Women are taking the lead and the Visual Effects Society (VES) is putting some serious industry firepower behind them. The global professional honorary society has unveiled the speaker lineup for its inaugural Women Who Lead Summit, set for 4 September at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.
The half-day event aims to connect women across visual effects and entertainment, with conversations on leadership, technology, storytelling and the next generation of talent. Networking breakfasts and lunches will bookend two keynotes and two panels.
The programme opens with Bárbara Muschietti, the producer behind the IT films and HBO’s IT: Welcome to Derry. Muschietti, who has also worked on Mama and a slate of upcoming projects including The Brave and the Bold, will share insights from a career spanning film, television, documentaries and commercials.
The first panel, ‘Opening Doors for the Next Generation of Leaders’, will be moderated by HBO senior vice president of VFX VES Janet Muswell Hamilton. Joining her are Jennifer Bell of Universal Pictures, Kathy Chasen-Hay of Paramount Pictures, Anne Putnam Kolbe of Netflix, Christine Mansfield of Disney and Lori J. Nelson of Warner Bros. Pictures.
The discussion will tackle leadership, resilience and the business of making space for the next generation of women in entertainment. In other words, it is less about waiting for a seat at the table and more about making sure there is a bigger table.
Technology gets its own turn in the spotlight with ‘Storytelling Empowered by Technology’. Moderated by NBCUniversal VP of creative technologies Annie Chang, the panel brings together Dina Benadon of Super 78, Pavani Boddapati of WetaFX and Connie Wailan Siu of Promise.
The conversation will explore how real-time production, immersive media, AI and emerging creative tools are changing the way stories are made and who gets to shape them.
Closing the summit is Brit MacRae, Canadian-American founder, actress and producer, and co-founder of entertainment technology company Kino. Her production credits include Undertone, acquired by A24, while her technology work focuses on helping studios and filmmakers securely review, test, launch and monetise content.
The summit sits within VES’ broader Women Who Lead initiative, launched earlier this year to support women across the industry. Beyond the event, the programme includes peer mentorship, a careers in VFX video series and a newsletter highlighting industry news and career opportunities.
With VFX evolving at breakneck speed, the summit’s message is timely: the future of the industry will not just be shaped by new technology, but by who gets to wield it. And this time, women are firmly in the frame.
