AniMela Team
The Core TEAM
Festival Director
- 6 President’s National Film Awards
- 15 International awards besides 50+ assorted awards for defining works.
- Conceived & Co-founded: The Animation Society of India.
- Jury – Mumbai International Festival (2006 & 2020) .
- Presented ‘India Animation Retrospective’ at Annecy.
Artistic Director
- Media professional with 2 decades of experience in film & entertainment events.
- Head of Program : IIFA Film Festivals, IKFF and Indian Retrospective at Marrakech International Film Fest.
- Cross-culture facilitator between European & Indian festivals, producers & distributors.
Event Director
- 3 decades of marketing renowned brands & IPs on national & international platforms: IIFA Awards for 7 years.
- The Times of India Film Awards in Vancouver & South Africa India Film & Television Awards 2013.
- Managed opening & closing ceremonies: 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi & launched the Mumbai Indians with Reliance Industries.
Executive Director
- Media professional with 18+ years of experience; a decade in the children’s content space.
- Artistic Director: International Kids Film Festival 2020, India.
- Producer of 75+ award-winning short films for children with 7 National Award Films.
Corporate Alliances
- M&E Professional with 20+ years of experience; recognized in multiple roles as speaker, presenter, jury, etc.
- Set up content practice for Unilever at Mindshare; set up revenue vertical for Times studio
- Business development for films and series at Climb Media
Education & Youth Director
- Artist & storyteller who uses film, illustration & writing to inform & enlighten her audience.
- National Award recipient in 2016 for the film Hum Chitra Banate Hain(We Make Images)
- Honored with Ram Mohan award for Excellence in Animation
- Recipient of “The Legend of Indian Animation award” from Toonz Media Group in 2021.
- Jury Member at Annecy 2024
Transmedia Curator
- Established career across multinational media companies, founded digital art label, led gaming startup, and established design communication agency specializing in transmedia content creation for European and Asian markets
- Specializing in transmedia approaches focusing on transforming children’s engagement from passive consumption to active digital authorship, leveraging expertise in analog-digital environments
- Currently leading GUPPY THEATRE to advance these goals, combining expertise in media, design, and child-centric creative development.
BOARD OF ADVISORS
Mickaël Marin
Director, Annecy Animation Film Festival and MIFA - France
Ashish Kulkarni
Chairman, FICCI for Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming & Comics - India
Mohit Soni
Chief Executive Officer, Media & Entertainment Skills Council (MESC) - India
Milind Shinde
Founder & CEO, 88 Pictures
India
Aneta Ozorek
Artistic Director of Kaboom Animation Festival, film curator, and education expert - Netherlands
Akash Menon
Head of Sports and Gaming, Tulsea - India
Shilpa Ranade
Professor, IDC, IIT Bombay
Nishith Takia
Producer
Upamanyu Bhattacharyya
Film Director, Illustrator - India
Neeraj Roy
Founder & CEO, Hungama Digital Media - India
Arjun Madhavan
CEO, Assemblage Entertainment, Animation film producer - India
