We had an issue come on up a project where the VFX supervisor was getting inundated with email because all the artists were checking off everyone whenever they left a note on a task. We probably should have the system constrain the people that a user can notify to their immediate team and maybe one level of supervision. I’ll have to ponder that. In the meantime, here is the procedure I’m following:

1. Instruct artists that they should post notes and submit work only in their tasks, unless there is an item of broad interest that crosses task or shot boundaries.
2. Instruct artists to not include the VFX supervisor on notes added to tasks.
3. When the team lead, coordinator or VFX producer want to send something up for review and approval, create a new note on either the shot, or a shot element, then do a Request Response on that note. This will send an email with the subject “Review Requested” and create a workflow item.

This way, all the work details stay down in the tasks, and the higher level reviews and approvals happen at the element or shot levels.

The general theory is that the show producer and/or client work at the sequence level, the VFX supervisor and team leads work at the shot or shot element level, and artists work at the task level.