I'm somewhat comfortable using debian and the cli as a webserver on a VPN. I have been hired as an admin at a FX house where they use RedHat Enterprise to run their high end non-linear editing packages and their massive infiniband media drives.

I have been searching all over trying to find a guide of what I will need to know/what will be different so I can get up to speed quickly.

Any advice or knowledge you can send my way. how big of a change am I looking at. Are all the config files the same or will this be a total game changer.

Thanks

-Runlevels are each different RH by default
-Config files are different (though mostly still buried in /etc)
-Tools are different (things like bringing up the network or restarting services)

The basics are the same. But you're going to struggle finding what you need. I'm no expert (just use RHEL sparingly at work when necessary). I think it was harder to go from Debian to Red Hat than it was for me to go from Windows to Debian. At least things were completely different between Win and Debian. In linux to linux moves I struggle because my brain works in Debian and everything is similar but slightly different. It's like being forced to eat left handed. I won't starve, but it's not pretty.

I'd pore through some of the manuals on the Red Hat site. You may need to go back and look at the RHEL 4X manuals to get the "Intro to" type articles.