World VFX Day has announced its final line-up of more than 65 speakers for this year’s programme, which will run for over 15 hours via YouTube live stream.
The event brings together in-person and virtual guests from around the globe to explore a broad range of topics shaping the industry, regional developments, and the continuously evolving landscape of visual effects and animation across filmmaking, technology and innovation.
World VFX Day is hosted by different studios and countries each year, with this year’s event hosted by Important Looking Pirates from its London studio on 8 December.
There are also in-person events led by the industry community, taking place in London, Berlin, Munich, Paris, Stuttgart, Singapore, Bangkok, Toronto and New York.
Hayley Miller, founder of World VFX Day, said: “World VFX Day exists to shine a spotlight on VFX and animation.
“Our industry is often at the helm of new technology and innovation in filmmaking but the talent and skills involved are often unknown or overlooked. I hope that this gives an accessible platform for anyone keen to learn about our industry.
“For our industry, it’s a way to come together, share knowledge and ideas, and help strengthen our future.”
The full line-up is available below.
- VFX Landscape: Americas with Ignacio Pol – founder at CONTROL Studio, Matt von Brock – founder at Swarm VFX, Henrique Reginato – co-founder at NOX VFX, Cristian Fieiras – technical artist
- UK Industry Spotlight with Neil Hatton – CEO at UK Screen Alliance and Gareth Kirkman – UK business and industry manager at British Film Commission
- Embracing Innovation in VFX – with David Sheldon-Hicks – founder at Territory Studio, Dariya Yaschenko – EP at TerminalFX and Ajoy Mani – production VFX producing supervisor
- VFX Landscape: Asia & Beyond with Michal Kriukow – founder at Studio Ulu, Phil Pham – founder at Island City Solutions (ex-ILM) and Bryan Daniel – EP at Pixstone Images
- Spain’s Rise as a VFX & Animation Hub with Javier Romero – founder at Starframe Filmworks, Ignacio Caicoya – founder at Flaming Frames, Elena Moreno – FDI projects manager at ICEX Spain’s Trade Body, Gonzalo Escudero – EP at Metropolis VX (Dream Machine FX), Raul Carbo – co-founder at Atlantis Animation
- Founders Fireside Chat with David Li – founder at Dream Machine (ILP, FIN Design, Arc Creative, Zero VFX, Mavericks VFX) and William Sargent – co-founder at Framestore
- VFX & Animation Supervisors: Australia & New Zealand with Denis Baudin – VFX supervisor, Genevieve Camilleri – VFX supervisor, and Aidan Martin – animation supervisor at WētāFX
- VFX: Hollywood’s Underdog with Todd Vaziri – compositing supervisor at ILM and Valentina Sgro – production manager
- Indie Studio Leadership Roundtable with Laurens Ehrmann – founder at The Yard VFX, Brian Carbin – co-founder at Stone Dogs, Lucy Cooper – MD at Union VFX, and Vikas Gandhi – MD at Gelaro Grace
- VFX Innovation featuring Michael Ralla, VFX supervisor at Warner Bros., Johnny Han, VFX supervisor at HBO, Christina Caspers MD & group EP at Trixter & Cinesite, Kevin Baillie, head of studio at Eyeline Studios, Christine Resch, development manager at Adobe. In partnership with the Visual Effects Society (VES) and View Conference
- An Inside Look at the Future of VFX with Alana Newell – CEO, Jasper Kidd – creative director/head of studio (UK), Jonathan Cheetham – senior VFX supervisor and Clare Cheetham – executive VFX producer
- Animated Women UK with board members: Louise Hussey, Debra Wooton, Victoria Watson, Dara McGarry, Debra Coleman
- Georges Melies: A Tribute with Kate Xagoraris – archivist, film historian and VFX artist, David Tanaka – editor and filmmaker – in partnership with the Visual Effects Society (VES)
- Creative Technology with Theo Jones, VFX supervisor at Framestore, Tom Fonvillars, head of CG at The Yard VFX, Xuan Prada, labs lead at Important Looking Pirates
- Stories from Set, with VFX Supervisors Andreas Maaninka – Oasis VFX, Edward Douglas, Farhad Mohasseb – Fun & Mayhem VFX, interviewed by Ian Failes – editor at Befores & Afters
- Bournemouth University Alumni with Dr Rehan Zia – principal academic and guest students/ex-students
- When 85 Artists Unite with Delcio Gomes, head of department, generalist and environments at ILM – in partnership with Chaos Group
- 100 Years of Supporting the Film & TV Industry with Marcus Ryder MBE, CEO
- Four Decades of VFX with Neishaw Ali – CEO at Spin VFX
- Unlocking Your Potential: Career Focus with Debra Coleman – founder at Open Frame Coaching, Simon Davies – founder at DAX (Digital Arts Exchange), Jonny Adamson – talent manager at DNEG, Harriet Edge-Partington – talent manager at Union VFX
- From Indie to Dream Machine: with Eva Mautino – CEO at Important Looking Pirates
More information is available on the World VFX Day website.
