Breaking new ground in the digital age, an extraordinary round-up of some of the best minds of the AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Games and Comics) industry trailblazers of international commerce and national policymakers is set to jolt the AVGC sector out of a slump called covid-19.
Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII) upcoming SummitFX 2020 will see a host of acclaimed names from the global media and entertainment spectrum, who’ll be sharing their ideas, imagination, solutions and services on a first of its kind virtual meet, to be held from September 1 to 4 on a cloud- based platform called HIVE.
“Never before have a galaxy of global greats come together on a single platform in the AVGC industry like at SummitFX 2020. I am excited and hopeful that these interactions across all the stakeholders will show the way for the industry to bring back growth”, said Biren Ghose – Vice Chair, CII National Committee on Media & Entertainment; Chair, CII Sub Committee on AVGC & Immersive Media & Country Head – Technicolor India.
From Academy award winning VFX artists breaking down their magnum opus projects to Indian animation industry prepping up to raise the bar for global domination, the Summit will talk about chasing excellence and growth while adapting to the new normal across the media and entertainment industry. The longing to see the main characters of your much beloved Disney shows with Indian ethnicities might soon be realized with a special panel of Disney pointing way to a promising future of international collaborations at this Summit, as they discuss their latest hit animated show, Mira the Royal detective as an example of it.
Virtual production is the fireball of the AVGC industry and a dynamic panel of the same is going to turn the spotlight on how game engine technology is coming to the rescue of live action shoots and its methodology in the post pandemic world. The advent of digital humans, in-time VFX and real time flow, studio at home and everything more that resonates revolution! Scroll down to learn more about the intriguing sessions that you can look forward to at SummitFX 2020.
Firstly, the Summit will bring in ground breakers from the global media and entertainment industry will be put into motion by the following dignitaries from the central ministry. In attendance from the Central Ministry would be:
- Shri. Prakash Javadekar – Union Minister of I&B and Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises*
- Shri. Piyush Goyal – Union Minister of Commerce and Industry
- Shri. Manish Tiwari – Member of Parliament
- Mr. Amit Khare – Secretary of I&B Ministry*
- Mr. Praveen Kumar – Secretary of Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship*
- Mr. Ajay Prakash Sawhney – Secretary –Ministry of Electronics & IT, GoI*
The conference intends to encourage the future and collective interest of the promising AVGC sector in India. The ministerial coterie along with a panel of industry experts will put their heads together with an aim to stimulate FDI in the AVGC the sector, original Intellectual Property content, and production grants along with looking into ways to harness the untapped reservoir of artistic talent in India and much more. The contribution of state ministries has been integral in driving forward the much-needed policies across various states in action. Gracing the Summit from the State-Ministry would be:
- Mr. K. T. Rama Rao – Minister of Information Technology, Government of Telangana*
- Mr Jayesh Ranjan – Principal Secretary to Government, Department of Industries and Commerce, Telangana.
- Dr. E.V. Ramana Reddy – Additional Chief Secretary to Government, Department of Electronics Information, Technology Biotechnology and Science & Technology, Karnataka*
- Mr Apoorva Kumar Singh – Principal Secretary to Government, Depart of Industries & Commerce, Haryana*
- Mr Hemant Sharma – Principal Secretary to Government, Department of Industries, Odisha*
The present economic condition across all industries calls for initiatives from Government and private departments, prominent stakeholders, the leading solution providers, academicians, and infrastructure partners to come to the rescue of the sunrise industry. The amalgamation of change agents from the Central and State government and private entities are what makes SummitFX 2020 an out of the ordinary event in the prevailing need of virtual interaction and progression.
The entirety of the Summit comprises of some of the most sought-after names from the indigenous and international industry.
Crafting the unreal with VFX
The India audience being mesmerized by the grandeur of VFX-generated fictional worlds is a testament to the fact that the India VFX and animation market is ready to quit playing second fiddle and selling itself short. Indian is burgeoning into a sought-after destination for international studios to mine both talent and support, is it time to raise the bar for ourselves? Learn from our panellists!
- Samir Hoon – Director Visual Effects – APAC, Netflix
- Jesh Krishnamurthy – CEO, Anibrain
- Rajarajan Ramakrishnan – Head of Creative Operations |FEV| |MPC Film| MR.X|, Technicolor India
- Keitan Yadhav – COO, VFX Producer, Redchillies.vfx & Redchillies.color
- Grib Chandran – Head Of Production (VFX), ReDefine
- Mike Yatham – CEO & Managing Director RotoMaker
- Pete Draper – Division Head & Chief Technical Director Makuta VFX
- Saurabh Dalmiya, CEO Anibrain
- Srinivas Mohan – VFX Supervisor, Indian artist
- Prasad Sutar – Co-Founder & Creative Head – NY VFXWAALA
- Viral Thakkar – Creative Director/VFX Supervisor ReDefine
- Sandeep Kamal – VFX Supervisor, Limitless
- Ronak Sanghadia, VFX Supervisor, Red Chillies Entertainment
Game on!
The Gaming industry experienced a vigorous boom in the wake of Covid-19. The demand for disruptive technology in the gaming industry is reaching a fever pitch calling for new and improved experience. How much more can one mine out of this billion-dollar industry? There’s an expert panel to answer the burning questions!
- Quentin Staes-Polet – GM India and SEA, Epic Games
- Sallyann Houghton – Business Development Manager, Epic Games London Innovation Lab
- Keef Sloan – Senior Marketing Manager, EMEA – Epic Games
- Nitish Mittersain CEO & Founder Nazara Technologies
- Ashish Gupta – LEAD: Game Ecosystem, Jio Games
- Ramesh Anumukonda – Country Manager, Unity Technologies
- Deepak Gurijala – CEO & Founder, Street Lamp Games
- Zain Fahadh Founder, Ogre Head Games
- Ann Hand Chairman & CEO Super League Gaming USA
- Rajan Navani – Chairman CII India@75 Council and Vice Chairman & Managing Director JetLine Group of Companies
Art and technology: Building bridges
The Summit will throw a spotlight upon the highly acclaimed artistic brilliance of the recent years with attendance of prominent names in Hollywood. Luminaries from overseas include:
- Guillaume Rocheron, Academy award winner for 1917 – VFX Supervisor, MPC Film
- Luke Groves – Visual Effects Producer, Mr. X
- Dr. Paul Debevec – Senior Staff Scientist, Google Research, Adjunct Research Professor
- David Morin – Epic Games Industry Manager for M&E and Executive director, Academy Software Foundation
- Mike Seymour – Ph.D., Researcher, Lecturer, Writer – Tech Specialist, Digital Humans: MOTUS Lab USYD & FXguide, Co-founder.
- Dan Sarto – Co-Founder and Publisher, Animation World Network (AWN)
- Shuzo John Shiota – President & CEO, Polygon Pictures
Learning tricks of the trade
The Summit will also see a dynamic and multifaceted panel of industrial captains. Seasoned industry experts will be exchanging views on the importance of drawing forth new technologies to meet the constantly growing demand for interactive technology, growth of immersive media, disruptive technology in animated content, mentoring in skill acquisition, and the future of the AVGC sector in India. The line-up of speakers on this topic are the best and brightest in the business.
- K. Madhavan – Chairman CII National Committee on Media & Entertainment and Managing Director Star India Pvt Limited & Disney India
- Siddharth Roy Kapur – Founder & MD, Roy Kapur Films
- Biren Ghose – Vice Chair, CII National Committee on Media & Entertainment; Chair, CII Sub Committee on AVGC & Immersive Media & Country Head – Technicolor India
- Uttam Pal Singh – Head, Discovery Kids – Discovery Communications
- Abhishek Dutta – Network Head – Cartoon Network & Pogo, South Asia, Turner International & Warner Media
- SivaKumar Sundaram – Chairman Executive Committee, Bennett Coleman
- Sameer Hoon – Director Visual Effects – APAC, Netflix
- Manish Vyas – President Communications Media & Entertainment Business & The CEO Network Services at Tech Mahindra Technology
- Srikant Sinha CEO Telangana Academy of Skill & Knowledge (TASK)
- Punit Misra – CEO- Domestic Broadcast, Zee entertainment Enterprises Limited
- Blaise Fernandes – President, The Indian Music Industry
- Gaurav Gandhi – Director & Country General Manager, Amazon Prime Video
- Shridhar Rajgopal – Managing Director, Accenture Interactive
- CP Gurnani – CEO & Managing Director, Tech Mahindra
- Keitan Yadav – COO, Redchillies VFX
- Anuj Kacker – President and Executive Director, Aptech Ltd
- Sumit Grover – Senior Vice President, Business Head – Cable, Media and Entertainment, rajTech Mahindra
- Rajiv Chilaka – Founder and Managing Director, Green Gold Animation
- Kireet Khurana – Indian Filmmaker Storyteller & Ad-film Director and Founder Director Climb Media (I) Pvt Limited
- P. Jayakumar – CEO, TOONZ MEDIA GROUP
- BS Srinivas – Secretary ABAI – GOK Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Animation Visual Effects Gaming & comics (AVGC) Sector – Bengaluru
- Vishal Gondal, Entrepreneur & Angel Investor, Founder & CEO – GOQii
- Ravi Gururaj – Founder & CEO, QikPod
- Merzin Tavaria – Merzin Tavaria – Creative Director & General Manager, DNEG India | Co-Founder, Prime Focus
- Devdatta D. Potnis – SVP – Revenue & Corporate Strategy: Cosmos-Maya
- Munjal Shroff – Director & COO, Graphiti
- Biju D. – VFX Supervisor
- Nitin Kalra, Regional Director – Animation International India Pvt, India, SAARC & MENA
- Tejonidhi Bhandare – COO, Reliance Animation
- Grace Marin – Managing Director Experience Transformation Extended Reality lead Accenture Interactive – Advanced Technology Center India
- Rajesh R. Turakhia – Founder & Director, Frameboxx
- Subodh Sachan – Director, Software Technology Park of India (STPI) Meity GoI and Managing Director & CEO AIC STPI-NEXT Initiatives
- Dr. Omkar Rai, Director General Software Technology Park of India (STPI)
- Charles Sevior, CTO | APJC, Dell Technologies | Unstructured Data Division
- R K Chand, Head of Studio Technicolor Film and Episodic VFX Mumbai at TraceVFX
At the forefront of Technology
There are amazing new CG driven technology innovations that provide a unique opportunity to come to the rescue of the present difficulties of live-action shoots. Given the strictures and protocols to be adhered to mitigate the current situation, getting several people to work together in proximity will continue being a challenge, thereby affecting live-action production. It is imperative to draw forth new technologies from world leaders that enable virtual production, which in turn will help to fill the vacuum for content production and also meet the growing need for content. SummitFX 2020 will present this disruptive emerging methodology through the following speakers:
- Chaitanya Chinchlikar – Vice President, Whistling Woods
- Andrew Waite Brown – EMEA Regional Director Teradici
- Samit Shetty – Technical Solutions Manager Autodesk M&E
- Saswat Sahoo – Director of Production Technology 88 Pictures
- Shajy Thomas – Head of Technology – Technicolor Film & TV MPC Film | MrX | Technicolor Film & TV
- Kumar Chandrasekaran – Head of Production, Technicolor Animation &Games
Indie animators speak
While feature films are made of grandeur, the foundation of it all lies in animated short films. India is home to some highly talented animated filmmakers who have weaved short, yet impactful stories with the help of animation. These Indie filmmakers, whose projects have tasted success throughout the globe, will be imparting the lessons they have learnt to make it to the zenith.
- E. Suresh Director & Founder Studio, EEKSAURUS Productions
- Saameer Mody – Managing Director Pocket films
- Prosenjit Ganguly – Animation Film Designer
- Upamanyu Bhattacharyya – Co-Founder Ghost Animation Studios
- Bimal Poddar – Creative Head Fairycows Animation Studio
The Disney Magic!
We are all aware of Disney’s latest animated show Mira, Royal Detective that introduces a brave and resourceful girl name Mira is currently a favourite amongst its audience. Starring the likes of Freida Pinto and Kal Penn as voice artistes, this show is a never-seen before convergence of International and Indian appeal. The Summit will open its doors for a special panel from Disney who will be talking about the future of collaborative projects in the AVGC sector. Filling the spots in the panel would be:
- Diane Ikemiyashiro – VP – Current Series/Original Programming, Disney Junior
- Audrey Ford – Line Producer – Wild Canary
- Dorothea Gerassimova – Art Director – Wild Canary
- Sue Perotto – Supervising Director – Wild Canary
- Sascha Paladino – Executive Producer – Wild Canary
- Manoj Menon – Art Director – Technicolor Animation & Games
- Leon Christian – Animation Dept. Director – Technicolor Animation & Games
AVGC and Diversity
The representation of women in the AVGC sector is sparse as opposed to their male counterparts. SummitFX 2020 has brought together the leading women in the AVGC sector today, who have broken the glass ceiling and set a precedent for the sea of aspiring talented women who see their future in the AVGC industry. The speakers of this session will be:
- Margaret Dean – President & Head, Women in Animation & Studio for Crunchyroll
- Payal Dani – Head of Creative Operations, MPC Film
- Kranti Sarma – Studio Head – MPC Film / Mr X / Mikros VFX India
- Sherry Bharda – VFX Manager, Netflix
- Gitanjali Rao – Indian theatre actress, animator and film maker*
Shaping new Realities
The Extended Reality market continues to grow exponentially across a broad range of industries estimated to be $16.8 billion in 2019 and forecasted to reach to a humongous $160 billion by 2023. The future demands to tap into the full potential of XR technology and go mainstream. The expert panel will take us through the demands of future:
- Arnav Neel Ghosh – Former Managing Director of Blippar India
- Krupalu Mehta, Co-Founder at Parallax Labs, VR/AR Training Facilitator
- Eddie Avil – XROM
- Arvind Neelakathan, Head of Unity Evangelism in India
- Ninad Chhaya, Co-Founder and COO GoPhygital
To sum it all up!
SummitFX 2020 is going to act as a vantage point for the pacemakers of Indian animation, visual effects, gaming and comic industry as a means to derive a plan to put India on the global map. The event is going to be a potential platform to discuss the pressing need to stimulate growth in the Indian media and entertainment industry and who better than THE frontrunners from the Indian AVGC sector of the country to sum it all up for you!
- Anand Neelakantan – Writer – Baahubali
- Ashish Kulkarni – Founder & CEO, Punnaryug Artivision Pvt ltd
- Om Raut – Indian film director, writer & producer – Film Director, Tanhaji
- Keitan Yadav – COO Red Chillies VFX
- Sidharth Jain – Founder – The Story Ink (TSI)
- Murali Manohar Reddy VFX Supervisor, Firefly Creative Studio
- Gokulraj Baskaran – Indian film director
- Bharath Laxmipati, Senior Vice President, Green Gold Animation
- Prabir Kr. Das – Director, Software Technology Parks of India (STPI)
- Tapas Chakravarthy – Chairman, DQ Entertainment
- Rajesh Jog – Managing Partner, Nexstage Venture Advisors
- Jaineel Aga – Founder and CEO,Planet Superheroes
- Muslim Kapasi – Director, My Baby Excel
- Nannette D’Sa, Brand Expansion Advisory, Independent Director, Zee Learn, MT Educare, Kamats Vidli Rest. Strategic Advisor Garodia Edu.
- Sachin Puntambekar, Director Consumer Products, Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd
- Kiran Prasad, Head of Production, MPC Film Bangalore
- Alex Rapley, Client Services Manager Kids Insights & Parents Insights
