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Jay Francis
VP Current Series, Diversity & Inclusion - Walt Disney TVA
In his creative role as Executive Director of Original Series, Jay was instrumental in the development of Disney XD’s first original animation series, “Kick Buttowski”. Currently, Jay oversees all creative elements of Disney Channel’s “Phineas and Ferb”. Additionally, Jay works extensively with the casting, legal, marketing, and programming divisions. Prior to joining Disney Television Animation, Jay held the position of VP and General Manager of LEVEL13.NET, Film Roman’s internet subsidiary. In addition to his duties as VP, Jay also handled all of the company’s artistic and production recruitment. Previous to this, he co-founded two independent entertainment companies and worked at DIC Entertainment as a producer.
Sherie Pollack
Sherie Pollack is an award winning, 4-time EMMY nominated Animation Writer/Director who has been creating Cartoons (Features and TV) for over twenty-five years.
Engaging characters and compelling storytelling fuels Pollack’s fire and she has delighted in directing over 150 produced (2d/3d Series) TV episodes that include DISNEY’S PEPPER ANN, CG MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE, NICKELODEON’S DORA THE EXPLORER, GO DIEGO GO, FAIRLY ODD PARENTS, CARSEY WERNER’S GOD, THE DEVIL AND BOB, and was Supervising Animation Director for CARTOON NETWORK'S WE BARE BEARS Series, Movie and more.
Brooke Keesling
Brooke has worked in the animation and VFX industry for decades as a filmmaker, in recruiting & development, and in education. Prior to joining Bento Box, Brooke recruited animation talent for Cartoon Network, Disney, and Warner Bros.
Keesling earned her MFA at CalArts where she produced the stop-motion film, Meatclown and the Student Academy Award winning film Boobie Girl. Upon graduation, she worked in practical and miniature VFX on many films such as Inception, The Dark Knight, Hugo, and The Aviator. Brooke is the Vice President of ASIFA Hollywood, a member of Women in Animation, on the advisory board of the GLAS Animation Festival, and she teaches in the Character Animation department at CalArts.
Pete Michels
Pete Michels earned a BFA in Illustration from Jersey City State College and an MFA in Animation from UCLA. After landing a job on “The Simpsons” in 1990, Pete quickly moved up the ranks to become a Director by 1995. Staying on to direct for several more seasons, Pete then accepted a post as Supervising Director on “Family Guy”. Eventually directing more than
a dozen “Family Guy” episodes, including the direct to video movie “Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story”. Pete is currently Supervising Director on Adult Swim’s new show “Rick and Morty”, coming this Fall, and continues painting watercolor landscapes as time will allow. He and his wife, Emily, have two sons, Sam, and Eddie, and live in Stevenson Ranch, CA.
Lee Lanier
Lee has worked at Buena Vista Visual Effects at Walt Disney Studios and worked as senior animator on “Antz” and “Shrek.” His work has been featured at Sundance, Slamdance, SXSW, the Ottawa International Animation Festival, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and the Smithsonian Institution. A world-renowned expert in the VFX field, Lee has written high-end software books that have sold 25,000 copies, has authored VFX training videos for Lynda.com, has taught at the Gnomon School of Visual Effects in Hollywood, is a member of VES (Visual Effects Society), and is the executive director of the Dam Short Film Festival.
Vlad Pineda
Vlad is a CG modler, shader and texture artist. For over 10 years he has been working in different areas of the animation industry such as, Advertising for some of the most popular games, tv spots, game cinematicsautomotive rendering & product design. Vlad currently works as a freelance artist at various VFX shops around Los Angeles. Vlad is a graduate from The Art Institute of California Los Angeles in 2005 with a Bachelors Degree in Media Arts & Animation.
Aglaia Mortcheva
Aglaia Mortcheva is an animator, character designer and freelance illustrator. She has animated for South Park, designed characters for Klasky Csupo, Nickelodeon, Disney and Fox TV Animation among others. She also lends her voice to Vendetta, the green villain from Nickelodeon’s Making Fiends. In addition to working as an animator and character designer, Aglaia also illustrates and paints. She currently teaches at, The Art Institute of California, Hollywood.
Charles daCosta
Charles daCosta is an Australian-based animator, scholar, and educator with extensive international teaching experience. He has played a key role in developing animation training programs across Europe, West Africa, and the United States. Formerly an Animation History professor at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), he has also taught animation and media studies at the University of Westminster, Kingston University, University College for the Creative Arts, Morley College, and the London Center of Samford University. His visiting lectureships and workshops include the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI) in Ghana, Nigeria Television Authority’s TV College, and schools in the United States.
Beyond teaching, daCosta is an active contributor to international conferences and currently serves as historian for the Society for Animation Studies (SAS). His recent book, Framing Invisibility: Racial Stereotyping and Selective Positioning in Contemporary British Animation, reflects his research interests in animation history and representation. A practicing filmmaker and musician, he is especially passionate about stop-motion animation, which he regards as the purest form of cinematic puppetry.
Lars Deutsch
Emmy winner Lars Deutch went from heavy metal guitarist, to singer, to songwriter, to a Masters in classical composition, to international performances of his classical works, to lecturing in composition and audio production. As a result he has a unique sound for his film music, as well as a cutting-edge approach to audio post production. Lars has scored over one hundred fifty films that have collected over one hundred awards, and his songs are also in high demand. As an audio branding expert, he has created audio logos for a range of companies.
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