Women In Media Tech: VFX / Film / VR

On November 16th, VFX Tech Meetup invited three women with various media technology backgrounds to speak of their own unique stories and experiences, followed by an open Q&A audience discussion. Passionate and dedicated to the industry, each speaker was motivational as they shared personal triumphs on how they each climbed their way to the top, and what companies are doing to keep them there.

Panel Guests

These three women have a combined 45+ years of experience in visual effects and film production:

• Charmaine Chan | Compositor and Area Tech Lead at ILM
• Laura Livingstone | Head of Production at Ntropic
• Marie-Laure Nguyen | Lead Lighting TD at Tippett Studio

Women in Media Tech: Panel Highlights

Moderator and audience questions brought attention and awareness to why women in technology fields are often underrepresented. With meetups lasting two hours, there were lots of discussion. Here are the highlights:

Charmaine Chan spoke about why she created Women in Visual Effects, a portrait and video series “aimed to highlight and advocate the talented women within the visual effects field of film and television.” The project’s trailer calls attention to a dismally small number:

17.5% of visual effects creatives are women

Questions were raised about what the VFX and film industry can do to close the gender gap. And panelists answered what each of their respective studios were specifically doing to increase gender diversity.

Panelists noted that the industry has come far in gender-equality, but there’s still steps to make. Retaining talented female employees and giving them their fair limelight is something they’re still grappling with.

The statistics are discouraging, the long hours are grueling. For entry-level women concerned if they can make their mark, Marie-Laure gave this advice:

Have patience, but most of all — perseverance!

The all-women speaker panel was successful on many levels. As always, there were lots of laughs and open candid discussion. But after an evening of participation and engagement, attendees became more than educated. Attendees became inspired.

A Big Thanks . . .

We’d like to thank our panelist speakers, Charmaine, Laura, and Marie-Laure, for their participation. They each brought wonderful insight on what it takes to be a successful woman in visual effects and film production.

A big thanks to Twitter and TwitterWomen for hosting and sponsoring this event.

And of course a big shout-out to our attendees! To keep the conversation rolling, stay connected at our members only VFX Tech Facebook Group.

Come Meetup!

Since 2015, our community has grown to over 650 members. Our mission is to collaborate with fellow colleagues, share experiences and expertise, and stay ahead of the latest innovations and technologies. We’re always looking for speakers and new members to keep our community growing!

Missed the event? Eager for the next talk? Signup at the VFX Tech Meetup or request to join the VFX Tech Facebook group. See you there!