The 2020 BRIC (Break, Reinvent, Impact and Change) Talent + Innovation Summit took place on Friday, February 21st, 2020 from 9A-6P at ArtCenter College of Design (1700 Lida St) in Pasadena, California. The Summit had the goal of bringing a community of thought provokers together from different facets of the entertainment and tech industries to collectively solve how we support and nurture up-and-coming talent as it pertains to women and underrepresented groups who have an interest in being creative leaders. Our mission for this one-day Summit was to create actionable items we could take back to our respective organizations that we can either implement or at the very least share ideas on how to make change.
This was not only a Summit with engaging speakers, but all participants helped with the solution brainstorming. The panelists for each session kicked off the discussion for 30 mins, then joined the rest of the participants for 30 minutes for further discussions. In the last 15 minutes of the session the group discussed the solutions and actionable items. BRIC then collected all the solutions discussed throughout the day and turn them into a deck that all attendees received. Click here to see the 2020 BRIC Summit Findings.
The day was from 9am-6pm, which included breakfast, an awards luncheon, cocktail hour, keynote speakers and five panels (topics below). Due to scheduling, attendees had to choose on the day between the BREAK or REINVENT panels and the IMPACT or CHANGE panels.
Our Speakers
Our Sponsors
Partner Sponsor:
Gentleman Scholar
Armed Mind
Artstation
Corporate Sponsors:
WildBrain
Dreamworks Animation
Supercell
Premiere Sponsors:
Walt Disney Animation
Illumination
Sony Pictures Animation
ELITE SPONSOR:
Cartoon Network Studios
PLATINUM SPONSOR:
Nickelodeon Writing Program
EDUCATIONAL Partner:
ArtCenter College of Design
Schedule
9:00- Check-In + Breakfast
9:35- BRIC Founders Intro- Alison Mann (VP Creative/Strategy, Sony Pictures Animation), Jill Gilbert (Producer), Nicole Hendrix (Producer)
9:45- Welcome- Hisham Fageeh (Filmmaker, Barakah Meets Barakah)
9:55- ArtCenter Welcome- Karen Hofman (Provost, ArtCenter College of Design)
10:00- The Context- Julie Ann Crommett (VP Multicultural Audience Engagement, The Walt Disney Studios)
10:30- Interactive Keynote- Effie T. Brown (CEO, Gamechanger/ Producer, Dear White People, Real Women Have Curves) & Karen Toliver (SVP of Creative, Sony Pictures Animation/ Producer, Hair Love)
10:50- FOUNDATIONS: Building Trends – Last year we made some great strides: new programs were launched, new organizations were created, new initiatives that drive impact were discovered. Now, how do we continue the momentum on building what we have done, hold ourselves/business accountable so we can continue making impactful strides of change when it comes to opportunities for new creative leaders in our respectful spaces?
11:00- Panel Participants: Aron Warner (Producer, Shrek, Angry Birds 2), Christina Wun (Product Lead, Riot Games), Brian Austin (Founder, The Animation Project), Darnell L. Moore (Director of Inclusion Strategy for Marketing and Content, Netflix) Moderated by: Alison Mann (BRIC Co-Founder/VP Creative/Strategy, Sony Pictures Animation)
11:20- Workshop
11:40- Recap
12:00- BRIC Impact Awards Luncheon Presented by the Nickelodeon Writing Program
1:15- Choose between the BREAK and REINVENT Panels
1:15- BREAK: Breaking the Story – What can we learn from creators/directors that have succeeded across multiple channels?
1:25- Panel Participants: Yehudi Mercado (Writer/Artist), Joey Clift (Writer) , Gerta Xhelo (Director of Production, TED-Ed), Jeanette Bonds (Director of GLAS Animation) Moderated by: Karen Kirkland (Literary Agent and Founding Partner at Culture Creative Entertainment)
1:55- Workshops
2:25- Recap
1:15- REINVENT: What Does Technology Hold – With the recent surge of creator driven platforms allowing creators/directors to tell the stories they want, how do the entertainment giants attract and incentive the talent to want to work with them?
1:25- Panel Participants: Maureen Fan (CEO/Co-Founder, Baobab Studios), Josh Herman (CCO, Gnomon School of VFX, Games, and Animation), Kaitlyn Yang (Founder/VFX Supervisor, Alpha Studios), Nick Engvall (Founder of Stature & Sneaker History) Moderated by: Julia Prescott (Writer/Comedian)
1:55- Workshops
2:25- Recap
2:40- Choose between the IMPACT and CHANGE Panels
2:40- IMPACT: Defining Creative Education and Expectations – What can studios do to support individuals that can’t afford art schools? What can art schools to do create more access and interest into the arts?
2:50- Panel Participants: Hsiang Chin Moe (Chair of BFA Animation, SVA & Chair of Education, WIA), Aaron Bruce (VP & Chief Diversity Officer, ArtCenter College of Design), Shari Holly (Director of Operations, Pipelines), Eric Robles (Co-Creator & Executive Producer, Nickelodeon’s Glitch Techs), Randall Mackey (Manager of Art and Design Education, ArtStation) Moderated by: Larry Laboe (Executive Director NFMLA)
3:20- Workshops
3:50- Recap
2:40- CHANGE: Supporting Different Voices – How can diverse talent and creative leadership drive a competitive advantage?
2:50- Panel Participants: Kristin Kucia (Manager of Student Affairs, Exceptional Minds), Aubry Mintz (Director of the School of Art, California State University Long Beach), Mary Beth Ferrante (CEO WRK/360), Desmond Marzette (Sr. Global Director of Content, Nike) Moderated by: Brandon Sharp (Political Strategy & Special Projects, ICM Partners)
3:20- Workshops
3:50- Recap
4:15- Keynote- Marya Bangee (Executive Director, Harness)
4:35- The BRIC Pledge: Let’s turn these ideas into action.
5:00- Cocktail Hour Presented by Cartoon Network Studios
6:00- Event Over