November 2-4th, 2023!
LIVE IN-PERSON this year at the Toronto Reference Library! PLUS some exclusive ONLINE events for our international friends. The Toronto Animation Industry Conference 2023 is 3-days of snuggling up to creators, directors and the best ANIMATION | GAMING | VFX peeps we can find!
Catch it all live, Toronto time (ET) or come back and watch the online segments for three months after.
VIRTUAL SESSIONS HERE: https://www.crowdcast.io/c/taafi2023/lobby
*Friday and Saturday will be IN-PERSON ONLY!
**Any passholder can watch online segments later.
Plan on joining us each day for a selection of epic curated treats, and stick around after to rub elbows with fellow attendees and a slew of super nice speakers.
3
days
75
speakers
1
stream of content
21
sessions
3
networking events
Whether it's showrunners or creators, directors, designers, writers or effects artists we have you covered. Oh sorry did you say producers, local and international studios, workshops and parties? Yeah we got that too. Our speakers represent a diversity of stories, directions and designs that have shaped the industry and are animating to inspire our future.
And dozens more speakers!
Alissa Nutting
Anthony Kemp
Andrew Wilk
Alyson Levy
Aron Dunn
Ben McEvoy
Brian Woods
Bart Batchelor
Camila Francisco
Carolina Tran-Yong
Constant Yen
Chris Nielsen
Christine Thompson
Dani Devereux
Denver Jackson
D'Arcy Cooney
Deborah A. Anderson
Dale Hayward
David B. Reddick
Emily Weedon
Holly Nichols
Hugo Van Essen
Joel MacKenzie
Jane Harrison
James Banfield
Jean-Philippe (JP) Welsh
Johan Dekker
Jodi Christie
Jonas Diamond
Josh Bowen
Jeremy McCarron
Karen Jackson
Kevin Micallef
Kristin Handley
Leanne Preston Cortez
Lori McIndoe
Lindsey Weeks
Louis-Philippe Vermette
Lana Castleman
Marge Dean
Michael Van Swearingen
Matt Bishop
Marianne Culbert
Mike Hunter
Melissa Graham
Mindy Johnson
Mary Bredin
Marissa Collyer
Meagan Borosch
Natali Topalovska
Nicole Bauman
Peter Steineck
Phil Moorhead
Patrick Paradis
Paula Peroff
Quinn Doherty
Rebecca "Beccs" Champagne
Ray Ocampo
Ryan Irwin
Ricardo Curtis
Sabrina Harvey
Sumira Dhawan
Sabrina Riegel
Sonika Bagwe
Shaleen Sangha
Stephen Sloan
Spencer Moreland
Samara Melanson
Sunita Balsara
Shannon Bishop
Sheldon Lisoy
Tabitha Fisher
Tendayi Nyeke
Terry Ibele
Tysen Potter
Tina Nawrocki
Theresa Scandiffio
Veronica Racanelli
Victoria Mateo
Virginie Lavallee
Warren Leathem
Wes Bryant
Wes Lui
Zhujun "Bamboo" Wang
Studio Sessions
Opening Keynote: Mindy Johnson
Author of Ink and Paint's Mindy Johnson, the woman who literally wrote the book on the contributions of women in Animation, is coming IN-PERSON to Toronto to open our conference! A powerful speaker and visionary, Mindy's talk is one you can't miss!
Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse Behind-the-scenes
Canada enters the Spider-Verse!
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse blew audiences away with its boundary pushing imagery and animation, blending an eclectic array of styles seamlessly with dazzling results. The sequel, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, pushes the boundaries even further, thanks to a team of talented artists, including home-grown talent from right here in Canada! Now, TAAFI enters the Spider-Verse with JP Welsh, (Senior Character Animator) Sheldon Lisoy, (Compositing Lead), and Dani Devereux (Matte Painting Supervisor) as they trace the threads they spun into the multi-dimensional web of this groundbreaking animated blockbuster.
General Pass
Online Nov 2, in-person Nov 3-4
Super Early Bird (Aug 6)
$175
Early Bird (Sep 10)
$200
Regular
$265
Full 3 day conference pass
28 x Sessions
60 x Speakers
ALL Networking Events
Big ideas deserve big opportunities, come show us yours!
TAAFI is looking for two great pitches to go head to head in front of a diverse panel of animation industry experts and yours could be one of them! Pitch competitions usually only offer critiques by industry execs. The Big Pitch will have a panel of judges representing departments throughout the animation pipeline. You’ll learn not only what makes a pitch sell but how to make it work from every angle. Submit your animated TV or web series concept by October 2, 2023 for a chance to be chosen as one of our two finalists who will pitch to a live audience from the TAAFI main stage.
APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED
Click here for more info!
Who Wants To Be A Taafillionaire
Think you have what it takes to be a Taafillionaire?? Applications are open NOW until October 26th, 2023 for all Industry pass holders!!
TAAFI Meet & Greet
The TAAFI Industry Meet & Greet is a special chance to have a 10-minute one-on-one meeting with various industry experts from around the world from such studios as Pipeline Studios, Dark Slope, Nelvana, Wildbrain, and more!
Register for the event here!
Seneca College Diversity Scholarship = Free Passes!
Seneca Polytechnic is proud of its long-standing partnership with TORONTO ANIMATION ARTS FESTIVAL INTERNATIONAL and to be the exclusive sponsor of the Diversity Scholarship Program.
Seneca takes pride in the vibrant and diverse community we serve and recognizes that a culture of equity, inclusion and diversity must be based on an understanding of the whole person that values all of our differences. We commit to critically analyzing, identifying, and dismantling the barriers to access, student success, and employee potential.
This scholarship program is aimed at underrepresented groups, and consists of complimentary in-person and online tickets to attend the upcoming TAAFI Industry Conference on November 2-4, 2023.
REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED
Meet the Artist Behind This Year's TAAFI Industry!
Jeanna LeClair is a graphic designer, artist, and illustrator. She has been a part of TAAFI for over eight years, translating the show themes into signs, posters, booklets, banners, badges and more! Jeanna has been the main creative lead behind the last three TAAFI Industry Conference events, going big with bright colours and graphics to bring a fresh new look each time.
