From November 17-19, The World Animation Summit will bring together creative stars, innovative visionaries and industry tastemakers to celebrate the latest triumphs of our favorite artform, and the challenges facing animation artists and professionals today. The Summit will be held once again in North Hollywood’s historic, boutique hotel, The Garland.

Now, the full line-up of keynotes, panels and speakers for this year’s edition has been announced. As always, the Summit will feature some of the biggest names behind the year’s top animated features and shorts discussing their award season contenders, their career and creative strategies and the ever-changing animation landscape.

Animation Magazine is also offering the chance to win free tickets to the event! More information below this post.

“Our line-up of sessions, keynotes and awards are curated to inspire, inform and intrigue you. We hope that over these short three days, you will be able to take the time to meet everyone who will be here,” said Jean Thoren, Founder of The World Animation Summit and Publisher of Animation Magazine. “It is my opinion that we don’t know who and what we don’t know until we reach out and explore. The reward for this effort is exponential. It is such a joy to step away from our screens and be surprised at what we find in the real world.”

As previously announced, this year’s Hall of Fame Award honorees are Loren Bouchard (creator of Bob’s Burgers), Maggie Kang & Chris Appelhans (directors of Kpop Demon Hunters), Juan Jose Meza-León (director of Aztec Batman: Clash of Empires), Tim Miller (creator/EP of Love, Death + Robots), animation creative executive Linda Simensky (PBS Kids), Matt Stone & Trey Parker (creators of South Park), Alex Woo (director of In Your Dreams), Studio 100 International and beloved animation publicist Fumi Kitahara (posthumous). Emmy-winning voice actor Eric Bauza will return as the master of ceremonies for the Awards Gala (Nov. 17).

In addition to Summit sessions, attendees can take part in networking events such as breakfasts, lunches, cocktail parties and more, provided with the support of sponsors including Sony Pictures Animation, LAIKA, Claynosaurz, JALI Research, Animation Scotland, The British Consulate (Los Angeles) and Colombia, the Country of Beauty.

World Animation Summit: Keynotes, Panels & Screenings

Monday, Nov. 17

• Creative Keynote: Delicious and Super Magical Recipes for Animation Success with Jorge R. Gutierrez
• Creative Keynote: Bold, New Adventures in Storytelling and World Building with Dana Terrace.

• Working with Global Partners: New Paradigms and Practices — Saraswathi Vani Balgam (Dancing Atoms), Aaron Behl (Atomic Cartoons), Frank Falcone (Guru Studio), Aaron Berger (Chatrone), David Michel (Cottonwood Media); Moderator: Sander Schwartz (Sandman Films)
• Will the Next Bluey Please Wag Your Tail — Dete Meserve (Apple TV’s Not a Box), Bryan O’Connell (The Jim Henson Company), Jessica Hanlon Rapsas (Disney Jr.’s SuperKitties), Vanessa Taylor Sands (DreamWorks Animation); Moderator: Karen Idelson
• Awards Features Contenders, Part I — Carrie Liao (Zootopia 2), Peter Hastings (Dog Man), Maggie Kang & Chris Appelhans (KPop Demon Hunters), Ugo Bienvenu (Arco)
• Awards Features Contenders, Part II — Alex Woo (In Your Dreams), Pierre Perifel (The Bad Guys 2), Derek Drymon (The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants), Dave Jesteadt (Little Amélie or the Character of Rain), Mamoru Hosoda (Scarlet)

Tuesday, Nov. 18

• Creative Keynote: Next Stop, Exandria, with Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham and Tasha Huo (Prime Video’s The Mighty Nein)
• Creative Keynote: Koyalee Chanda, Senior VP of Animation at Lion Forge and Emmy-winning writer Kerri Grant discuss the creation of the acclaimed series Iyanu

• Women Who Lead: A Conversation with Three Impactful Animation Studio Heads — Kristine Belson (Sony Pictures Animation), Margie Cohn (DreamWorks Animation), Hannah Minghella (Netflix Animation Studios)
• Inside the Mad, Mad World of Adult Animation —Alex Rubens (Krapopolis), Mike Hollingsworth (Low Tide). More panelists to be announced next week.

• The New British Animation Invasion
• How We Got Our Show Made, Against All Odds! — Emily Brundige (Goldie, Pubertina), Genevieve LeDoux (Star Forest, Tumble Leaf) Additional panelists to be announced.
• The Animation Professional’s Survival Guide: Practical Tips on Thriving in an Unpredictable Industry — Julia Pistor (upcoming Moomins feature), Gregg Taylor (In Your Dreams), Marge Dean (Invincible), Joe Sichta (Public Pixels Media); Moderator: Rita Street (Radar Cartoons)
• The Colombian Creative Connection — Carlos Duque (Katapix Media), Felipe Fierro (Pigmalion Animation Studio), Julián Sánchez (Dinamita Animación), Peter Lopez (IKartoon), David Andrés Mesa Parra (Bombillo Amarillo Studios), Camila Gómez (Team Toon), Alejandro Londono (ProColombia)

Wednesday, Nov. 19

• Creative Keynote: Claynosaurz Co-Founder & CCO Nicholas Cabana takes us through the company’s meteoric rise and shares his views on the possibilities of the new indie universe
• AI Myth Busters: How to Empower Artists and Storytellers with New Creative Tools — Eric Oldrin (Nirdlo), Nik Kleverov (Native Foreign), Kyle Jolly (Scriptsee); Moderator: Justine Bannister
• Finding Success in a “Digital First” World — Nic Cabana (Claynosaurz), Adam Walters (English Tree TV), Sherry Gunther Sugerman (Producer), Cory Williams (Daydream Studios); Moderator: Elie Dekel (Dekel Brands)
• Celebrating the Magic of LAIKA at 20 — As LAIKA marks two decades of innovation and artistry, this session explores how the studio continues to push the boundaries of animation. Go inside the making of ParaNorman: The Thrifting, a new CG short that extends the legacy of the Oscar-nominated ParaNorman, followed by a discussion with ParaNorman and Missing Link writer-director Chris Butler and LAIKA’s filmmaking team.
• Award Season Shorts Sampler Screening — Cardboard, Éiru, Snow Bear, Playing God, Wednesdays with Gramps, Versa, Forevergreen, Retirement Plan
• Shorts Contenders in the Spotlight — Malcon Pierce (Versa), Damián Perea (Playing God), J.P. Vine (Cardboard), Nathan Engelhardt (Forevergreen), Aaron Blaise (Snow Bear), Giovanna Ferrari (Éiru), Shabrayia Cleaver (Wednesdays with Gramps); Moderator: Brooke Keesling

2025 Ticket Giveaway

Los Angeles area locals can enter to win one of three free passes to the 2025 World Animation Summit.

Enter to win by answering the following trivia question via email to ramin@animationmagazine.net:

Q: In the rich musical world of KPop Demon Hunters, HUNTR/X star Rumi’s mom was also in a pop group. What was it called?

a. Starlight Sisters
b. Moonlight Mamas
c. Sunlight Sisters
d. Twilight Twins

Learn more and register to attend The World Animation Summit 2025 at animationmagazine.net/summit.