things were very, very bad. In this regard, the culture has an almost, "back in my day..." war story element about it as a means to minimize current infractions. Managers are not aware that this only deepens the current problem. Pay is well below the industry standard - by 35% or more. Internally I have heard this referred to as the "Star Wars tax." You work on content that is truly beloved around the globe. The price you pay is in your take home pay.

        3
      2. Join the Industrial Light & Magic team
        See Our Latest Jobs
        1. 1.0
          Jan 14, 2023
          Production Assistant
          Current Employee, more than 1 year
          San Francisco, CA
          Recommend
          CEO Approval
          Business Outlook

          Pros

          It's remote at least for now...

          Cons

          - The work is boring and is going to get taken over by AI asap - Low pay for the Bay Area - I was promised remote work and now we have to go back into the office - I was promised a promotion 3 to 6 months working at the company and that did not happen - ILM hires a bunch of people for low-level jobs with the expectation that they will burn out and leave the company. They burn through people to make their bottom line.

          3
          1. 5.0
            Oct 19, 2022
            VFX Production Coordinator
            Current Employee
            San Francisco, CA
            Recommend
            CEO Approval
            Business Outlook

            Pros

            Company culture is incredible, and the learning experience is awesome. They really care about growing and cultivating talent.

            Cons

            The work can get really hectic

            1
            1. 4.0
              Dec 27, 2022
              VP-Communications
              Former Employee, more than 1 year
              San Francisco, CA
              Recommend
              CEO Approval
              Business Outlook

              Pros

              people and the perks too

              Cons

              office politics sometimes are difficult

              1
              1. 2.0
                Apr 9, 2022
                Production Worker
                Former Employee
                San Francisco, CA
                Recommend
                CEO Approval
                Business Outlook

                Pros

                get to work on great films

                Cons

                low pay for san Francisco Lack of diversity besides Asian and White. Though they preach diversity, inside the company the diversity is severely lacking. Most employees of color are at the bottom position and most end up leaving or getting fired within a year. Very unwelcoming environment. Very demeaning and "shut up and work" type environment. No opportunity to move up.

                3
                1. 5.0
                  Jul 6, 2022
                  CGI Artist
                  Current Employee
                  Recommend
                  CEO Approval
                  Business Outlook

                  Pros

                  good work environment and good employees

                  Cons

                  low pay and bad hours

                  1. 4.0
                    Mar 24, 2022
                    Senior Technical Director
                    Current Employee, less than 1 year
                    San Francisco, CA
                    Recommend
                    CEO Approval
                    Business Outlook

                    Pros

                    People are great, you can learn a lot from the best. If lucky, you can work on a blockbuster movie and have a life long story to tell.

                    Cons

                    -Sad to say it is a stepping stone but as we all know it takes dedication to keep up with this life work balance. Which wears you down when you do it for many years. -In between shows you are likely to have a unpaid leave since there are not as many projects coming in as it use to. (San Francisco) -Office is under constant change and shrink a lot. Most of the legends left the office already so there is a small team left. ( San Francisco) -The compensation is not competitive with SF salaries.

                    1. 4.0
                      Aug 2, 2022
                      Rigger
                      Former Employee, more than 1 year
                      San Francisco, CA
                      Recommend
                      CEO Approval
                      Business Outlook

                      Pros

                      Good compensation, nice perks, great projects

                      Cons

                      Long hours, but that's normal for the film industry

                      1. 5.0
                        Mar 4, 2022
                        Texture Supervisor
                        Current Employee, more than 5 years
                        San Francisco, CA
                        Recommend
                        CEO Approval
                        Business Outlook

                        Pros

                        Like minded people if you are a VFX nerd. Good benefits. Good efforts at promoting equality and diversity. Living wage or better.

                        Cons

                        Big company, increased globalization causes "key" roles to become less distinct.

                      Viewing 1 - 10 of 238 Reviews
                      </>Embed

                      Industrial Light & Magic Reviews FAQs

                      Industrial Light & Magic has an overall rating of 4.3 out of 5, based on over 319 reviews left anonymously by employees. 92% of employees would recommend working at Industrial Light & Magic to a friend and 73% have a positive outlook for the business. This rating has improved by 3% over the last 12 months.

                      According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Industrial Light & Magic employees rate their compensation and benefits as 4.0 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Industrial Light & Magic. This rating has improved by 9% over the last 12 months.

                      92% of Industrial Light & Magic employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews. Employees also rated Industrial Light & Magic 4.0 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.4 for culture and values and 4.0 for career opportunities.

                      According to reviews on Glassdoor, employees commonly mention the pros of working at Industrial Light & Magic to be benefits, workplace, coworkers and the cons to be culture, career development, management.

                      Work at Industrial Light & Magic? Share Your Experiences

                      Industrial Light & Magic logo
                      or

                      Popular Conversations

                      image for bowl

                      Interview Tips

                      Feel free to post any interview questions you might be asked and I’ll help you compose an effective response :)

                      190.9K

                      Case Manager

                      I applied to 4 jobs last week. Two companies replied that thy are reviewing my application and I have an interview tomorrow with a third. The company I'm interviewing with is the one I'm least interested in of the four, though it is better than my current job. What is the etiquette if I'm offered a job with this company but I want to wait and see what response I get from the other 3? Should I tell the company I need a couple weeks to decide, or be up front that I'm waiting for other offers? Or?

                      1
                      1 Comment

                      Underwriter

                      During my interview with a Vice President, he mentioned that the "background check" had been reviewed. He brought up cities I had lived in at one point, even though I hadn't included that information on my resume or LinkedIn profile, though it is accurate. Additionally, he was aware of my entrepreneurship experience, which I had not disclosed anywhere. I'm curious about the source of this information. I'm currently progressing through the interview rounds without any offer or signed documents.

                      4
                      4 Comments

                      Underwriter

                      I’m moving on to round 3 of the interview process after speaking with the VP and it’ll be with peers. My position would be Insurance Product Manager so the peers would be internal stakeholders (Sales, Engineering, Underwriting, Actuary, etc.) What kind of questions typically do peer interviews ask?

                      1
                      0 Comments

                      Reviews by Job Title

                      • Production Assistant(12)
                      • Digital Artist(10)
                      • Animator(8)
                      • Creature Technical Director(8)
                      • Production Coordinator(8)

                      Industrial Light & Magic Photos

                      + Add Photo
                      Industrial Light & Magic photo of: Letterman Digital Arts Center
                      Industrial Light & Magic photo of: Singapore Studio
                      Industrial Light & Magic photo of: Vancouver Studio
                      Industrial Light & Magic photo of: ILM Logo at our London office.
                      Industrial Light & Magic photo of: My ILM Office
                      Industrial Light & Magic photo of: Yoda fountain
                      Industrial Light & Magic photo of: London office
                      See All Photos

                      Affiliated Companies

                      Lucasfilm Ltd.

                      Expert Career Advice

                      Guide to Getting Your First Job

                      Find a Great First Job to Jumpstart Your Career

                      How to Get a Job

                      Getting a Job Is Tough; This Guide Makes it Easier

                      How to Get a Promotion

                      Climb the Ladder With These Proven Promotion Tips

                      How to Negotiate Your Salary

                      A Guide to Negotiating the Salary You Deserve

                      How to Write a Resume

                      Write a Resume Recruiters Can't Resist

                      Industrial Light & Magic Job Seekers Also Viewed

                      DNEG Logo
                      DNEG

                      4.1

                      942 Reviews
                      Compare

                      Glassdoor has 319 Industrial Light & Magic reviews submitted anonymously by Industrial Light & Magic employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Industrial Light & Magic is right for you.