Next month, the first ever Women in Animation World Summit will be held in conjunction with the Annecy International Festival and MIFA. Presented by Women in Animation and Les Femmes s’Animent, with The Walt Disney Studios, the Centre National du Cinéma et de l’Image Animée, the Société des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques and Hiventy, the day-long event will welcome industry luminaries to share their knowledge and experiences on Monday, June 12 at the Impérial Palace Hotel.
“We are honored to co-host the first Women in Animation World Summit at Annecy, with MIFA’s continued support of our advocacy,” said WIA co-President Marge Dean. “Our big focus for this year is on recognizing and understanding unconscious bias, an achievement which will help everyone work together towards WIA’s goal of bringing equity to creative leadership in our industry by 2025.”
The symposium was partly born out of Annecy’s 2015 event theme honoring women in animation, in which WIA played a key role. This first step has evolved through two years of collaboration with WIA and LFA, according to CITIA Managing Director Michael Marin, Head of Economic Development and MIFA.
“During MIFA 2014, we invited Marge Dean and other women from WIA to present their work promoting women in the animation industry. This inspired a group of women in France to launch a sister organization in 2015, Les Femmes s’Animent,” said LFA President, Corinne Kouper. She added that this year’s summit will be complimented by a series of breakfast meetings throughout Annecy. “We look forward to welcoming everyone interested in our joint efforts.”
Women in Animation World Summit schedule:
9:30 – 10:30 a.m. – Exploring Unconscious Bias: Julie Ann Crommett (Vice President of Multicultural Audience Engagement at the Walt Disney Studios and WIA Chair of Industry Relations) will present an introduction to the topic of “Unconscious Bias.” Julie Ann will be introduced by WIA co-President, Marge Dean.
10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. – 50/50 by 2025 – How Are We Getting There?: Lindsay Nadler (Director, Human Resources, Walt Disney Animation Studios) will lead a discussion with top industry filmmakers and executives such as Jinko Gotoh (Producer, Warner Animation Group and WIA Secretary), Alison Mann (Vice President of Talent, Illumination Entertainment), Corinne Kouper (Director of Development of TeamTO and president, Les Femmes s’Animent) and Lindsay Watson (Animation Producer, CANUK Productions Ltd. and president, Animated Women UK) on how to reach WIA’s goal of 50/50 gender balance in creative leadership roles within the animation industry by 2025.
2:00 – 3:00 p.m. – Artist Experience: Moderated by Karen Dufilho (Executive Producer, Google Spotlight Stories), this panel will feature artists from all areas of the animation industry – features, TV, shorts, gaming, VR/AR – such as Dorota Kobiela (co-director, Loving Vincent), Jorge Gutierrez (Writer/Director, ReelFX), Wendy Rogers (VFX Supervisor/Creative Executive, Cirrina Studios), Celine Sciamma (writer/director) and Xin Yu (CEO & Creative Director of ShangHai Left Pocket Studio and ShangHai Left Pocket Media) talking about their experiences in the current animation community.
3:00 – 4:30 p.m. – Developing Diverse Stories: Moderated by Julie Ann Crommett (Vice President of Multicultural Audience Engagement at the Walt Disney Studios and WIA Chair of Industry Relations), this panel featuring Jessica Julius (Creative Executive, Walt Disney Animation Studios), Emilie Blezat (Studio Canal China) and Melissa Cobb (Head of Studio and Chief Creative Officer, Oriental DreamWorks) will be a discussion about developing projects and telling cultural stories with authenticity.
LFA Breakfast Meetings:
At Brasserie du Parc, June 13-16 from 8:30-10 a.m.
Tuesday, June 13 – Women Directors in Annecy: Highlighted speakers include Léa Krawczyk (À Perdre Haleine), Katrin Rothe (1917 – Der Wahre Oktober), Anne Magnusen (The Man Who Knew 75 Languages), Lucrèce Andreae (Pépé le Morse).
Wednesday, June 14 – Women in the Chinese Animation Industry: Highlighted speakers include Jie Chen (Producer, Big Fish & Begonia), Jiajia (director), Xin Yu (CEO & Creative Director of ShangHai Left Pocket Studio and ShangHai Left Pocket Media), Monica Huang (producer), Chao Wang (Annecy graduate student film jurist).
Thursday, June 15 – The Women of My Life as a Zucchini & The Man Woman Case: Highlighted speakers include Armelle Giorennec (producer, My Life as a Zucchini), Marianne Chazelas (first assistant director, My Life as a Zucchini), Kim Keukeleire (director of animation, My Life as a Zucchini), Christel Grandchamp (costume designer, My Life as a Zucchini), Vanessa Riera (costume designer, My Life as a Zucchini), Joëlle Oosterlinck (scriptwriter, The Man Woman Case), Anaïs Caura (writer/director, The Man Woman Case), and Hélène Gendronneau (producer, The Man Woman Case).
Friday, June 16 – Engaged & Emerging Filmmakers dialogue with Bonnie Arnold: Highlighted speakers include Bonnie Arnold (President, DreamWorks Animation), Anca Damian (director, Crulic, The Magic Mountain), Iryna Kosttyuk (producer, Mavka, the Forest Song), Eléa Gobbé-Mévellec (co-director, The Swallows of Kabu) and Dorota Kobiela (director, Loving Vincent).
