The Suraj Israni Center for Cinematic Arts at UC San Diego, in partnership with the SoCal Cineforum, invites you to a panel discussion exploring the careers of creators and recruiters in the animation, film and video game industries.

Lead by UC San Diego alumnus and animator Marty Davis, panelists will discuss their work and career path, sharing insight, advice and answering questions from the audience. Don't miss this exclusive opportunity to connect with professionals in these fields and learn how to jump start your own career!

• Event is free and open to all. Space is limited - please rsvp via the Eventbrite.
• Location: The Mosaic Building auditorium #113 is located next to the Jeannie Hall in the North Torrey Pines Living and Learning Neighborhood (NTPLLN) at UC San Diego.
• Parking: The closest visitor parking is located in the Scholars Parking underground parking structure (map). Weekend parking is $2.10/hour.

MEET THE PANELISTS:

· Marty Davis ’20: Marty Davis is an animator, illustrator and sculptor whose work has appeared in video games for Sega, Sony and Disney/Pixar, including as Co-Animation Director for THQ’s Ratatouille and WALL-E. He has done storyboards for Mass Animation, DC Universe Online, and Fox TV. In addition to his animation work, he worked as the in-house illustrator for Autoweek magazine. He has taught animation, drawing and sculpture over the past twenty-five years for schools including UC San Diego Extension, Cal State Fullerton, and the Watts Atelier of the Arts. He currently teaches for Fullerton College and the La Jolla Athenaeum.

· Mike Dietz: Artist/Animator Mike Dietz is known for his significant contributions to the field of video game animation. In a career that spans the era of the Sega Genesis to the present day, Mike has served as lead animator on revolutionary titles like Aladdin, Earthworm Jim, The Neverhood, and the Kim Possible interactive adventure for Walt Disney Imagineering. Additionally, Mike has extensive experience as an animation director, animator and art director in film and television, with proficiency in a variety of animation techniques including CG, stop-motion, and hand drawn (both digital and pencil on paper). He has also served as a lead stop-motion animator on the Fortnite and SpongeBob holiday specials. Most recently Mike animated the Shadow Monster in the Netflix stop-motion feature film, “Wendell & Wild.”

· GeRon Thompson: GeRon is an experienced animation and video game industry recruiter, most recently a Senior Recruiter for Netflix Feature and Series Animation. He has experience acquiring talent for CG, 2D and Stop-Motion Animation projects for pre- and post-production, including Editorial & Engineering positions.

· Carlo Sansonetti: Currently working as a Senior Engineering Manager on Pipeline Development at Blizzard Entertainment, Carlo has extensive experience as both a manager and a rigging lead for games and TV/Film. Carlo has experience writing tools in python and pyqt, java script, php, MySQL knowledge. Additionally, Carlo has done animation for games, including Pixar’s Ratatouille. He has worked for Blizzard overseeing cinematics for World of Warcraft, Overwatch, and Diablo; worked at Meta/Facebook developing the Metaverse; game development at Big Red Button, Heavy Iron Studios; and worked at Lucasfilm Animation, where he worked as lead rigger for The Clone Wars TV series.

· Jeff Ranjo: Jeff is a Storyboard Artist and Character Designer who helped develop Academy Award winning feature films like Moana. Most recently, Jeff served as Head of Story/Co-Executive Producer on Jorge Guitierez’s “Maya and the Three” at Netflix, and worked as Storyboard Artist on Disney’s Moana, Frozen, The Emperor’s New Groove, and Meet the Robinsons, as well as Sony Animation’s Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Hotel Transylvania and Surf’s Up, on which he served as Head of Story.