Pasadena Convention Center
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Kal Athannassov (He/Him)

Character Artist
Kal Athannassov is an Animation Art Director, Character Designer, and comic artist living in Los Angeles. Currently, he is working on an unannounced feature at Netflix Animation Studios. Kal was the Character Design Supervisor on the 2024 animated show Jentry Chau vs The Underworld, for which he received an Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Character Design in Animation at the 4th Annual Children's & Family Emmy Awards. Previously, he has worked with Disney TV Animation, Sony Pictures Animation, Netflix Animation, Marvel Studios, WB Animation, and others including Baobab Studios, where he won an Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Character Design in Animation for Crow: The Legend in 2019, and for Baba Yaga in 2021. In 2016, Kal co-directed and was the Art Director for the award-winning, animated short film, The Wishgranter. The film went on to win Best Animated Film at the 43rd Student Academy Awards®, the College Television Awards, Student BAFTA, National Board of Review, and many more. Kal loves movies, cute dogs, playing video games & and spending time with his loved ones.

PARTICIPANT SCHEDULE

Designing Appealing & Believable Characters for Animation

Kal Athannassov

In this demo talk, Emmy award-winning character designer Kal Athannassov, will go over his process for designing appealing and believable characters.
Designing characters is sort of like building a house – if it doesn’t have a solid foundation it is likely to collapse. In character design – research and reference building is as important as the art you create. During this demo, Kal will go over how he designs characters from start to finish – from collecting reference, style choice, & exploration, all the way to a finished design.
This is a great resource for all levels interested in character design!

Skill Level: Beginner

The Making of Jentry Chau vs The Underworld

Kal Athannassov | Echo Wu | Nick Manfredi

In 2024 Jentry Chau vs The Underworld released on Netflix to critical and fan acclaim.

At LBX, Show-runner/Creator Echo Wu & Character Design Supervisor Kal Athanassov sit down with panel moderator Nick Manfredi to discuss creating, pitching, and ultimately making the show a reality. This talk is a great look into how projects evolve from pitch to final product and what artists can expect when working on big productions.

All audiences are welcome! Fans of Jentry are HIGHLY encouraged to not miss this panel.

Skill Level: General Audience

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