KingstOON is Coming! Festival and Conference Run April 21-25
It aims to provide Jamaican animators and industry stakeholders with ways to continue learning about the global industry; create opportunities for producers to generate profits from their projects; and showcase diverse content, including film and animation products from around the world.
Attendees can participate in masterclasses on topics such as financing and co-productions; a boot camp on creating the perfect pitch for investors, distributors, and broadcasters; and discussions on global industry trends. Animators and creatives are expected to benefit from other activities such as panel discussions; business matchmaking and networking; a virtual expo; and a film festival featuring diverse animated content.
‘’Having participated in numerous international conferences over the last two years, we have taken from the best and incorporated it into this year’s staging of KingstOOn,” explained event sponsor Esiron’s director Alex Morrissey. “We’re going digital, and this means that as a participant you will have access to all the sessions online, rewatch anything you might have missed and connect with all other participants, sponsors and speakers in our networking lounge.’’
“We truly pulled out all the stops this year, to ensure that our first ever virtual staging of Kingst00n Animation Conference and Film Festival, will be our best one to date,” noted Robert Reid. “We will be harnessing the very best technology and utilizing a first-class production team. Our viewers will certainly be impressed by all that we have in store for them.”
Free registration is still open. Register here.
“Phase 3 feels privileged to have been selected to be part of this novel approach to presenting the KingstOOn 2021 Animation Conference,” commented Phase 3 Productions creative director & CEO Delano Forbes. “We will be using a state-of-the-art 4K production truck as well as Innovative animation techniques such as motion capture for our animated hosts.”
The festival will kick off with a keynote addresses from Jamaica’s Prime Minister, Andrew Holness; Tahseen Sayed, World Bank Country Director for the Caribbean and Latin America; and storyteller Matthew Luhn – whose story credits include the Toy Story films, Monsters Inc, Finding Nemo, Cars, Monsters University, Ratatouille, and UP. It will also feature keynote presentations by industry professionals from companies such as Disney; Netflix; Sony Animation; Nickelodeon; Hit Entertainment; Pixar; Sesame Street Workshop; HiT Entertainment; and Lion Forge.
Using a hybrid platform, marquee events such as the Opening Ceremony, Pitch Competition and Awards Ceremony were pre-recorded. The set designs include multiple screens to display speakers, awardees and judges speaking from over 20 countries.
The event will be co-hosted by Caleb, an animated character created by Jamaican self-taught 3D character modeler and digital artist, Coretta Singer. Known by many as a pioneer, she has won several international accolades for her craft.
Source: KingstOOn Animation Conference and Film Festival
Phase 3 Productions is also on board and will be using V-Fairs, which is a virtual and hybrid events platform that helps organizations reach global audiences using an innovative 3D Experience.
KingstOOn Animation Conference and Film Festival 2021 is organized by the Government of Jamaica through the Youth Employment in the Digital and Animation Industries (YEDAI) Project, in collaboration with the World Bank. This project, funded by a US-million World Bank loan to the Government of Jamiaca, targets the training of young Jamaicans in the digital and animation industries.
The Phase 3 Productions’ team will be using the latest video conferencing tools for integration of virtual and physical components facilitating the participation of international and regional hosts, coaches, and judges.
Morrissey further explained that this KingstOOn is not just about the festival going virtual, it is about being able to deliver a world class event and provide opportunities for every aspiring animator to learn, promote and connect with key stakeholders in the industry.
