Women in Children’s Media (WiCM) will welcome Nancy Kanter, Senior Vice President, Original Programming and General Manager Disney Junior Worldwide, in a new interview series on Monday, February 13th at the TriBeCa Film Center. The event, the first in the Red Chair Series, will be moderated by WiCM Advisory Board Member and President of Redhead Consulting, Amy Friedman, and will be an intimate conversation touching upon the intersection of life and work at the top tier of children’s media.

"WiCM is honored to have industry leader Nancy Kanter sharing her experience and expertise with us,” said Sarah Wallendjack, WiCM President. “She is a visionary and an innovator with a keen eye for the next pre-school hit series.  We look forward to a magical evening, and with Amy Friedman at the helm, it is guaranteed to be a fun night."

Friedman will moderate future WiCM Red Chair Series interviews, which join a robust offering of approximately three events per month, including an ongoing Writer’s Group. Other events include panel discussions with preeminent researchers, content creators and tastemakers in the field, as well as networking sessions and outings to museums, theater and related industry happenings.

Red Chair Series: Disney Junior’s Nancy Kanter

Monday, February 13, 6:30pm

Location: TriBeCa Film Center, 375 Greenwich Street, New York, NY 10013

Tickets: Free for WiCM members, $25 for non-members

   Patton Oswalt, who was recently nominated by the Chicago, Toronto and Los Angeles Film Critics’ Associations for his performance in the film Young Adult starring opposite Charlize Theron, will host this year’s 39th Annual Annie Awards on Saturday, February 4, 2012, at UCLA’s Royce Hall. "The Annies are where the real weirdos hang, and it's a visual feast just to have a drink with them,” says Oswalt, irreverent as always. “I can't wait.” Celebrating the best in animation, this annual black-tie evening will begin with a pre-reception at 5 p.m. followed by the Annie Awards ceremony at 7 p.m. and an after-party celebration immediately following the ceremony. All events will be held at Royce Hall.

Patton will be joined on stage by a lively mix of animation luminaries, celebrity presenters and comedic talent including animation legend June Foray and Judy Greer, JK Simmons, James Hong, Jib Jab founders Greg and Evan Spiridellis, Nika Futterman, Ty Burrell, Kelly Stables, Tara Strong, Daran Norris, Dee Bradley Baker and Logan Grove.

The Visual Effects Society (VES) is the entertainment industry's only organization representing the full breadth of visual effects practitioners including artists, technologists, model makers, educators, studio leaders, supervisors, PR/marketing specialists and producers in all areas of entertainment from film, television and commercials to music videos and games. Comprised of a diverse group of more than 2,300 members in 26 countries, the VES strives to enrich and educate its own members and members of the entertainment community at large through a multitude of domestic and international events, screenings and programs.

The Visual Effects Society announced the nominees for its 10th Annual VES Awards ceremony recognizing outstanding visual effects artistry in 23 categories of film, animation, television, commercials, special venues and video games. Nominees were chosen Saturday, January 7 by distinguished panels of VES members who viewed submissions at the FotoKem screening facilities in Burbank and New York, FotoKem’s Spy in San Francisco, and other facilities in London, Sydney, Vancouver and Wellington, NZ.

“The standard of the creative work that is being considered this year is unbelievably high across all categories,” said Jeffrey A. Okun, Chair of the Visual Effects Society. “The judges faced a huge challenge because all of the work was so far above the norm. We’re honored to have the opportunity to focus the spotlight on the outstanding work that has contributed to some of the highest grossing films and broadcast projects of all time.”

As previously announced, Stan Lee will be honored with the VES 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award and Douglas Trumbull with the Georges Méliès Award.

Saturday January 07, 2012 11am PST

From marketing to getting jobs, a freelance story artist needs to know how to hustle and how to please a client.  We will chat about different techniques to get the job done and find more work.

You won't want to miss this if you are looking to break out of the pack or simply breaking in.

When: Saturday December 03, 2011 11am PST

We will cover some of the digital tools and shortcuts available to story artists today.  Even with an inexpensive digital setup a savvy artist can create professional boards.

This is a great workshop to come and network with other people who are passionate about visual storytelling!