The seventh annual WIA World Summit at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival proved to be a resounding success last week. The day-long symposium on June 12 focused on the special theme, “Breaking the Box: Redefining Gender and Leadership.” The informative and inspiring panels featured thought leaders, filmmakers and executives from around the world discussing gender justice — a system of equity and fairness for people of all genders, gender identities and presentations.
WIA also joined forces with GLAAD, the world’s largest LGBTQ+ media advocacy organization, for the first time this year to bring the 7th Annual World Summit to the Annecy International Animation Festival and Mifa 2023. Megan Townsend, GLAAD’s Senior Director of Entertainment Research and Analysis led the crowd in a thought-provoking educational opening, ‘Unpacking: What is Gender?’ Townsend’s talk culminated in an astute question-and-answer session.
The 300-plus seat room was close to capacity throughout the entire day, with hundreds of additional people across 13 different countries following and viewing via live stream. The crowd was made up of people of all genders, races, and nationalities who had a genuine interest in the power of inclusive stories in animation. The speakers, which included ND Stevenson (creator of Nimona), Vicky Jenson (director of Shrek, Spellbound), Ramsey Naito (President of Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon), Cartoon Saloon co-founder and director Nora Twomey (My Father’s Dragon, The Breadwinner) Anna Ginsburg (Sandy, How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep) and Women in Animation president Marge Dean— explored the variety of ways in which authenticity can bring the animation industry to the next level of excellence.
“When it comes to artist management, having people who understand, have done the jobs themselves, know what it entails and know how to communicate about it [is key],” said Stevenson. “Recruiting people and forming a diverse team is a great place to start, but if they’re not feeling supported and heard, and if they’re not getting everything they need in order to thrive in that environment, they’ll end up burning out.”
He added, “Listening is a big part of sustaining these careers…Part of that is [avoiding] forced positivity. That’s just not how people are, and I think there’s something to be said for keeping an open forum for all thoughts and feelings — even if sometimes they’re negative – and making sure there’s an outlet for those as well.”
You can now watch these inspiring panels on the WIA website.
