The 7th annual event features panels on ‘KPop Demon Hunters,’ ‘Wicked,’ ‘Wednesday,’ ‘Zootopia 2,’ and ‘Star Wars,’ plus demos, an Artist Alley, and awards ceremony; runs October 24-26 in Pasadena, California.
LightBox Expo, set to run October 24-26 at the Pasadena Convention Center, has unveiled its programming lineup, original demos, and participating artists.Artists include John Musker (), Ron Clements (), Maggie Kang, Chris Appelhans, Michelle Wong (), Alex Woo, Nicky Lavender, Sacha Kapijimpanga (), Fede Álvarez (Kevin Lima, Jymn Magon (), Angela Sung (Patrick McHale (, SamDoesArts, Jorge R.
Gutierrez (, Meg Park, Limei Hshieh, Griselda Sastrawinata (, Darrell Warner, and Paul Tazewell ().“This year we are honored to host so many incredibly talented artists, directors, creators and visionaries who are sharing the unique stories and processes behind our favorite films, animation, games, TV shows and illustrations,” said Bobby Chiu, LightBox Expo co-creator.“We hope each attendee leaves feeling inspired, empowered and a bit smarter, too.” Panels will be given by artist spearheading productions at Disney Television Animation, ILM, Lucasfilm Animation, Pixar, 20th Television Animation and Walt Disney Imagineering, Netflix Animation, Laika, Sony Pictures Animation, DreamWorks, Skydance Animation, Warner Bros.
Pictures Animation, Titmouse, and others.“LightBox Expo is a time to celebrate the creators, visionaries, and storytellers who ensure that dreams and magic exist in the world,” said Kang, co-director and creator of “It is a reminder that we are a community brought together by our shared passion to create, to ignite joy, to bring hope, and today we are needed more than ever.” The Expo will offer opportunities for portfolio reviews and one-on-one interactions with more than 30 companies, schools, and studios.“Thankful for our returning sponsors, universities and studios who bring their best artists and come seeking new talent, we are excited to welcome new sponsors including Ravensburger, Webtoon, Animation Mentor, XP-Pen, CalArts Extended Studies and Clip Studio Paint,” said Jim Demonakos, LightBox Expo co-creator.
“LightBox wouldn’t be possible without the community and we’re excited to see artists gather in and around the Convention Center for a weekend of community building, artistry and more.” Additionally, the community event Sketch Crawl will return, hosted by story artist Nick Sung and director Dave Pimental.The new “Paint the Scene” plein air event will take place in front of the LIGHTBOX Expo letters at the Pasadena Convention Center.Angela Sung and Warrior Painters with mentors Michelle Lin, Sean Bodley, Jennifer Wang, Qianjiao Ma, and Jeff Hong will meet fellow artists as they observe, learn, and draw or paint alongside one another.
Among the honorees for the 7th Annual Concept Art Awards are Lifetime Achievement recipients, Tim Burton and Stan Winston.The annual award ceremony presentation will be held October 25 at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium.On the evening of October 25, attendees can watch the “Best Animated Shorts” of the 2025-2026 awards season.
Handpicked by The Animation Showcase, the exclusive screening showcases the year’s most acclaimed animated titles, featuring shorts that have collectively earned over 32 Academy Award nominations and 9 Oscar wins.The complete content schedule is available here.
Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologist—L'Wren brings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.
Lightbox Expo 2025 - Save the Date
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