Engine Room: Website redesign for a visual effects studio

GetDevDone partnered with Engine Room, a Los Angeles-based post-production visual effects studio serving major industry players like Warner Bros, Disney, Netflix, Amazon, NBC, CBS, FX and others. The goal was to modernize their digital presence and transform how visitors discover and engage with their showreel content.

The client needed to evolve beyond a dated UX/UI that didn’t reflect the quality of their services. The focus was on creating a website experience that puts visual content front and center, letting the work speak for itself while making navigation intuitive and friction-free for busy industry producers.

Objective

Redesign the Engine Room website with a modern, content-first approach that improves discoverability across service categories, highlights showreels effectively and creates a seamless user experience that reflects the studio’s industry-leading capabilities.

Challenges

Service strategy. Establish a clear information architecture that helps users quickly understand the full scope of Engine Room’s post-production offerings across visual effects, live action and motion graphics.

Content prioritization. Design a system that keeps showreels and visual effects work as the hero while supporting secondary content like services, team and contact information.

Visual clarity. Create a modern aesthetic that eliminates distractions and maintains user focus on the studio’s work without overwhelming the interface.

Navigation architecture. Build an intuitive navigation system that enables quick movement between categories while maintaining context and ease of use for time-pressed creative professionals evaluating vendors.

Solution

GetDevDone delivered a comprehensive redesign that repositions Engine Room’s digital presence around their core strength: delivering thousands of custom VFX shots annually for entertainment’s biggest names.

Content-first architecture. Implemented a streamlined information hierarchy that immediately surfaces showreels upon landing. The homepage features a full-screen video presentation with minimal UI interference, allowing the studio’s work to make the first impression. Categories organize projects by service type (VFX, live action, design) and client (film, television, commercial), enabling producers to quickly locate relevant examples.

Frictionless navigation system. Designed an intuitive UI structure that remains accessible without competing for attention. A persistent, minimal navigation provides instant access to key sections (Work, Services, About, Contact) while collapsing when users engage with video content. This approach respects the primary goal: keeping eyes on the showreel.

Showreel-centric presentation. Created a video player experience optimized for quick evaluation. Industry professionals can scrub through projects, filter by category and jump between work samples without page reloads. Each showreel includes minimal but essential context (client, service type, year) positioned strategically to inform without distracting.

Responsive experience. Ensured the video-heavy design translates smoothly to tablets and mobile devices, critical for producers reviewing portfolios on-set or during commutes. Mobile layouts prioritize video playback quality and maintain intuitive touch-based navigation.

Services clarity. Developed a dedicated services section that articulates Engine Room’s capabilities across visual effects production, compositing, motion graphics and live action. Clear service descriptions with supporting work examples help potential clients understand the studio’s range while building confidence in their 25-year track record.

Performance optimization. Implemented video compression and lazy loading techniques to ensure fast page loads despite heavy media content. The studio’s credibility depends on demonstrating technical excellence, starting with their own website performance.

Conclusion

GetDevDone crafted digital experiences that serve both the client’s business goals and user needs. By establishing a design system built around clarity and discoverability, the new Engine Room website refines the studio’s content presentation while providing an effortless browsing experience that converts visitors into clients.