ARTISTS & PRESENTERS
TREVOR ANDERSON
Keynote Address | Friday, June 27 | 10:00AM – 11:00AM
Trevor Anderson is a writer, director, actor, and musician. His short films have screened at numerous A-list and LGBTQ festivals, including Sundance, SXSW, TIFF, and the Berlinale—where his musical The Man That Got Away won the D.A.A.D. Short Film Prize. His award-winning debut feature, Before I Change My Mind, premiered at the 2022 Locarno Film Festival and was released in North American theatres in 2024. It streams on Crave and is available to rent or buy from Apple TV. From 2009 to 2017, Trevor served as Director of Programming at FAVA, Edmonton’s Film and Video Arts co-op. Originally from Red Deer, Trevor now lives in Montreal.
KATELYN BARRAZA
Workshop: Life, work, and everything in between – a Mental Health Check-In | Saturday, June 28 | 1:15PM – 2:15PM
Katelyn Barraza (She/Her) RSW, BSW, is a registered social worker with over a decade of experience in the mental health field. Her work centers on supporting individuals as they navigate the often overwhelming and fragmented network of government-funded mental health services. With a focus on equipping people with meaningful, actionable coping skills, she is deeply passionate about human stories and the transformative power of connection.
Katelyn finds beauty in the intersection of mental health and the arts, and is committed to creating safe, brave spaces where individuals can show up authentically and feel truly seen. An advocate for ethical and inclusive media practices, she brings both care and creativity to every space she enters.
She currently serves as Chair of Programming on the Board of Directors at Homegrown Arts & Media Collective, and proudly identifies as a self-proclaimed awkward duck.
KATHRYN BLAIR
Workshop: Sartorial Soldering | Saturday, June 28 | 2:30PM – 3:45PM
Kathryn Blair is a PhD candidate in Computational Media Design at the University of Calgary, where she obtained her MFA in Media Arts and Technology in 2018. Her work seeks to facilitate public examination of the status quo of our relationship with technology by throwing it into stark relief. Currently, she creates interactive experiences that invite visitors to play with ideas about the way computer programs used to make decisions about the public function. In the past, she has used media including wearable technology, physical computing, games and printmaking to explore these themes. She has been involved in the Calgary-based tech couture fashion show Make Fashion since 2013, and has shown her work in Alberta, British Columbia, China, the United States and Ireland.
RACHEL BROUSSARD
Workshop: IMAA Advocacy Toolkit | Friday, June 27 | 2:30PM – 3:45PM
Rachel Broussard is a visual artist, musician, and arts administrator living as an uninvited guest on Treaty 6 Territory. She currently works as Program Director at PAVED Arts and Festival Director for the One Take Super 8 Event in Saskatoon, SK. As a visual artist, Broussard works in photo collage and installation with a focus on the climate crisis. Their work has been presented in Canada and the United States, most recently at Neutral Ground and the Art Gallery of Regina. Rachel is passionate about accessibility in the arts and trained as an Access Activator with Tangled Art + Disability. In 2023, they received the Queen Elizabeth Platinum Jubilee Medal for service to the arts in Saskatchewan. They hold a MFA in Studio Art from the University of Saskatchewan and serve on the board for IMAA.
DIANE DIN EBONGUE
Workshop: Inclusive Pixels | Friday, June 27 | 2:30PM – 3:45PM
Diane Din Ebongue is an interdisciplinary artist, arts manager and curator passionate about intangible cultural heritage, empowerment processes and knowledge-sharing through arts. She holds a Master of Science, Arts and Techniques of Image and Sound from Aix-Marseille University as well as a Master of Technologies for Education and Training from Rennes 2 University in France. Diane’s international experience includes working as an audiovisual technician in the motion pictures industry in France, managing cultural and digital programs for non-profit organizations in Europe and Cameroon, as well as running an Indigenous-owned multidisciplinary art centre in Australia. Her latest exhibition at The Grand titled “I See Colours” explored the intricate and diverse nature of skin tones through visual and media arts. She recently founded Inclusive Pixels, an online educational platform dedicated to skin tone representation in media arts, informed by action-research processes at the intersection of science, humanities and technology.
SPENCER ESTABROOKS
Panelist: Magic Hours | Friday, June 27 | 6:00PM – 8:00PM
Born and raised in Red Deer, Spencer Estabrooks is an award winning writer, director, producer, and Executive Director of Calgary Cinematheque. Known for his hit web series One Hit Die and as the creator of Albertan Kaiju Sharkasaurus (2014), Spencer is also an avid vintage cyclist, obscure camera enthusiast, craft beer historian and devout cinephile. His work with Calgary Cinematheque is focused on building audiences as community, facilitating discussions about cinema culture and creating unique cinematic experiences.
JASON FRIZZELL
Animated RDP: Presentation and Tour | Friday, June 27 | 4:00PM – 5:00PM
Jason Frizzell holds an M.F.A. in sculpture from the University of Victoria and a B.F.A. from the University of Calgary. He has been a faculty member at Red Deer Polytechnic (formerly Red Deer College) for the past 30 years and currently delivers Art and Pre-Production courses for the Animation and Visual Effects degree, emphasizing the application of traditional art and design principles within the 3D animation and visual effects production pipeline. Jason’s current research focuses on the production and exhibition of original works of sculpture, the use of real-time 3D creation tools (such as Unreal Engine) in pre-production curriculum, and the creation of Open Educational Resources exploring the marriage of traditional and digital approaches to the development of introductory-level drawing and design skills.
NICK HAYWOOD
ACTIVITY: Meeting in the Middle | Saturday, June 28 | 10:00AM – 11:00AM
Nick Haywood is the new Arts Development Consultant, Film and Video, for the Alberta Foundation for the Arts (AFA). He graduated from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology’s film and video program in 2012. He has worked in the independent film community as a writer, producer, and director, and comes to the AFA from his most recent position as Technical Director with NUTV at the University of Calgary. Nick has also been an active arts administrator, previously working with the Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers and as board president with the Alberta Media Arts Alliance Society.
LEVI HOLWELL
Panelist: Magic Hours | Friday, June 27 | 6:00PM – 8:00PM
Levi Holwell is a filmmaker based out of Alberta, Canada. His films are gentle in spirit and carefully cultivated through curiosity and nuance. Levi’s voice carries a clear vision and he executes it with sincerity and deep conviction.
His most recent work, a documentary on the struggles of small town independent movie theatres titled Magic Hours, was nominated for 5 Alberta Film and Television Awards and took home 3 wins including Best Documentary and Best Director. His short film, A Walk Down To Water, was an official selection to the 2020 Slamdance International Film Festival and was one of six Canadian short films selected as part of the Telefilm Canada Not Short On Talent Showcase in Clermont-Ferrand, France. A Walk Down To Water also won Best Alberta Short Film at both the 2019 Calgary International Film Festival and the 2019 Edmonton International Film Festival.
Holwell will be going to camera for his upcoming comedy-drama short, I Was Supposed To Be Happy By Now, in spring 2025.
AREUM KIM
ACTIVITY: Meeting in the Middle | Saturday, June 28 | 10:00AM – 11:00AM
Areum Kim (she/her) is a Community Investment Program Specialist at the Calgary Arts Development. She had been working in artist-run centres for the past 10 years as an arts administrator before joining Calgary Arts Development. For the past six years, she was in a leadership role at Stride Gallery, where she had the opportunity to work closely with the core operations of a small arts organization and support emerging artists.
In her own artistic practice, Areum co-runs Yolkless Press with artist Teresa Tam, making books, zines and artists’ publications.
SHANNON LYONS
Workshop: Pinning Music to Paper | Saturday, June 28 | 2:30PM – 3:45PM
Shannon Lyons is an author, neurodivergency advocate and chromesthetic fractal artist who works most often with music to create fractal images that represent the texture, colour, and shape of “what music looks like”. She attributes the artistry and balance found in her work to several varieties of synesthesia, a neurological difference creating conjoined senses. Her career has evolved intuitively, without formal training though the basis of her method is a reflection of her sensory translation through mathematics, having a bent towards physics has helped immensely.
Working for nearly 20 years with musicians of all levels of recognition both in studio and side stage her sound portraits have become familiar in album covers as well as art. Sound portraits are often combined in her work using songs with similar meanings and flavours to create thought collages of more recognizable subject matter.
TYLER MCKINNEY
Panelist: Between Two Worlds | Friday, June 27 | 1:15PM – 2:15PM
Tyler McKinney (they/he) is a Two-Spirited Cree/Métis/Chinese/Vietnamese storyteller, filmmaker, and photographer based in Central Alberta. With over a decade of experience in independent journalism, visual storytelling, and digital media, Tyler’s work centers Indigenous voices, cultural reconnection, and stories that foster healing and resilience.
They are the creator and host of Voices of Resilience, a STORYHIVE-funded podcast and video series that explores land-based teachings, Indigenous knowledge, and personal healing journeys. Their recent short film, produced through a community filmmaking initiative, received the Empowered Filmmaker Award in Red Deer and was showcased in the ʔaq̓am community.
Tyler also leads land-based wellness programming for men and youth through the Neya Napew Na Muton | I Am a Kind Man Initiative in Rocky Mountain House. This initiative supports Indigenous men in reconnecting with culture through teachings such as the Seven Grandfather Teachings and the Medicine Wheel, helping them grow as strong role models in their families and communities.
Currently, Tyler is on tour with the Empowered Filmmakers program, teaching filmmaking and storytelling in Indigenous communities across Alberta and British Columbia. They are passionate about increasing BIPOC representation in media and view storytelling as a vital tool for sovereignty, intergenerational connection, and collective healing.
KARI MCQUEEN
ACTIVITY: Meeting in the Middle | Saturday, June 28 | 10:00AM – 11:00AM
Kari McQueen is the Arts Development Consultant, Visual Art and New Media, at the Alberta Foundation for the Arts (AFA). Kari is a visual and media artist with over 25 years in the cultural sector, including Artist-Run-Culture, media arts, film, public galleries and art education. Prior to joining the AFA, she freelanced as a grant writer and consultant for artists and organizations in Southern Alberta. Her work has screened and exhibited primarily in Canada, and her current project examines cultural mores around felines and women.
HEATHER NOEL
Panelist: Magic Hours | Friday, June 27 | 6:00 – 8:00PM
Heather spends a lot of time thinking about movies. Over the last three years she coordinated over 1500 screenings as programmer at Metro Cinema, a non-profit movie theatre in Edmonton, Alberta. Prior to this role, she served on Metro’s board and programming committee, coordinated events and workshops at The Film and Video Arts Society of Alberta, served on the board of the Independent Media Arts Alliance, and spent over a decade slinging movies as a video store clerk. In her spare time she dabbles in celluloid-based still and motion picture art, and relishes any opportunity to play a small role in her friends’ creative practices.
NAZANIN OGHANIAN
Workshop: IMAA Advocacy Toolkit | Friday, June 27 | 2:15PM – 3:45PM
nazanin oghanian is a multidisciplinary artist, experimental filmmaker, and arts administrator. Her artistic practice emerges from critical reflection on concepts such as body, identity, gender, memory, politics, and the ongoing interplay between the individual and society. nazanin’s recent work explores power relations and the ways in which women’s bodies are controlled through the medicalization of their bodies and reproductive health. Working mostly with video, audio, and other sensory stimulative installations, she is interested in discrete components of the auditory, visual and gestural aspects of memory and control. She is a recipient of the BC Binning Memorial Fellowship and WNDX x NIMAC experimental moving image awards, and her work has been presented across Iran and Canada including VIVO Media Arts, Morris And Helen Belkin Art Gallery, WNDX Festival of Moving Image, Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, and AHVA Gallery.
Following the completion of her MFA in Visual Arts from UBC in 2020, nazanin has worked and collaborated with several not-for-profit art organizations in recent years, including Vancouver New Music, Western Front, VIVO Media Arts, Vancouver Art Gallery, and The Dance Centre.
ALLAN ROSALES
ACTIVITY: Meeting in the Middle | Saturday, June 28 | 10:00AM – 11:00AM
Allan Rosales is an artist whose multi-disciplinary practice includes poetry, portraits and public art in relationship with the Filipinx Community of Calgary. He also holds a master’s degree in art therapy from Concordia University. Having worked extensively throughout Calgary as a community connector, Allan joined the Calgary Arts Development team as Community Investment Manager in 2023, approaching the role from the perspective of the artist.
SHIVANI SAINI
Panelist: Between Two Worlds | Friday, June 27 | 1:15PM – 2:15PM
Shivani Saini is an award-winning Producer and Consultant, whose passion is to create and support works that positively transform the human condition. A Radio & Television arts graduate from Toronto Metropolitan University, Shivani has over 30 years of industry experience, and as a Producer has contributed to over 1000 episodes of broadcast television and film – including the award-winning and critically acclaimed one-hour dramatic television series Blackstone, now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
In 2014 she founded Atelier Culturati, to empower people in arts + culture through through strategic consulting, communications, storytelling and creating social impact. Shivani is a Reelworld Trailblazer Award Recipient, which recognizes talented Canadians who have set themselves apart as innovators and change-makers in the entertainment industry. She is also the Founder and Executive & Artistic Director of Creatives Empowered, the first non-profit organization in Alberta for film, television, media and arts professionals who are Black, Indigenous and People of Colour.
SHAWN TSE
Panelist: Between Two Worlds | Friday, June 27 | 1:15PM – 2:15PM
Shawn Tse 謝兆龍 (he/him) is a father, artist, filmmaker, and community organizer. He is the Edmonton Festival Co-Director and a Board Member for FascinAsian Film Festival, based in the Prairies and showcasing the talents of pan-Asian artists in film; Director at Fallout Media, a media production company that specializes in centering community stories for social change; Consultant for the CanAsian Arts Network, a national digital platform supporting Asian Canadian artists; an actor and manager for Third Space Playback Theatre, committed to creating spaces of dialogue to promote community change and social justice.
MORE ARTISTS & PRESENTERS TO BE ANNOUNCED!
ARTISTS OF EXQUISITE CORPSE
A collaborative animation project facilitated by Ryan Von Hagen and featuring animators from Quickdraw Animation Society, Pixel Blue College and Red Deer Polytechnic.
AMANDA TORRES
Amanda is a Chilean-Canadian independent animator and educator with an academic background in physics. Her desire to understand space-time and relativity is directly tied to her fascination with the time-based aspect of animation and media arts. Recently, she became the new education coordinator at Quickdraw Animation Society, based in Mohkinstsis (Calgary). Current interests include experimental website design, grieving, and guerilla gardening.
ANA VICTORIA PIÑERO
Ana Victoria Piñero, also known as Anavi, is an accomplished Venezuelan artist and animator based in Calgary/Mohkinstsis, specializing in illustration and 2D animation. Her work often features her beloved character Paco—a charming half-pig, half-dog inspired by her own pet. A recipient of the prestigious 2019–2021 CJM Scholarship and Residency at QuickDraw Animation Society, Ana created her debut film PACO during the residency, which went on to screen at numerous international festivals and won Best Animation at the 2024 Canadian Independent Film Festival in Montreal. Passionate about storytelling, Ana is committed to creating cartoons that inspire hope and beauty, while also empowering fellow Hispanic artists by sharing her knowledge and supporting them in developing their own creative voices.
BRODY ELLIOT
My name is Brody. E, I am an illustrator and animator from Sherwood Park, Alberta. I love everything that has to do with animation, and want to see the animation industry in Alberta grow. I particularly like animating in Toon Boom Harmony and Adobe After Effects. My key inspirations are the two animators known as Cyriak and James Lee. I have been watching James Lee’s animations for as long as I can remember, and he has greatly influenced my art style. My favourite animations to make are “strange” looking cut out animations, as I find it to be the most freeing, where I am encouraged to break things and see what weird and wacky animations I can make.
CHRISTINE LLAMAS
Christine Llamas is a Filipino emerging animator, illustrator, and storyteller. Having an education out of AUArts in design and animation, she now uses those foundations in animation to focus on her current debut film Roots, which portrays a Filipino immigrant story. Most of Christine’s works are based around her identity as a Filipino Canadian. From an early age she’s been inspired by a lot of Japanese media such as; manga, anime, and fashion trends, which is reflected in her art style.
CLAIRE HICKS
Claire Hicks is a 3D animator from Calgary, Alberta who specializes in original character development and animation. Claire is a proud Red Deer Polytechnic alumni, using their learned skills to grow and develop as a passionate animator and rigging artist. While Claire specializes in Maya and ZBrush, they also enjoy sculpting and creating 2D animation, as well as playing a few video games on the side.
DANIEL TANSY
Daniel Tansy is an Illustrator and Animator based out of Edmonton AB. He has put on art shows promoting the art of comic book creation and teaches a series of anatomy classes. Dan’s Cat, Steve, thinks Dan is “alright I guess”. Dan thinks his cat Steve is a freeloader who uses him for a free place to stay. In reality Dan is a 6/10, but he is a great artist.
GABRIEL ESTRADA
Gabriel seems less inclined to paint than to loiter nearby, eavesdropping on whomever might be fun. He is a painter, animator, and writer—an artist who loves the ocean, fungi, nature in general, and who dives into any disturbing subject hoping something tender and visceral will crawl out. Something not quite right, something misremembered—a visual miasma is the aim of his art. One leaves his work a little off-balance, as if the floor just sighed. His art is just enough to notice, just enough to stay with you.
JESSE WAUGHTAL
I am Jesse Waughtal, a 2D Animator and Illustrator from Alberta, Canada. I love using my art to create stories with positive messages, and I always have a creative project on the go, whether I’m animating my own short film or helping others with their projects. When I’m not drawing, I’m usually playing games, cooking, or reading novels. I also enjoy learning about marine life and discussing it with my friends.
SACHA MICHAUD
My name is Sacha Michaud. I’m a stop motion animator and full-time social worker who enjoys building puppets and experimenting with different materials and techniques. In 2021, I received the CJM Scholarship and Production Residency from Quickdraw Animation Society, which led to the creation of my first film, Camping—a collaborative project that went on to win multiple awards.
SYDNEY FULLER
VANESSA WEBSTER
Vanessa Webster is a Black x Filipina, illustrator, animator and storyteller based out of Mohkinstis (Calgary) Alberta. Graduating out of the design program at the Alberta University of the Arts in 2024, her work now primarily centers themes of identity, culture and nature which she draws from the unique lens of her childhood experiences. Using imagery from the children’s cartoons she grew up watching, Vanessa evokes a sense of bright colour and play into her heavily stylized work. She is now most recently working on her debut film Roots set to come out in 2026.
VICKY GU
Vicky Xingyu Gu is a Chinese animator currently based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She completed her MFA degree in Digital Arts & Animation at the University of Southern California in Spring 2022. She developed an interest in hybrid documentary filmmaking and had made several animated documentary shorts. Her personal works are inspired by cultural conflicts, emotional struggles, as well as societal issues that she witnesses. She enjoys experimenting with different techniques and materials in both digital and traditional media.
MISSION
AMAAS exists to advocate, educate, and celebrate the media arts in Alberta.
VISION
The media arts in Alberta is advanced through the generation of awareness, strengthening of connections, and continuous advocacy. AMAAS builds a sustainable and vibrant future for media arts in Alberta.
DEFINITION OF MEDIA ART
AMAAS defines media art as independent artist initiated and controlled use of film, video, new media, audio/sound art and related media.
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