Come Hang out at Annecy Festival 2025
We’re heading to Annecy Festival 2025, the world’s largest event for animation and storytelling – and we hope to see you there! Here’s a line up of a few things you won’t want to miss.
The Art of Getting Hired Panel
Date: June 12, 2025
Time: 11:15 AM – 12:15 PM
Join our expert panel for a candid conversation about how to showcase your skills, navigate the ever-changing job market, and get your foot in the door. Whether you’re fresh out of school or making a career shift, you’ll walk away with real-world insights and advice tailored to today’s animation landscape.
We’ve hosted panels like this before — and for good reason. The animation industry is always shifting, and it’s important to keep up with the latest trends and tools.
Panelists
Kara Oropallo – Vice President, Crew Development at DNEG Animation. She is a key figure of the studio’s leadership team, with a true passion for connecting animation artists and managers with the tools and networks they need to succeed professionally. Kara is responsible for the employee journey at DNEG Animation, from outreach and recruitment through to training, resourcing, and performance management. In addition to her many years at DreamWorks Animation in production, Kara has trained and consulted on projects for Netflix Animation, Skydance Animation, Paramount Animation, Reel FX Animation, and Mikros Animation.
Stéphane Biava – Solution Architect with over 10 years of experience in linear content and technical art, specializing in animation. With a background in traditional art, he now helps individuals and studios integrate Unreal Engine into their creative pipelines. He’s also the creator of the YouTube channel Proj Prod, where he shares tips and insights on real-time workflows and production techniques.
David Hubert – Founder of Agora Studio. David always dreamed of making movies in his childhood, which led him to travel the world and work as a character animator on major film franchises like Hellboy, Shrek, Kung Fu Panda, Madagascar, and The Croods. He later became an animation instructor and supervisor, eventually directing cinematics for the Deus Ex and Tomb Raider franchises. Along the way, he discovered remote freelancing and envisioned how it could revolutionize the animation industry — a vision that led to the creation of Agora.Studio.
Stacy Minero – (Moderator) Global Lead, Unreal Engine & Creator Marketplaces. Stacy oversees marketing strategy for Unreal Engine Industries and Epic’s Creator communities Quixel, Sketchfab, ArtStation and Fab. Prior to joining Epic Games, Stacy led Twitter ArtHouse, a global team focused on content creation and connection to Creators. Her team developed campaigns with social influencers, visual artists, and digital producers and helped make Creators successful on the service. Stacy previously led the Content Strategy practice at Mindshare and Communication Planning for American Express. Earlier in her career she was a Strategic Planner on Hershey, P&G and Coca-Cola.
ArtStation Mixer
Date: June 11, 2025
Time: 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Come join us at the ArtStation Mixer during Annecy! It’s a casual meet up where artists, studios, and recruiters get together to connect, chat, and unwind.
Whether you’re in animation, games, VFX, or illustration, this is a great chance to meet people from across the industry, share what you’re working on, and see what others are up to. We’ll have drinks, snacks, and a good mix of creative folks from around the world. Spots are limited – RSVP required.
Want More?
Unreal Engine will be presenting a series of inspiring talks on animation throughout the week. To see the full schedule and get all the details, head over to the Unreal Engine blog here.
We’re excited to connect with the art community at Annecy. If you can’t make it in person, follow us on social for highlights, behind-the-scenes moments, and updates throughout the week. See you there!
