2023 Animation Exchange Lineup

AnimX

Feb 12

It is that time again! The Animation Exchange is back this year with a full day of talks and discussions focused on the craft, tech and people that power interactive animation. And you will be able to watch it all for FREE on Tuesday, March 21st, starting at 12pm Pacific Time LIVE on Twitch. Mark your calendars because you will not want to miss any of these segments!

Hector Antunez (Lead Animator, Bit Reactor)
JP Rhinemiller (Associate Animation Director, Blizzard)
Sophie Evans (Principal Animator, Molasses Flood)
Hosted by Lana Bachynski (Lead Animator, Riot Games)
and Jake Clark (Animator, InnerSloth)
The fan favorite segment returns this year as three animators are put in the hot seat to create the animation equivalent of an Exquisite Corpse, while being peppered with the most random questions the hosts can come up with. Guaranteed laughs and the best animation you will ever see.
Amanda Renfroe (Head of Animation)
Josh Carroll (Head of Art)
Anna Matheny (Staff Development Coordinator)
Kristin Grice (Staff Development Coordinator)
Moderated by Tim Borrelli (TA/Anim People Manage, Undead Labs)
This panel discussion will focus closely on the unique implementation of the Human Resources Department within the Steamroller studio infrastructure. Traditionally, HR is viewed as a “side-line” department often associated with negative connotations such as conflict management, contracts, visa, and performance evaluations. At Steamroller Animation we have redesigned the Human Resources Department in a unique way. We have incorporated HR into all facets of the studio’s operations.
Introducing a new role called the Staff Development Coordinator, Steamroller Animation has developed a new type of interpersonal dynamic for all of its staff. As a result, the day to day interplay between HR, the leadership management team, and all the staff working on the ground, has fundamentally changed the culture of communication and relationships resulting in a unique studio experience.
Greg Mitchell (Director of Cinematics, Bit Reactor)
Marianne Hayden (Lead Cinematics Animator, Skydance New Media)
Emily Hsu (Line Producer, Netflix Animation)
Moderated by JP Rhinemiller (Associate Animation Director, Blizzard)
How do different studios tackle cinematics and why are they important to game development? Real-time vs. pre-rendered? What are some of the differences and similarities between working on cinematics, films, and games?
Some of the founders of the Society for Game Cinematics will discuss the opportunities for cinematics in today's industry, challenges in defining their role and function in the gaming industry, and why the creation of the organization was necessary for cinematic content that spans across different mediums and pipelines.
Sebastian Starke (Research Scientist, Meta)
Cory Doctorow (Journalist and Science Fiction Author)
Ahmed Best (Actor, Musician and Dancer)
Moderated by Mike Jungbluth (Animation Director, Compulsion Games)
AI generated work is here and people are reacting. But do we have a dream of what the future of it looks like? And can that be shared between the people building the tech, the people creating the work that trains the tech and the people that will ultimately use it?
This panel will bring together experts across tech, the creative arts and the history of how the two have impacted each other, to discuss how we can move beyond the reactive present state to a more proactive one.
Pif Edwards (CoFounder & CTO, JALI)
Chris Landreth (CoFounder & COO, JALI)
Join JALI Co-Founders Pif Edwards and Chris Landreth live in conversation as they explore their unique approach to generating facial animation and tool building, the importance of and the creative decision in telling compelling animated narratives.
This session will provide attendees with a live look at JALI’s tool suite in action and examine the important role collaboration plays in the JALI team’s tireless quest to empower digital storytellers with user-friendly automated animation workflows, as used in critically acclaimed AAA game releases like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II and Cyberpunk2077.
Adam Clark (Data Analyst)
with
Sol Brennan (Rigger, Heart Machine)
Emily Katske (Animation Art Lead, Bungie)
Harvey Newman (Content Creator, Game Dev)
The annual survey returns, newly updated by our resident data analyst, who is going to break down this years findings as well as discuss trends and changes seen across the four years of the survey. Followed by a discussion panel with some industry professionals to highlight specific areas or findings that stood out to them.
Geoff Harrower (Principal Gameplay Programmer, Santa Monica Studio)
Jack Ebensteiner (Lead Character Animator, Santa Monica Studio)

In this talk, Gameplay Programmer Geoff Harrower and Lead Character Animator Jack Ebensteiner will discuss how the Air Dragons from God of War Ragnarok were animated, with a deep dive into the systemic flight system, pathing logic and procedural animation techniques that brought the Air Dragons to life in both combat and scripted sequences throughout the game.
Eléna Tchijakoff (Senior Technical Animator, BioWare)
Izzy Cheng (Senior Technical Artist, Riot Games)
Chris Marini (Lead Technical Animator, Epic Games)
Moderated by Brian Venisky (Staff Technical Artist, Bungie)
Welcome to your new favorite game show! Watch as three top notch technical animators face off against specifically designed challenges meant to put their expertise to the test. How many points can they get before time runs out?!

Sponsored by Autodesk!

We are also planning live interviews and likely some other surprises, as you never know what can happen on a live stream when you have a room full of creative folks hanging out for a day.

And remember, none of this would be possible without our amazing sponsors! We literally could not do this without them so please join us in celebrating their support. They all recognize what makes AnimX special and work directly with us to make the show better for everyone involved.

See you all March 21st starting at Noon Pacific Time!