Peter Ramsey– Oscar and BAFTA Award winner
• Director of “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”; Executive Producer of “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” and Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire”
Peter Ramsey most recently directed an episode of “We the People” for Netflix. Previously he Co-directed with Bob Persichetti and Rodney Rothman Sony Pictures Animation’s feature film, the Academy Award® winner “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.” For his work on the film, he has received an Annie Award from ASIFA-Hollywood for Outstanding Achievement for Directing in an Animated Feature Production.Previously, he directed DreamWorks Animation’s 2012 feature film “Rise of the Guardians.” He also helmed the Halloween TV special, „Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space“ as well as served as a story artist on several of DreamWorks Animation’s feature films. Prior to joining DreamWorks, he worked as a storyboard artist on a notable number of live action feature films, including “Backdraft,” “Boyz n the Hood,” “Bram Stoker’s Dracula,” “Minority Report,” “Cast Away,” “Independence Day,” “Being John Malkovich,” “Fight Club” and “Hulk,” among many others.
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Doug Chiang – Oscar-winner; BAFTA Award-winner
• Vice president / executive creative director at Lucasfilm
Doug Chiang oversees designs for the “Star Wars” franchise, including films, theme parks, games, and new media. His “Star Wars” experience spans over 25 years, beginning in 1995 when George Lucas selected him as Head of the Lucasfilm art department for the “Star Wars” prequel films. Since then, Chiang has been Lucasfilm’s principal designer for Disney World Resort’s “Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge” and “Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser.” He was also production designer on “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” and “Star Wars” live-action series including “The Mandalorian,” “The Book of Boba Fett,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” and “Ahsoka.”
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Giacomo Mineo– Emmy Award nominee
• DNEG Visual Effects Supervisor of “Oppenheimer”
Under the direction of Oscar-winning Production VFX Supervisor Andrew Jackson, Giacomo Mineo led the DNEG team in delivering over 100 shots for Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer.” Crafting shots from a library of more than 400 practically shot elements, the team helped visualize physical phenomena ranging from subatomic particles and huge nuclear blasts to exploding stars and the formation of black holes. Embracing old-style practical effects techniques – such as miniatures, massive and micro explosions, thermite fire, long exposure shoots, and aerial footage – and complex compositing treatments, the DNEG team created the VFX shots by combining together only real elements, without any reliance on CGI.
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ND Stevenson– National Book Award nominee, New York Times best-selling author
• Author, creator & executive producer of “Nimona”
ND Stevenson is the award-winning, bestselling author and illustrator of “Nimona,” as well as a co-producer of the Netflix film adaptation. Stevenson is also the author and illustrator of “The Fire Never Goes Out,” the co-creator of “Lumberjanes,” and was the showrunner for the award-winning Netflix series “She-Ra and the Princesses of Power.”
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Ted Ty
• Global Head of Character Animation, DNEG Animation
Ted Ty has over 27 years of experience at the feature animation level. He has animated on 20 feature films, and is presently Global Head of Character Animation, Feature Animation at DNEG. His CG credits include „How to Train your Dragon 2 „, „Rise of the Guardians“, „Kung Fu Panda“ and „Puss n Boots“ among others. Before arriving at DreamWorks, he spent over 10 years at Walt Disney Feature Animation Florida crafting traditional animation and worked on films such as „Mulan“, „The Lion King“, „John Henry“ and „Lilo and Stitch“ where he served as a Lead Animator. He recently spent 6 years as Head of Animation for L’Atelier Animation in Montreal where they just finished the feature „Fireheart“. He is a graduate of the CalArts Character Animation program where he was also the senior animation instructor for 5 consecutive years. He has taught masterclasses at places such as CalArts, CTNX Expo, DreamWorks Animation, SCAD, Pixel Quebec, NAD Center, University of Granada, RIOT Games, Effects Mtl, iAnimate.net, and is also a Master Teacher and National Panelist at YoungArts Foundation.
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Joe Letteri – 5-times Oscar-winner; BAFTA Award winner
• Senior VFX supervisor of “Avatar: The Way of Water” at Wētā FX
Joe Letteri’s pioneering work in visual effects has earned him five Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects – “Avatar,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King,” “King Kong” and “Avatar: The Way of Water.” He has a long-standing interest in creating compelling, realistic creatures, from the dinosaurs of “Jurassic Park” to Gollum, the Na’vi in “Avatar,” and Caesar from the “Planet of the Apes” franchise. He has developed many techniques that have become industry standards for creating photorealistic digital effects and has consistently pushed the development of large-scale virtual production.
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Mike Lasker– VES Award nominee
• VFX supervisor of “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” at Sony Pictures Imageworks
Mike Lasker began his computer graphics career in New York City working on commercials for leading advertising agencies, having received a BFA in computer graphics from Syracuse University. He has over two decades of experience working on live-action and animated features, with recent credits including the Oscar-nominated “The Mitchells vs The Machines” and the Oscar-winning “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.” Valuing team work and collaboration, Lasker previously served as a computer graphics supervisor on “Smurfs: The Lost Village,” “Cloudy With a Chance Of Meatballs” and “Hotel Transylvania.”
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Stephane Ceretti – Oscar nominee; BAFTA Award nominee
• VFX supervisor of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3” at Marvel Studios
Stephane Ceretti began his professional career at Buf Compagnie in Paris in the late 90s. His feature credits as VFX supervisor include the Wachowskis‘ “Matrix” sequels, Oliver Stone’s “Alexander,” “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” “Batman Begins” and “The Prestige.” Ceretti later joined MPC and Method Studios in London where he met with Marvel Studios, working on films including “Captain America: The First Avenger,” “X-Men: First Class” and “Cloud Atlas.” Following his work on “Thor: The Dark World,” Ceretti joined Marvel Studios’ “Guardians Of the Galaxy” as production VFX supervisor, earning an Oscar nomination for Best Achievement in Visual Effects.
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John Gaeta – Oscar-winner; BAFTA Award-winner
• CCO at Inworld AI
John Gaeta is a legendary creator, designer and inventor known for his Oscar-winning work on “The Matrix” trilogy. He has conceived and developed emergent forms of content and experiences such as Bullet Time, Universal Capture (Volucap), Photo-Anime, HoloCinema and Magicverse. Gaeta has led creative innovation for companies including Lucasfilm/Disney, ILMxLAB, Microsoft/Float and Magic Leap, and was creative executive producer on Epic Games’ “The Matrix Awakens,” a UE5 Experience. In 2022, as co-executive producer in partnership with Kiri Hart, he commenced development of “Metropolis,” based on the landmark manga by Osamu Tezuka. In the same year, Gaeta co-founded ‘mirrorworld’ venture “LivingCities” with social platform pioneer Matt Miesnieks and Dennis Crowley of Foursquare. Most recently he joined Inworld AI to pursue the development of state of the art AI characters.
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Bruno Coulais– Oscar nominee; BAFTA Award nominee
• Composer
Bruno Coulais is an award-winning French composer and musician who has created scores for over 100 films and television shows, including “Coraline,” “Wendell & Wild,” “Wolfwalkers” and “The Secret of Kells.” After earning a degree in composition from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, he began his career working on French television documentaries and films. Coulais is perhaps best known for his work on the 2001 animated film “Les Choristes,” for which he received a César Award. Critically acclaimed, he has collaborated with notable directors including Claude Nuridsany, Luc Jacquet, and Christophe Barratier. Coulais has also composed music for theater productions and released several albums of his own original music. In 2010, Coulais received the prestigious Order of Arts and Letters from the French government for his contributions to the arts.
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Mark Ulano– Oscar-winner
• Production sound mixer of “Killers of the Flower Moon”
Mark Ulano has been recording sound for film professionally since 1976. His work on “Titanic” won him an Academy Award for Sound Mixing as well as the Cinema Audio Society Award for Best Sound mixing for a Feature Film. He has multiple AMPAS, CAS, and BAFTA nominations; most recently his 3rd and 4th Oscar nominations for “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood” and “Ad Astra. “Other credits include “The Hateful Eight,” “Super 8,” “The Tourist,” “Inglorious Basterds,” “Rocky Balboa,” “Django Unchained,” “Kill Bill Vols. I & 2,” “Jackie Brown,” “Iron Man,” “Spy Kids,” “Stuart Little” and over 150 film and television projects. He has had a 28-year collaboration with Quentin Tarantino and his most recent work can be heard this October in Martin Scorsese’s new film, “Killers Of The Flower Moon.” With many articles published, Ulano is very active in the cinema mentoring world as a teacher of workshops and speaker at sound symposiums internationally. He has sat 30 years as a board member for the Cinema Audio Society and served the full two terms both as President and Vice President of the CAS. He also has served five terms as president of IATSE Local 695 (the film sound union in Los Angeles) and also served nine terms on the Sound Branch Executive Committee of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences as well as various AMPAS subcommittees.
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Andreas Deja– Annie Award winner
• Creator & director of “Mushka”
Andreas Deja is a veteran animator with credits on Disney classics including “The Black Cauldron,” “Oliver & Company, “The Little Mermaid,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Aladdin,” “The Lion King, “Hercules” and “Lilo & Stitch,” plus many more He was also lead animator on “Who Frame Roger Rabbit?” working under the direction of Richard Williams. In 2007, he was honored with the Winsor McKay Award from ASIFA (the International Animated Film Association). In 2015, he was named a Disney ‘Legend’ by the Walt Disney Company. Currently, Deja works on his own independent animated short films, recently completing his 10-year labor of love “Mushka,” the charming story of a young girl and her adopted Siberian tiger, which is his homage to classic Disney animation, created in the style of “101 Dalmations.”
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Paul Debevec – Academy Award-winner
• Director of research, creative algorithms and technology at Netflix
Paul Debevec oversees R&D for visual effects and virtual production with computer vision, graphics, and machine learning at Netflix. In 2002, his Light Stage 3 system surrounded actors with LEDs displaying images of virtual sets and environments for lighting-accurate compositing. Techniques from his work have been used to create key visual effects sequences in “The Matrix,” “Spider-Man 2,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Avatar,” “Gravity” and “Blade Runner 2049.” Debevec’s techniques for HDR imaging, image-based lighting, and photoreal digital actors have been recognized with two Academy Awards and the SMPTE Progress Medal. Debevec is a Governor of the Visual Effects branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, a Fellow of the Visual Effects Society, and an Adjunct Research Professor at the University of Southern California Computer Science.
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Hal Hickel– Oscar-winner; BAFTA Award-winner
• Animation supervisor of “The Mandalorian” at Industrial Light & Magic
Hal Hickel began his professional career as a clay animator and motion-control operator at Will Vinton Studios, after studying film graphics at CalArts. He joined Industrial Light & Magic in 1996 as an animator on “The Lost World: Jurassic Park,” before graduating to lead animator on “Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace” and animation supervisor on Steven Spielberg’s “A.I. Artificial Intelligence.” He has since worked on multiple award-winning films including “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest,” “Pacific Rim” and “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.” Hickel was production animation supervisor on all three seasons of “The Mandalorian,” and consulting animation supervisor on “The Book of Boba Fett.”
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Dylan Sisson
• Creative pioneer behind Pixar’s award-winning RenderMan software
Dylan Sisson is a digital artist with 29 years of experience in VFX and animation, who began his career animating commercials and creating RPGs for the Sony Playstation. After his independent animation won the award for Best Computer Animated Short at the Animar Festival in 1999, Sisson joined Pixar Animation Studios where he has been engaged in the development and evangelization of Pixar’s RenderMan. Dylan is the creator and designer of the RenderMan Walking Teapot, the most outrageous swag on the planet. In addition to his role at Pixar, today Dylan is an active artist exploring emerging media in VR, AI, and 3D printing.
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Eloi Champagne
• Technical director at the National Film Board of Canada
Eloi Champagne is the Technical Director at the National Film Board of Canada Animation Studio in Montreal. He specializes in VR/AR, animation, interactivity, filmmaking, visual effects, S3D and more. A jack-of-all-trades in the field of storytelling innovation, Champagne’s work is situated at the crossroads of art and technology.
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Nikola Damjanov
• Lead game artist at Nordeus
Nikola Damjanov began his higher education as an engineer before pivoting to interactive media, architectural and product visualization, then graphics and web design. In addition to his role as lead game artist at Nordeus, he is also involved in recruiting, in-house training and lecturing, often representing the company as a regular conference speaker.
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Jan-Bart van Beek– BAFTA Award-winner
• Studio director at Guerrilla Games
Jan-Bart van Beek oversees the art and animation quality of all projects at Guerrilla Games. As a photography student at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in The Hague, he turned to computer graphics software to enhance his work. After graduation, van Beek applied his knowledge as a CG artist in the field of advertising, before joining Guerrilla Games, where he quickly became lead artist on “Killzone” and art director on “Killzone 2.” He was originator and art director of the BAFTA Award-winning “Horizon Zero Dawn.”
Michael Coldewey– German Academy Award-winner; German TV Award-winner
• Professor of Concept Art, Drawing & Design at the Media Design University of Applied Sciences in Munich
Michael Coldewey started his professional career as animation assistant in an animation studio in Munich, before teaching animation at the Academy of Fine Arts, Munich. In 1995 he founded Munich Animation Film with Eberhard Junkersdorf and directed the animated feature “The Fearless Four.” In 1998 he founded Trixter and started his own IPs including “Lilly the Witch” and the French co-production “Dragonhunters.” His feature credits include “The Avengers,” “Iron Man 2 & 3,” all three “Captain America” films, “Cloud Atlas,” “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2,” and “Captain Marvel.” Coldewey is member of the European and German Academy of Motion Pictures and the Visual Effects Society.
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Andreas Maaninka– VES Award nominee
• VFX supervisor
Originally from Sweden, Andreas Maaninka started his career at Pinewood Studios in London in the early 2000s. Since then he has lived and worked in New Zealand and Japan, and now resides in Canada. He has recently been exploring AI art workflows in production, specifically with regard to visual development side, and supporting artists by integrating the tool into other aspects of production. Maaninka’s feature credits include Oscar-winning films including “Avatar,” “The Golden Compass” and “Blade Runner 2049.”
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Alwyn Hunt
• Head of Education, Partnerships, Adobe; Co-Founder, The Rookies
Alwyn Hunt works as Head of Education, Partnerships within 3D&I division at Adobe he is also the co-founder of The Rookies, a community for non-professional digital artists. He worked as a character texture artist in the visual effects industry for over 20 years and has worked at several studios around the world including Sony Imageworks, MPC, DNEG, Animal Logic, RSP and Wētā FX. His main film credits include “Harry Potter,” “Watchmen,” “The Wolfman,” “Alice in Wonderland,” “John Carter,” “The Hobbit” 1 & 2, “Game of Thrones,” “Logan,” “Thor: Ragnarok” and “Tomb Raider.” Alwyn has a passion for the industry and an interest in helping create pathways for emerging artists into leading studios globally.
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Martin Nebelong
• Digital Artist
Martin Nebelong, born in 1982, is a renowned Danish artist and seasoned professional in the digital art industry. With a career spanning two decades, Nebelong has made significant contributions to the field with his unique blend of traditional and digital techniques. His creative journey began with traditional illustration, a skill he honed and expanded upon at the Danish design school, earning both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in digital design. In the early years of his career, Nebelong applied his digital design skills as a freelance artist for LEGO, where he produced an array of digital paintings for the company using Photoshop. Over the last six years, 3D design has become the mainstay of his work, influenced in part by his extensive experience with Virtual Reality (VR) using an Oculus Rift headset. His work in VR opened doors to international opportunities, allowing him to travel globally and share his innovative work. Nebelong’s expertise in 3D art has been recognized by major industry publications, including 3D Artist, 3D World, and ImagineFX, for which he has written numerous tutorials. Always at the forefront of digital art innovation, Nebelong found a new creative outlet in Dreams, an engine for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 developed by Media Molecule. This platform enables users to create, share, and play user-generated content. Martin thinks that Dreams represents a paradigm shift in 3D content production. Dreams offer an artist-focused, enjoyable, and robust approach to 3D design, usable both in and out of VR. Though Dreams is VR-compatible, Nebelong mainly uses Move Controllers for his work without the VR headset. In his freelance career, Nebelong has worked with a diverse roster of clients, including Sony and Media Molecule, Luma Labs, Adobe, Meta, Yahoo, Runway, Oculus, and Rovio. His work has also extended to the silver screen, with contributions to the feature film „A Winter’s Journey,“ starring John Malkovich.
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Almu Redondo– Annie Award nominee
• Production Designer, Cartoon Saloon
Almu Redondo is a multidisciplinary Art Director, Production Designer and Designer working for a big array of industries and styles, from animated and VFX feature films or TV series, to illustration and games. Her latest work includes Art Director for „Star Wars, Visions“ short at Cartoon Saloon, Art Direction for League of Legends cinematics and „Tales of Runeterra“ at Axis for Riot Games, visual development and color script artist for Cartoon Saloon’s „Wolfwalkers“, „My Father’s Dragon“ and production designer for the collaboration between Cartoon Saloon and Mamoru Hosoda for his film „Belle“ which granted her an Annie Award Nomination for Best Production Design for Feature.
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Richard Kerris
• Vice president, DevRel/Omniverse, IGM M&E at NVIDIA
Richard Kerris is the industry general manager for media and entertainment at NVIDIA. With a career spanning Apple, Lucasfilm and Amazon/AWS, his experience combines driving marketing and product development with a focus on bringing new ideas to life. At Apple, he directed developer relations and managed Final Cut Pro, Logic and Aperture. At Lucasfilm, he served as CTO, managing research and development, IT and information services. Kerris has given keynote addresses at GTC, Asia Broadcast and China Joy Expo, and delivered multiple Apple Worldwide Developers Conference presentations. He currently serves on the Bay Area Board of the Visual Effects Society and as an active member of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers.
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Apollonia Hartmann
• VFX Producer, Accenture Song Content (formerly Mackevision)
After graduating with a master’s degree in media economics, Apollonia joined Mackevision as a bid producer in the sales department. In 2019, she moved to the VFX department, where she has been working as a VFX Producer since spring 2020. Since then, Apollonia has produced TV series such as Stranger Things Season 4, Lost in Space Season 3, Foundation Season 1, and Shadow & Bone Season 2 for which the Accenture Song VFX team got nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Special Visual Effects. Apollonia is also a member of WIA.
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About VIEW Conference
An English speaking event, VIEW Conference 2023 takes place from October 15-20 in the beautiful baroque city of Turin, Italy. Attending the event in person guarantees an unrivaled opportunity for people to soak up the atmosphere and meet their heroes and mentors. Meanwhile, full online access enables a global audience to enjoy the conference via exclusive livestream.
The international VIEW Conference brings together industry professionals, thought leaders, students and enthusiasts to celebrate the latest achievements in Animation, VFX and Games, and to share their visions of the future. The conference’s vibrant and inclusive atmosphere is designed to enlighten and inspire, with an extensive live program of talks, presentations, workshops and masterclasses embracing cutting-edge thinking on such diverse topics as Storytelling, Virtual Production, Computer Graphics, Interactive & Immersive Media, VR/AR/Mixed Reality and the Metaverse, Artificial Intelligence, Real-Time Rendering and more.
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