Foundry partners with ACCESS:VFX to lead diversity drive in the visual effects, animation and gaming industries

Foundry (https://www.foundry.com/, the leading developer of creative software for the media and entertainment and digital design industries announced its collaboration with ACCESS:VFX - (https://www.accessvfx.org/)

ACCESS:VFX is a global non-profit organisation focused on driving inclusion and diversity in the visual effects, animation and games industries. Their e-mentoring programme recently celebrated connecting over 100 young people aged 13 to 41 to supportive VFX industry members. 70% of mentees are BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic People) and/or female - with ambitions to grow the programme to 350 by the end of 2019 and expand across the Atlantic to its regional hubs in New York, Chicago and Montreal.

ACCESS:VFX founder and chair Simon Devereux said: The UK's VFX industry is estimated to be worth more than £1 billion a year to the UK economy, yet is currently 85% white and only 27% female.2 We need and want more diverse talent to join our sector.

He continued: Our practical e-mentoring program is at the heart of our mission. We connect aspiring creative and VFX talent to leaders at VFX, animation and games studios including Framestore, Union, Outpost and Fix FX, amongst others - through a private Slack channel. With so many exciting events planned for 2019, having a world-leading VFX brand like Foundry add its weight and support to our diversity campaign to mentor the next generation of talent is a win-win for our industry.

The e-mentoring programme is managed by third-party provider, Prospela, a professional network for students, giving on-demand access to mentors for career discovery, inspiration and planning.

Jody Madden, CEO at Foundry, commented: We are huge believers in making the visual effects industry as accessible as possible. The next generation of creative talent is our industry's lifeblood. We are delighted to support this cross-company initiative to provide diversity and inclusivity. It complements our Education Collective initiative, a programme we created to give students free and discounted access to Foundry's suite of professional software.

LINK:	https://www.kitplus.com/news/Foundry_partners_with_ACCESS_VFX_to_lead_...
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