Thank you to all of those who volunteered for the first-ever portfolio day! The event went off without a hitch thanks to the planning prowess of Jake Hollander and Crystal Kan. And those being reviewed expressed sincere gratitude for the opportunity to receive feedback (for free!) from working professionals. Congrats on a successful event!    …

Marconett will be presenting his artwork as part of a collective show next month at Gallery 839, featuring work by artists teaching at CGMA, and opening on June 8th. Aside from teaching, Marconett works as a background designer mainly at Disney TV on Big Hero 6 and Sofia the First. Here, we take a moment…

OPTUM is a program offered through the Motion Picture Industry Pension and Health Plan that includes behavioral health, Member Assistance Program (MAP) and WorkLife services. You only have access to OPTUM if you have chosen MPI PPO as your healthcare provider. If you currently have Kaiser,  you DO NOT have access to OPTUM and must…

The Animation Guild’s inaugural Portfolio Review Day has been a labor of love organized by storyboard artists Jake Hollander and Crystal Kan. “Jake and I organized the event because we were frustrated with certain events and organizations that prey on animation students’ aspirations and dreams to join our industry,” says Kan. “So we made a…

If you received an email announcing the Animation Guild’s inaugural Zinefest, you’ve see Kris Mukai’s work. An active member at the Guild, Mukai currently works as a writer on We Bare Bears, and will be showcasing some of her comics at the Zinefest on June 28th. But you can see here work before then at  hikrismukai.com….

With almost 4,700 artists, writers and technicians under Local 839’s jurisdiction, the Executive Board determined that our growing membership needs more staff to serve them in the field. Our recent search for a Field Representative yielded several incredibly qualified and great candidates, including Leslie Simmons, who will now work alongside Steve Kaplan to ensure our…

What is a PAC? A Political Action Committee is a federally-regulated account created for the purposes of raising and spending money to help elect or defeat candidates or oppose legislation seeking to undermine labor rights and interests. In 1943 Congress passed the Smith Connally Act as an effort to deny a union’s ability to financially…

David Block has spent over 43 years as an Animator, Producer/Director, Character Designer, Overseas Supervisor, and Overseas Consultant working for Chuck Jones, Richard Williams and Abe Levitow. In 1977, David began a 33 year career at Walt Disney Studios where he animated on eight feature films. In 1985, David was a key member in creating Walt…

On Apr. 9th, the Family and Personal Leave Subcommittee hosted a panel discussion on what you need to know if you are considering starting a family. The subcommittee’s co-chair Kristin Donner (who successfully advocated for TAG’s first-ever Parental Leave Policy), storyboard artist and father of three Neil Graf, mother and background artist Teri Hendrich Cusumano,…

Lunch & Learn: Estate Planning Last week, Rebecca Goldfarb, an attorney specializing in estate planning and elder law services visited the Animation Guild to talk about estate planning, a subject that can be difficult and stressful for many individuals. If you missed the event, you can read an overview of her discussion here. Estate Planning…

At the 30th annual GLAAD Media Awards, Steven Universe received a groundbreaking recognition as the first animated series to receive an award in the Outstanding Kids & Family Programming category. Celebrating its sixth anniversary this may, the show has been acknowledged not only for its LGBTQIA+ themes but also its depiction of healthy interpersonal relationships. We…

Starting with the original Teen Titans for Cartoon Network, Hoegee has been head writer and story editor on an impressive list of award-winning animated series including Legion of Super Heroes, Storm Hawks, Generator Rex, Slugterra and Thunderbirds are Go.  As a series creator, Rob just saw the launch of Abby Hatcher on Nick Jr. and as writer…