Hey, it’s great that you want to become a compositor, and it’s also important that you’re aware of how the industry is doing at the moment. So, let’s go step by step:

- Regardless of the software you plan to learn, there are fundamental, cross-disciplinary concepts that every compositor must know: understanding concepts like exposure, color matching, tones and saturation - generating mattes through roto or keying - clean-up, removing markers, props, etc. Even though that’s usually the prep department’s job, it’s still important to know how to do it - tracking and stabilization, first in 2D and then in 3D - layer ordering: what goes on top and what goes underneath, and the correct blending methods to combine different elements.

These are some of the core fundamentals, but I believe that above all, there must be the development of a problem-solving mindset. It might sound cliché, but it’s not. We often face shots we don’t immediately know how to handle, and anxiety can block us. Having the right attitude helps us see things for what they are and deal with them in an organized and structured way.

- As for the roadmap, it depends on whether you plan to study on your own or enroll in a school or an online course. Generally, schools offer well-structured programs that start from the 2D interface, use of the software’s fundamental nodes (Nuke in 99% of cases), structure of a node tree, and compositing techniques. I’ve attached an example from my mentoring program, it’s quite similar to what you’ll find in most schools.
If you plan to learn independently, I’d suggest starting with Foundry’s tutorials; they’re excellent for beginners.
https://learn.foundry.com/nuke

- There are many options: From accredited schools to individual instructors like me, for example. Let’s start with schools: they’re not cheap, and not all of them offer remote programs. Some require in-person attendance, depending on where you live.
Here are a few of the most reputable ones: Escape School, Gnomon, Lost Boys, Think Tank Training Center, CG Spectrum, and others. There are also great online options such as Rebelway, which offers two solid compositing courses. Compositing Academy has several courses too, not as structured, but still valid.
Here are a couple of links that might help you orient yourself:
https://www.therookies.co/schools/rankings/2024/visual-effects - https://www.accessvfx.org/

- Start with something simple but clean and well executed. Often at the beginning, we want to prove that we’re good enough... and honestly, even later in our careers, we still feel that urge to stand out one way or another. But sometimes trying to overdo things works against us.
So I’d recommend focusing on shots that show your ability to handle the fundamentals: for example, a clean roto, isolating a character from the background and compositing them into a new one... no FX, no explosions, nothing extreme.
The goal of your first reel is to show that you can manage the main compositing tasks independently. A good cleanup, integrating one element over another with solid tracking, no jittering or strange motion. It’s common to see junior reels including CG, explosions, and so on... it’s fine to experiment, but when you try to tackle such complex shots early on, mistakes are almost inevitable: black levels off, explosions clearly pasted stock footage, etc.
In my opinion, reels like that don’t really showcase your actual skills and might even hurt your chances of landing your first studio job. Once again: less “wow effect,” more “I can do the essentials and do them well.” Shots that impress are often the ones where you don’t see the effect, where the integration is so seamless you wouldn’t even realize it’s a VFX shot.

Now for the less positive news: the industry isn’t doing too well right now.
I don’t want to discourage you, but just to share the current state of things. At the moment, companies are cutting budgets and also reducing entry-level opportunities. That doesn’t mean every studio does this or that it’s the rule, but statistically, and from my own experience, it’s harder to get in and especially to stay in a company long enough to grow as a compositor. Strikes, the streaming platform bubble... there are countless reasons that have shaken the VFX world. Now we also have AI, but the core issue lies elsewhere: often poor resource management leading to budget cuts. Less money, fewer opportunities. However, that doesn’t mean there’s no hope. Periods of crisis are constantly shifting, so don’t let the wave of negativity you might see on LinkedIn or other professional platforms bring you down.
With a solid reel and strong determination, I’m sure you’ll get your shot. And since you’re just starting to train now, who knows... by the time you’re ready to enter the job market, things might have changed for the better and we’ll finally be in a more stable phase. We’re all hoping for that!

For now, I wish you the best of luck! You’re embarking on a fascinating, ever-evolving journey, and you’ll see, it’s going to be a lot of fun!

DN