Women in VFX | Payal Selvam
Meet the women who are inspiring the future of our industry!
Inspired by the Visual Effects Society's global 'Women Who Lead' initiative, our Women in VFX series puts the spotlight on our female superheroes across our global teams, exploring the different paths they’ve taken, the challenges they’ve navigated and the experiences that have influenced their careers.
Scroll to meet Payal Selvam, Head of Creative Operations!
Career Journey
Please briefly introduce yourself and share something unique about yourself that you’d like our readers to know about you.
I am Payal Selvam, currently the Head of Creative Operations at DNEG India, where I oversee strategic creative workflows and talent management. My journey in the visual effects industry spans over 20 years, beginning as a Technical Artist. I spent nearly a decade as a Lead Compositor at the Oscar-winning Rhythm & Hues Studios before transitioning into senior leadership roles at major global studios like MPC and Mill Film.
What often surprises people is that my career wasn't built on a traditional management path, but on deep technical artistry. Having spent years as a Compositor, I bring a unique "artist-first" perspective to operational leadership. This allows me to bridge the gap between complex creative demands and business efficiency, helping to scale India's presence as a global VFX powerhouse.
What originally sparked your interest in VFX, and when did you realize you wanted to pursue it professionally?
An Applied Art degree gave me the fundamental understanding of color theory, layout, and visual storytelling.
This unique blend of traditional art skills and technical curiosity is what allowed me to transition so successfully into Compositing, where the goal is to make every digital element look as real as a photograph.
Can you pick out a key milestone or event that shaped your career path?
Holding the Oscar statue for The Golden Compass, when it visited India, was an event that is close to my heart.
Technical Path
What are the core technical skills that have been essential in your role?
As a Head of Creative Operations, my role is to be the bridge between artistic vision and business reality. The core technical skills for this position are no longer just about knowing "how to design," but about systems thinking, data fluency, and workflow automation to scale creative output.
How has your technical skillset evolved as you progressed in your career?
The skillsets have shifted from manual, frame-by-frame labor on dedicated hardware to technology-driven, real-time, and cloud-based workflows that have democratized the industry. The core transformation has been the move toward hyper-realism, faster iteration times, and the integration of game engines into film production.
Personal Insights
What challenges (or mistakes) in your career have taught you the most, and how did you navigate them?
Getting too comfortable being in the same position, be it as an artist or even at management level. One needs to keep learning new tools plus continue taking challenges which will make you uncomfortable but will teach you a lot more.
What has been a defining moment that significantly changed your perspective or career direction?
From being a department HOD to moving into HOCO role, which was essentially going from looking after one department to overseeing multiple across the VFX pipeline! It was a big learning curve, and I can say that I am still learning.
Spotlight
Across the many productions and teams you’ve supported, what patterns have you noticed about what makes great collaboration work?
Proactive communication and mutual respect between the team members, across both creative and production teams. Early involvement of the VFX Supervisors with the teams. Plus, uniting the teams to work towards a single goal, which is to deliver the project with quality and on time.
Creative Operations sits at the centre of many moving parts. What do you enjoy most about being the person who helps bring everything together?
Facilitating global collaboration, and translating chaos into order while working closely with artists - that’s what I enjoy the most!
What is your favourite project you have worked on and why?
My favourite project that I have worked on is The Jungle Book, mainly because it took me back to my childhood memories of watching Mogli on Sunday mornings. Also, the story being from India has a special place in my heart.
To add to it, I got to work with one of the best VFX Supervisors in the industry, Adam Valdez!
Advice to the Next Generation
What kind of mindset helps women succeed or stand out in VFX technical roles?
Being open and taking on challenges, even if you don't know a particular task. And being firm and asking what you need to get the job done.
What excites you about the future of VFX?
The collaboration of VFX and AI together.
What skills turned out to be more important day-to-day than you expected?
Communication skills are very critical in day-to-day operations.
Anything else you would like to share with the next generation of women in the industry?
I would say that talent has no gender, and encourage women to be authentic and proactive in seeking leadership roles, even in male-dominated spaces!
Thank you, Payal!