ASIFA-South Impact: Empowering Community Through Animation

At ASIFA-South, we believe that animation is more than an art form: it’s a bridge to opportunity, expression, and community. As the pioneering animation-focused nonprofit organization in Georgia, we’ve spent over a decade democratizing access to animation, uplifting underrepresented voices, and building an inclusive creative ecosystem that reaches from Atlanta to the global stage.

With our mission to bring together our community of veteran industry professionals while creating access for early career and transitioning rookies, we create a bridge to access to mentorship, industry knowledge, and professional pathway for artists of all ages and background through free and low cost events, global and hands on.

Our Impact by the Numbers

• 🎬 100+ annual public events (mixers, workshops, ASIFAC festival)

• 👥 1,000+ annual participants, including youth, professionals, and families

• 🎓 12 students currently in our youth animation incubator with re:imagine/ATL

• 2,500+ volunteer hours in 2024  with 18 committee and board receiving Presidential Volunteer Service Award

• Monthly mixer averaging 65-100 attendees

• Committee and alumnae have gone on to work at Disney TV Animation, Sony Animation, Nickelodeon, Bento Box, Floyd County Studios, and other local leadership positions such as Out on Film Festival, Atlanta Children's Museum, etc.🏆 Recognized globally as one of ASIFA International’s most active chapters

  
  

Mentorship in Action

Through our Youth Animation Incubator, we provide intensive training, career exposure, and community support to underserved youth. Many of our graduates have gone on to work in major studios, with several crediting ASIFA-South as the reason they entered the animation industry.

In the Press

Our festival has been featured in top creative industry publications:

Animation World Network (AWN)

Animation Magazine

Cartoon Brew

Georgia Entertainment

Oz Magazine

Explore our press features: ASIFAC 2024 in the Press

What our Community says about us

“ASIFA-South gave me the confidence, training, and support I needed to go from student to professional. It’s why I’m working in animation today.”— Ezra Kirsch, Committee Alumni & Artist, Bold Journey Interview

“It’s an incredibly empowering space that doesn’t gatekeep. They really care about helping people break into animation, especially those from nontraditional backgrounds.”— Kieran Quinn, Committee Alumni VoyageATL Interview

“My time with ASIFA‑South changed everything. I went from thinking animation was unattainable to being published by Animation Magazine shortly after the incubator.”

— Dominique Ebron, Incubator Alum & Featurette Artist, Canvas Rebel Interview

“Before ASIFA-South, I felt lost. After getting involved, I found community, career direction, and a renewed belief in my voice as a storyteller.”

— Jules Premus, Incubator Alumni (Worked at Floyd County, Sony Animation, taught at Kennesaw State University) VoyageATL Interview

Global Leadership

ASIFA-South actively contributes to international policy and cultural exchange. Participating in the International Animation Day Celebration every year, we actively curate and foster an exchange of films with international chapters showcasing our southern talent in Korea, Austra, Australia, China, etc. This year, Corrie Parks, our ASIFA-South member and Technical Director of ASIFA International represented us at the ASIFA General Assembly at Animafest Zagreb. Our transitioned leadership former board of director, Jason Shwartz is currently in the process of reigniting the the ASIFA-Colorado chapter, citing our work in Georgia as his inspiration.

Our board of director Jeremy Seymour and Liaison Pauline Lu are also in the process of building a Tennessee chapter of ASIFA-South and liaison Eugene Shaw and committee member, Adam Strickland are doing the same with a Florida chapter branch of ASIFA-South.

Service & Civic Leadership

Presidential Volunteer Service Award Recipient

Our Leadership have served cross-organization board and leadership position across:

• Women in Film & Television Atlanta

• Gwinnett Technical College Computer Science Advisory Board

• Decide DeKalb Entertainment Advisory Board

• Georgia Production Partnership

• Re:Imagine ATL

• SIGGRAPH

• Georgia Green Production Summit

  
  

Looking Ahead

In 2025, our ASIFAC Festival will be hosted at Georgia State University’s Creative Media Industries Institute (CMII), an invited partnership that reflects our growing influence in Georgia’s arts and media sectors. Previous festivals have been hosted at Savannah College of Art and Design, Kennessaw State University, Georgia Tech Paper Museum and we are committed to continuing our involvement with our educational partners.

Join Us

We are 100% volunteer-run, deeply collaborative, and fully committed to building an animation ecosystem that’s accessible to all. From youth education to global outreach, we’re proud to be shaping Georgia’s creative future: one frame at a time.

Have your own ASIFA-South story to share? We’d love to hear from you and feature you. Contact us at info@asifa-south.com