KDU University Hosts Animex 2015 - [INDIEGAMING]

In its effort to forward the local animation, visual effects and especially the game development industry, KDU University College once again collaborated with the University of Teeside in bringing the Animex International Festival of Animation and Computer Games to Malaysia on 5th and 6th of September, 2015.

The Animex International Festival of Animation and Computer Games takes place every year in the North East of England and is one of the premier and largest Animation, Games and Comic festival in the UK. Its workshops and masterclasses feature the who's who in the industry, with speakers from Pixar, Disney Animation, Dreamworks, LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic, Rhythm & Hues, Valve, Epic, SEGA, Lionhead, Naughty Dog, Ubisoft, Media Molecule and UDON Entertainment.

This is only the second year that Animex is held outside of the UK in its 17-year long record (KDU hosted the event two years in a row).

With the same aim as its UK counterpart, Animex South East Asia featured talks, masterclasses, networking opportunities as well as an industry showcase exhibition. This year's opening keynote speaker was Christine Phelan from Valve. Christine has worked for studios such as Nickelodeon, LucasArts, Double Fine Productions, Nintendo and Valve. Her work includes "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed", "Brutal Legend", "Costume Quest", "Team Fortress 2" and "DOTA 2".

Phelan kicked off the event by keeping her audiences captivated with demonstrations of her works. Her session began with several impressive showcases involving virtual reality. She gave audiences a glimpse of virtual reality animation and spoke on aspects relating to it.

One other speaker that really captured the audiences' heart was Abdul Khaliq (or more fondly dubbed as Alitt), the current Art Director for EA Ghost which is based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Clad in his iconic Mickey Mouse T-shirt and jeans, Abdul Khaliq kept his talk very casual, giving off laid-back vibes which prompted the audience to feel more at ease to interact with him.

He began his talk with his own personal biography as introduction. As an ordinary Malay boy from Kajang, Selangor, Alitt started his journey in the games industry in the year 2006. From that entry level position, he continued to work hard enough until his talents gained recognition and brought him to Singapore and later to Sweden.

As of today, Alitt manages over 220 people in 6 studios throughout Asia and Europe. Based on his vast experience working within the industry, he believes that more women should join the games industry as developers and game artists. Noting on the fast growing dynamics of the industry, he remarked on the male-dominated industry saying "Women can do better than men in this industry itself."

Speaking on KDU hosting this event for the second time around, Associate Professor Dr. Hon Wei Min, the Deputy Vice Chancellor of KDU University College expressed "KDU recognizes the potential of this booming industry and has embarked on this challenge to change mind sets of Malaysians and forward the local game development scene. Thus in this effort, KDU University College and the University of Teeside brings Animex to South East Asia in efforts to groom young talents."

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