With the aim of ramping up industry connectivity, highlighting emerging technologies and honouring excellence in the VFX ecosystem, AnimationXpress is bringing VFX and More (VAM) Summit which is set to be held on 22 and 23 January 2021. The VAM Awards are slated to follow at a later date.
VAM Summit is an initiative to bring together the visual effects and related industries – both in India and internationally – to pause and reflect on trends and developments in every aspect of the business and technology associated with it.
With an elite round-up of some of the best minds of the VFX industry, the VAM Summit will see interactions across all the stakeholders in the global media and entertainment spectrum.
A galaxy of industry trailblazers, thought-leaders, academicians, filmmakers and VFX professionals will be sharing their ideas, imagination, solutions and services on a virtual meet, encapsulating the challenges, power points and trends that the year witnessed.
From Academy award winning VFX professionals to Indian’s indie studios prepping up to raise the bar for global domination, the VAM Summit will see a range of discussions on chasing excellence and leveraging emerging technology.
With VFX industry’s creme de la creme from around the world on the advisory board, the summit is set to be a definitive virtual gathering of the VFX maestros and a vantage point for the entire AVGC industry.
“VFX has fascinated me since the days of Jason and the Argonauts. How it has evolved since then. Hence, it is a great honour for me to be able to bring together all those fabulous behind the scenes professionals who ensure that difficult stories get told with effects that make them believable under VAM,” says AnimationXpress founder, CEO & editor in chief Anil Wanvari. “We want to develop the VAM Summit and the Vammies as the definitive platform for the Indian VFX industry which has been growing by leaps and bounds and is today respected over the world. I would love to see the day when India becomes the centre of the world’s VFX developments and I am hopeful we will be able to contribute to that through our VAM and Vammies initiatives.”
“AnimationXpress brings you an amazing summit where people from the creative, production, distribution, broadcasting and streaming sectors; all coming together to talk about the next things that are happening and 2021 is going to open doors with VFX powering the industry! Be there! AnimationXpress has got your name and the ticket at the gate for you!” shares Technicolor India country head Biren Ghose who has been supporting the initiative as an advisory board member.
Speaking about the upcoming summit and awards, National Award winning VFX supervisor Madhu Sudhanan who has been helping us set up a rocking agenda shares, “I have been supporting Anil Wanvari since 2004 and this is a great initiative. My dream was, is and will be to see an Indian receiving the Academy Awards for VFX. Also, we are one of the best and finest storytellers and I wish one of our filmmakers get the Academy Award not for a foreign film but for a film made in India by Indians from prep to post!”
Oscar-winning VFX stalwart Tim McGovern, who has been advising us at every step of the way, is also looking forward to the summit with anticipation. He shares, “I’m really looking forward to AnimationXpress’ VAM Summit and the Awards. It’ll be great to see the best work that is being done here. The VFX, animation and games work in India are at a whole new level now, it’s been a long pandemic and I can’t wait to see what amazing work was done with all that pent up talent!”
Senior VFX producer and our advisory committee member Asmita Bharati, who is a noted name in the VFX industry also expresses her excitement for the virtual summit. She shares, “I am super excited to start 2021 with the “VFX and More (VAM) Summit & Awards.” Hoping this year to be a lot more positive overall and to bring in positive developments in the VFX industry. I am honoured to be on the Advisory Committee for this prestigious event and look forward to all the interesting & insightful sessions. Also wishing good luck to all the hardworking industry colleagues participating in the VAM Awards.”
With mind-blowing new CG driven technology innovations and the hybridised solutions coming to the rescue of the current challenges of live-action shoots, a paradigm shift is being steadily realised even as the dust begins to settle on the new normal. Given the strict guidelines on social gatherings, getting a large number of people to work together in proximity will continue to pose a challenge, thereby affecting live-action production.
How are remote pipelines, previz technology, communication channels and virtual production; which is being touted as the fireball of the VFX world going to fill up that lacuna in the content production?
The VAM Summit will present the disruptive emerging methodology ranging from the advent of digital humans, in-time VFX and real-time flow, studio at home and everything more that spells modern wizardry!
With Indian names rolling up in the end credits of global majors, is India the next sleeping giant of the VFX industry?
The panel of industry experts will put their heads together with an aim to stimulate FDI in the VFX sphere, VFX-heavy OTT premium originals, and government grants along with looking into ways to leverage and nurture the untapped reservoir of artistic talent in India and much more.
The present economic condition across all industries has seen a collective plea for relief packages to rescue the sunrise industry. The mixture of policy-influencers from the AVGC industry will address the prevailing need of virtual interaction and aggregation.
The Indian audience becoming increasingly mesmerized by the grandeur of VFX-generated fictional worlds is testament to the fact that the Indian VFX and animation market is ready to quit being merely a service-engine for global giants and playing second fiddle. Indian is burgeoning into a sought-after destination for international studios to mine both talent and support, is it time to raise the bar for ourselves?
The VAM Summit is poised to emerge as the holy grail, a year-long guide and crystal ball for the pacemakers of the visual effects industry with a vision to put India on the global map and evangelise the use effects in the motion pictures industry.