Virtual Pixelatl prepares ambitious programs for industry and artists

With an ambitious program of conferences and business meetings,  the Mexican association pixelatl at the end of last week, presented the program for its 2020 virtual festival, promising that "it will not be another cycle of online conferences like many that have recently emerged", but an international learning and bonding experience for all artists and entrepreneurs in the creative industries of Mexico and Latin America.

The event, which will take place 1 5-September online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, top executives from major international networks such as Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Netflix, Fox, Discovery Kids, Sony Pictures Animation, Disney Animation Studios, DreamWorks Animation TV, Amazon Studios, BBC, PBS e Televisa, among others, who will be open to business meetings with participating studios to see their ideas for new intellectual property or service job skills.

“In the midst of the economic crisis, a consequence of the COVID pandemic, the creative industry can be an engine of economic recovery for Mexico and Latin America,” said José Iñesta, director of Pixelatl.

Iñesta explained that thanks to business meetings and links created in previous years, several Mexican animation studios have been awarded contracts to provide animation for some of the most popular series broadcast by international networks, SVOD or through other international channels. Additionally, Cartoon Network, Discovery Kids, Netflix, and NatGeo Kids purchased intellectual property that was presented to them at Pixelatl.

“Each Festival is part of a process that takes place throughout the year, the best 10 or 12 animated film series or projects that are presented to the networks are selected by the Ideatoon call. Some of the previous year's projects have already been produced, ”Iñesta explained. “A pre-agenda of business meetings is prepared for the study delegates who participate based on the information they fill in after registering their participation. In addition, a help desk is available during the networking event to help networks find more appointments with Latin American studios ”.

Recruitment:

National and international studios participate in the event to recruit new talents. In previous years, for example, Quebec companies hired Mexican creators both to work remotely from Mexico and to move into their studios in Canada. In addition, larger studios take advantage of the event to meet new talent and emerging artists with an eye on recruiting.

“This year, major studios will be recruiting and doing portfolio reviews, such as Laika, Bento Box, Disney and Nickelodeon,” said Christian Bermejo, Art Director of Pixelatl.

Women in animation:

During the press conference, Bermejo was tasked with presenting the details of the Pixelatl Festival program, noting that it was designed to highlight and promote female talent in the industry. For this reason, among the main guests of the festival there are Rebecca sugarcreator of Steven Universeand Mexican creator Sophia Alexander, which will feature a stellar presentation of its upcoming Crunchyroll original series, Onyx equinox.

Other notable guests include Taneka Stots, who was also a comic book publisher; Julia Pott, creator of the acclaimed animated series HBO Max Summer camp island; artistic director Linda chen, who is currently working on DreamWorks TV on Guillermo del Toro Tales of Arcadia series; the Dutch illustrator residing in Germany "loish, “Whose illustrations go viral on social media globally; and Bolivian animator Matisse Gonzalez Jordán, who will present a pilot project developed for Cartoon Network.

Learn more about the speakers previously announced here.

Additional highlights:

With over 100 activities making up the Pixelatl Festival 2020 schedule, some other standouts include:

• The first exclusive of a new Cartoon Network show
• Four speeches and panels by Nickelodeon Animation, from an artistic and commercial perspective
• A panel with the supervising directors of iconic animated series for adults BoJack Horseman, The Simpson, American Dad!, The Midnight Gospel e Paradise PD
• An exploration of the Star Wars universe with a panel of ILM executives and artists
• Disney animation panel with legendary animators
• A presentation with the creators of the new flagship FOX series Duncanville

The complete program and information on participation in the Pixelatl Festival will be available on elfestival.mx.