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Animex returns with a decade of game success to celebrate

Animex, the international festival of animation and computer games, is returning to º£½ÇÖ±²¥ with yet another star line-up featuring some of the industry’s leading names.

The five-day event, the largest of its kind in the UK, features a unique blend of talks, master classes, workshops, film screenings and exhibitions and attracts hundreds of people from across the globe. There will be even more to celebrate in 2013, the fourteenth year of Animex, as Animex Game celebrates a decade at the festival while Animex Comics is also launched this year.

Another new strand to be introduced this year is AnimEXPO, presented by º£½ÇÖ±²¥â€™s initiative for digital excellence and entrepreneurship, DigitalCity Innovation , which will provide a business focus to Animex.

The guest speakers have a wealth of experience between them, having worked for the likes of Disney, Marvel Comics, Ubisoft Reflections, DC Comics and Valve.

Speakers, including Rob Dressel, Marv Wolfman, Rhianna Pratchett, Bay Raitt and Janus Kirkegaard will give talks during the festival, which will run from 18 – 22 February, 2013 at º£½ÇÖ±²¥, Middlesbrough.

Rob Dressel Layout Supervisor, Walt Disney Animation Studios

Rob got his start in computer graphics in 1993, before working in visual effects at Dream Quest Images, which was later bought by Disney and became The Secret Lab. He has worked on films such as Crimson Tide, Deep Rising, Armageddon and Mighty Joe Young.

In 2008 Rob become the Layout Supervisor for Prep and Landing at Walt Disney Animation Studios and has just recently finished supervising layout for Disney's latest animated feature, Wreck-It Ralph.

Marv Wolfman Writer

Marv has created more characters that have gone on to television, animation, movies and toys than any other comics creator since Stan Lee. Marv is the writer-creator of Blade, the Vampire Hunter, Bullseye, the prime villain in the 2003 movie, Daredevil and some of his other characters will soon be seen in the upcoming Man of Steel movie.

Marv was Editor-in-Chief at Marvel Comics, Senior Editor at DC Comics and Founding Editor of Disney Adventures magazine.

Rhianna Pratchett Writer

Rhianna is a 14-year veteran of the videogames industry, having gone from being a journalist for PC Zone magazine and The Guardian newspaper, to moving into games development and becoming one of the most respected writers and narrative designers in her field.

She has worked for companies such as Sony, Electronic Arts, SEGA, Codemasters and Square Enix, and was nominated three times for the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain’s Best Videogame Script award, which she won in 2008 for Overlord.

Bay Raitt Artist and Designer, Valve

Before joining Valve, Bay was the creature facial lead on Lord of the Rings trilogy at Weta Digital and was responsible for building Gollum's facial animation system.

He has also worked as a concept artist at the Weta Workshop, designed 3D animation and modelling systems at Nichimen Graphics, built real time characters at Protozoa and coloured comics for Image Comics at Olyoptics.

Janus Kirkegaard Senior Environment Artist, IO Interactive

Janus left his native country Denmark in 2004 to study BA (Hons) Creative Digital Media at º£½ÇÖ±²¥.

After graduating in 2008 he went to work at IO Interactive on Hitman Absolution as environment artist. Janus is now working as Senior Environment Artist on an unannounced title at IO Interactive.

Gabrielle Kent, Animex Director, said: 'We are very proud to announce the line-up for Animex 2013, once again attracting some of the biggest names in the industry to the University.

'The arrival of Animex Comics will bring even more appeal to the festival and we are thrilled to be able to celebrate ten years of Animex Game - it’s set to be the biggest Animex yet.'

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