The Super Summit

Wednesday 11 Nov 2026 - 12:30
Invite Only
Runtime: 60 mins (approx.)

Senior roles such as supervisors in animation form the bedrock of any production. They develop the culture and share knowledge throughout projects contributing enormously to their success.

At the inaugural Super Summit we celebrate the people who power production, finesse film and accelerate the animation process. Join us for a roundtable discussion and mixer where we will explore how senior creative leaders help build studio culture, support teams and shape the future of our industry.

Attendance is free, but tickets must be applied for in advance.

This ticket is for this specific event only and does not grant access to other Manchester Animation Festival or Animation Nation Forum events. You can explore the MAF Marketplace and other free events at MAF without a ticket.

To apply for a ticket, please head here: https://airtable.com/appv1ARf8fAGWXjfn/pagrbeibCitekpGE9/form

Guests

Leanne Loughran

Leanne Loughran is the Senior Manager of Talent Acquisition at Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), leading recruitment for its London studio. Drawing on a decade-long background as an architectural visualiser and studio founder, she brings an artist-first approach to talent acquisition. At ILM, Leanne builds teams behind iconic projects including The Mandalorian, Andor, Ultraman: Rising, and Jurassic World Rebirth. Previously, as CGI Talent Manager at Aardman Animations, she managed crewing across their Commercials division and features like Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget. A champion for the craft, Leanne bridges creative vision with production reality to keep top studios at the forefront of innovation.

David Park

Prior to joining Dream, David held roles at Pixar Animation Studios, Locksmith Animation and DNEG Feature Animation. During his 15 years at Pixar, David served as Production Manager on 'Coco' and 'Monsters University', Animation Dept Manager on 'Toy Story 3', Animation Coordinator on 'Wall-E' and Art Coordinator for 'Ratatouille'. David’s most recent feature work was on 'Ron’s Gone Wrong' as Associate Producer for Locksmith, and as Head of Production for DNEG Feature Animation where he was involved with the upcoming features 'Cat in the Hat', 'Bad Fairies', 'Angry Birds 3', 'Snoopy Unleashed' and Bong Joon Ho's 'Ally'.

Dara McGarry

After 14 years at Disney Feature Animation working on such films as Tangled, Bolt and Frozen, Dara followed her lifelong ambition to live in London, joining DNEG as an Artist Manager. After a few years in VFX, supporting films such as Avengers: Age of Ultron, Life and Assassins Creed, she helped build DNEG’s Animation Division, contributing to Ron’s Gone Wrong, Entergalactic, Garfield and That Christmas. Today, she helps to bring students and careers together.