February 10, 2026
MOVE Summit 2026 Full Programme Launch
MOVE Summit, Scotland’s animation and VFX gathering, returns this year to the historic Pleasance Courtyard and other Edinburgh venues from 18th – 21st February 2026. The conference brings together International industry leaders, creatives and practitioners, broadcasters and commissioners, students and educators in Edinburgh, to celebrate the year’s most outstanding animated and visual effect projects, industry successes and inspire the next …
MOVE Summit, Scotland’s animation and VFX gathering, returns this year to the historic Pleasance Courtyard and other Edinburgh venues from 18th – 21st February 2026. The conference brings together International industry leaders, creatives and practitioners, broadcasters and commissioners, students and educators in Edinburgh, to celebrate the year’s most outstanding animated and visual effect projects, industry successes and inspire the next generation of artists.
MOVE Summit boasts four days of talks, workshops, creative reviews, screenings, recruitment, networking, and business development. The Emerging Talent Day (Wednesday 18th February) is dedicated to students, with a programme focused on industry-ready skill development. MOVE’s Industry Days (Thursday 19th and Friday 20th February) bring together practitioners from all over the UK and beyond, highlighting Scotland’s work to a global audience. Plus, MOVE’s brand new
Screening Day (Saturday 21st February) will showcase a selection of animated feature and short films, highlights from 2025 and new releases for 2026.
Highlights of MOVE’s 2026 speaking programme include:
● Todd Harris, creator, director, and showrunner of the Marvel limited series Eyes of Wakanda will lead sessions as part of both MOVE’s Industry and Emerging Talent Day programmes, discussing his approaches to storytelling and composition.
● Disney’s Carrie Liao, Head of Story on Zootropolis 2 will share her professional journey, creative process and career advice in sessions for students and industry.
● Pixar’s Dylan Sisson explores how RenderMan XPU is being used in real production, including a behind-the-scenes look at how XPU is being rolled out on Toy Story 5, with an exciting preview screening of the first 72 seconds of the film.
● Maria Gonzalez Sanchez (Character Effects Supervisor, Sony Pictures Imageworks) explores the environment and character work done for Sony Picture Animation’s latest animated feature GOAT, which also screens in full at MOVE’s Screening Day.
● From LAIKA Studios, Cassandra Lopez (Art Director) and Steve Emerson (VFX Supervisor) provide delegates with an inspiring look inside their extraordinary filmmaking craft. Discover how imagination, precision, and passion come together to create some of the most visually distinctive stop motion films in contemporary animation.
● BUCK’s Andy Lyon (Creative Director) talks crafting animation at scale, with a retrospective deep dive into the company’s long-time collaboration with Airbnb, while Jen Zheng (Associate Creative Director) hosts sessions for both students and industry, providing valuable advice on directing designers and animators.
● Delegates will learn how the Odyssey 2D toolset can revolutionise creative processes in Unreal Engine, in an insightful session led by Elodie Moog, founder of Praxinos.
● Dale Newton (Animation Supervisor, Framestore) hosts a behind-the-scenes look at Wicked and Wicked: For Good, from the initial concept art and creature design to the intricate post-production work bringing the magical world of Oz to life.
● From Nexus Studios, Laurie Rowan (Director) provides an overview of his work and sources of inspiration, and talks about balancing personal and professional projects and how they inform one another.
● A+C Studios Animation Directors Dan Richards and Jess Deacon visit MOVE for a deep dive into the magic of stop-motion animation, from the meticulous paper-craft courts of the BBC’s Wimbledon coverage to the playful energy of the hit Bluey music videos. Plus, Dan explores his career journey for the conference’s student delegates.
● Series Director Seán McCormack (Blue Zoo) shares a look behind the scenes of the new BBC preschool series Rafi the Wishing Wizard, launching on CBeebies this February.
● Writer and comedian Tiernan Douieb looks into why jokes work so well in animation and how the format can really draw out the best from a gag.
● Creator and Exec Producer Jon Mason and Exec Producer Natalie Adams provide a candid, behind-the-scenes look at the bold new animated preschool series Stan & Gran.
● Will Adams (Episodic Director) and Ron Henry (COO) of Wild Child Animation break down the process of how the look Piripenguins was created, and some of the pitfalls along the way.
● Delegates will be treated to panels on topics ranging from animated feature co-productions to exploring alternative methods of getting projects financed, built and launched outside of the traditional commissioning routes, plus a Women in Animation UK hosted panel will focus on the craft of writing.
● Looking for guidance on finance and funding? Hear from representatives from the UK Global Screen Fund, the UK Research and Innovation funding service and the Department for Business and Trade who’ll help to shed light on this tricky area.
● Plus, delegates will be treated to a showcase of local Scottish animation studios with MOVE’s Spotlight on Scotland events, featuring guest speakers from Wild Child, Animation Garden, Eyebolls, Zaratan and Halon.
The full conference programme, including these and many more sessions, is available now on the MOVE Summit website.
In addition to these sessions, MOVE’s The Big Pitch returns to the conference this year for the third time, with an exciting line-up of 5 quick-fire pitches delivered live on stage in front of an audience of delegates and a specially selected jury consisting of industry experts and broadcast commissioners. The winning pitch as determined by the jury will win a £1,000 cash prize to help support further development of the project.
Workshops, giving attendees the opportunity to learn directly from industry experts in an intimate, group setting, will also make a welcome return, covering topics from Networking for the Anxious, to papercrafting, to writing and voice direction. The full line-up of workshops is available to view in the MOVE schedule now, and these limited capacity sessions will become available for delegates to prebook at 12 noon on Thursday 12th February.
MOVE Summit’s exhibition floor brings together a vibrant cross-section of the animation, VFX, games and screen industries, offering delegates a unique chance to connect with the people, tools and organisations shaping the sector today. Exhibitors this year include Abertay University, Animated Women UK Scotland, Animation Scotland, BFI, BlackFrame, Department for Business and Trade, Foster Sounds Ltd, GMAC Film, Kyoobit, Ludus Pax Studio, Praxinos, Screen Argyll, Skydance Animation Madrid, TRC Media, Wee Wonders Scotland, Wild Child Animation, Women in Film & TV and more to be announced.
MOVE’s 1:1s sessions will also return, giving attendees the chance to have 15min sit downs with industry experts, for help with portfolio feedback and pitch preparation, as well as discussions on commissioning and public sector support. Further details of the participants and slots available will be released within the coming week.
Programmes of short animations screening in competition for MOVE’s Short Film and Commissioned Animation awards have also now been revealed, and will be shown throughout the conference. Delegates will have the opportunity to hear from some of the selected filmmakers during a special Skwigly Podcast onstage recording hosted by Skwigly co-owner and editor Steve Henderson.
The winning filmmakers in each category will be announced after the final keynote on Friday 20th February, with the two winning films then playing as part of MOVE’s Screening Day on Saturday 21st.
New to MOVE Summit this year, the Screening Day will take place in Screen 1 at the iconic Filmhouse Cinema, with a special screening of Sony’s GOAT kicking off the day. Delegates will be treated to selections of international animated short films, including a showcase curated by BlackFrame, highlighting a variety of stories told from the Black perspective. An industry preview screening of the Academy Award nominated animated fantasy Arco closes the day, with delegates getting an early chance to see the film ahead of its UK cinema release this March. MOVE attendees are encouraged to prebook their Screening Day tickets in advance, with bookings due to open at 12 noon on Thursday 12th February.
MOVE Summit 2026 is made possible thanks to the generous support of the event’s funders and partners, who include Screen Scotland, Cahoots Studios, Eyebolls, Praxinos, Wild Child Animation, Halon, Milkshake!, Nickelodeon, ScreenSkills, Scripts Out Loud and Foster Sounds. Competition prizes have been generously provided by XP Pen and TV Paint.
The full conference programme and schedule is available to browse at https://movesummit.co.uk, with prebookings for select sessions available from Thursday 12th February at noon.
Co-founded by Tom Bryant (The Lost Thing, Best Animated Short Film Oscar winner, 2011), MOVE Summit has grown year on year to sold out audiences. In 2017, its inaugural year, 240 delegates attended over the course of one day. Today the event attracts around 1,200 delegates and speakers, with up to 600 on site each day. In 2020, MOVE took over the entire Pleasance Courtyard and it remains the event’s principal venue.
MOVE Summit 2026
18th – 21st February 2026
Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh, EH8 9TJ
info@movesummit.co.uk