Sausage Party was, at one point in time, the most financially successful R-rated animated film ever made. The crass stoner-comedy, co-directed by Conrad Vernon and Greg Tiernan, told the story of Frank, a sentient grocery store sausage that, after a horrifying discovery, is tasked with saving his fellow foods from the clutches of their human tormentors. Between food puns, adult-themed jokes, and occasionally preachy messages about religion, the film thankfully justifies its animated status with a variety of creative scenarios and detailed character movements. In fact, the animation in Sausage Party is pretty fantastic at points. It’s just a shame that the animators behind it at Nitrogen Studios were reportedly treated unfairly.

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Unfortunately, the mistreatment of visual effects teams seems to be a growing phenomenon within the filmmaking world. With the recent announcement for a Prime Video continuation, Sausage Party: Foodtopia, it’s worth taking another look at what exactly happened during the original film’s production and how it reflects this upsetting trend.

What Happened With Nitrogen Studios?

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Sausage Party was released in 2016, with initial production going as far back as 2010. Nitrogen Studios were tasked with providing the animation for the film, working alongside Columbia Pictures, Annapurna Pictures, and Point Grey Pictures, the latter of which was founded by story-creators Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. While it appeared from the outside that production on the film had been going smoothly, CartoonBrew’s interview with the film’s co-creators, unfortunately, brought some issues to light.

The controversy primarily stems from a certain comment made by Greg Tiernan. In response to being questioned about the film’s budget – which was reported to be around $20 million at the time – Tiernan had this to say:

It turns out there was a reason the film had such a low budget. Shortly after the interview was published, anonymous animators flooded the comments of the interview with several startling revelations. Many were staying late, and working overtime for free was demanded under the threat of termination. It was also reported that half of the animation team, which consisted of 87 people, was omitted from the film’s official credits. There were also over 30 animators left due to the stress of the crunch.

“Neither Conrad or I can confirm or deny that actual figure, but all I will say is that when Conrad pitched the movie to us, and we made our pact and vow to Conrad, and to Seth and Evan, and eventually to Megan Ellison at Annapurna and to Sony Columbia, we knew damn well that we could deliver a movie that looks like a $150 million movie for a fraction of the cost. That’s about as close as I can get to confirming or denying that figure.”

Those who otherwise debated leaving the production were threatened by management into being “blacklisted” from the industry, effectively shut out from future career prospects. The situation was so severe that a representative at Annapurna Pictures forcibly stepped in to support the animation team. Thankfully, three years after the film’s release, a Canadian court ruled that the animators are to be paid for their overtime.

Is Nitrogen Studios Involved With Foodtopia?

Thankfully, it doesn’t look like Nitrogen Studios is hurting for business. Since the release of Sausage Party, Nitrogen has been involved with a variety of projects, from the recent animated Addams Family films to kid-friendly titles like Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank.

VFX Artists Deserve Better

Any reasonable person will tell you that VFX is an incredibly laborious process. Unfortunately, in an age where higher standards are colliding with smaller budgets, tight deadlines, and more content available than ever, the people who make visual magic happen unfortunately bear a heavy burden. But issues like this aren’t just present with smaller independent studios.

Fans of the MCU will likely remember VFX issues that plagued a handful of films prior to the inception of Phase Four. Whether it was reports of “bullying” on Guardians of the Galaxy, unannounced deadline changes for Avengers: Endgame, or even unfinished work for Doctor Strange, it’s gotten to the point that artists are now refusing to work with Marvel Studios under these harsh conditions.

As much as people would like to forget it, 2019s Cats was also a film plagued by VFX artist abuse. While its visuals were the subject of mockery and jokes, even during the 2020 Oscars by two of its leading actors, they were the product of a challenging work environment that left the VFX team only four months to complete the film’s elaborate visuals. It’s no wonder the film turned out the way it did.

Seeing as there’s still a while to go before the release of Sausage Party: Foodtopia in 2024, let’s just hope that, in making the jump to streaming exclusivity, it won’t face the same kinds of troubles that many theatrical releases have undergone. VFX artists are just as important as every other part of the filmmaking pipeline – they should be treated with the respect they deserve.