LightBox Expo Reveals Epic Schedule of Disney-Focused Panels for 2026

The full schedule of panels for LightBox Expo 2026 has been revealed, with presentations from Industrial Light & Magic, Lucasfilm, Pixar, 20th Television Animation, and Ravensburger's Disney Lorcana TCG team.

Disney at LightBox Expo 2026:

• LightBox Expo returns to the Pasadena Convention Center, running from October 23rd to 25th, with community mixer events kicking off Thursday, October 22nd.
• The entertainment and art industry event just released its full schedule for this year, including a deep slate of panels tied to The Walt Disney Company.
• The following Disney-focused panels are scheduled during the event:
  • Designing the Creatures of Avatar: Fire and Ash: Step inside the elaborate design process for the creatures from Avatar: Fire and Ash. Creature designers talk about the design evolution and process for bringing the fauna of Pandora to life. (Dylan Cole, Constantine Sekeris, Zachary Berger, Ian Joyner)
  • Weyland-Yutani: Designing for Science Fiction Worlds: Step inside the dark, industrial worldbuilding of one of science fiction's most iconic corporations. This panel brings together concept designers whose work has helped shape the visual language of Weyland-Yutani, defined by its retro-futuristic costumes, spacecraft, machinery, corporate industrial design, and brutalist, utilitarian aesthetics, featuring design work from Alien: Romulus, Predator: Badlands, Prometheus, and Alien: Covenant. (Steven Messing, David Vyle Levy, Crystal-Jade Vaughan, Dane Hallett)
  • Virtual Production at Industrial Light & Magic: An introduction to the Virtual Production and ILM StageCraft pipeline.
  • Art of the Revival: Join a conversation with past and present directors of the beloved animated primetime show, King of the Hill, discussing the similarities and differences between production in 1996 and 2026, the nuances of realism in animation, and how they brought the Hill family into the present-day and beyond. (Wes Archer, Michael Baylis, Allan Jacobsen, Traci Honda, Michael Pacheco)
  • Creative Proceduralism: The Automation Studios Actually Need: Join Disney visual development artist Ryan Lang and pipeline engineer Alan Wyatt as they look at building your own creative tools and workflows without resorting to methods that replace the artist or the intent behind the work.
  • The Great Mouse Detective 40th Anniversary!: Join an unforgettable 40th Anniversary celebration of Disney's The Great Mouse Detective, the animated classic that saved Disney Animation and launched a whole new era of storytelling. Directors John Musker and Ron Clements will share behind-the-scenes stories and reflections on the film's legacy in paving the way for the Disney Renaissance, moderated by Nick Manfredi.
  • Creating Beloved Characters with Pixar's Deanna Marsigliese: What makes a character iconic? Pixar Character Art Director Deanna Marsigliese (Inside Out 2, Incredibles 2, Luca) breaks down her process, exploring the creation of beloved characters through thoughtful storytelling and meaningful design decisions.
  • Creative World Building: Disney Lorcana TCG by Ravensburger: Step behind the curtain of Disney Lorcana TCG and discover how the creative partnership between Ravensburger and The Walt Disney Company brings new stories, characters, and worlds to Lorcana, including a look into Hyperia City. (Matthew Eng, Nicole Smith, John Loren, Shane Hartley)
  • Figure Drawing – Jam Session Open to All!: Illustrator and Disney Lorcana Art Director Andrew Theophilopoulos hosts a live costumed-model drawing session with quick gestures and longer poses, projecting an iPad painting demo for attendees to draw along with.
  • The Art of Disney Lorcana TCG by Ravensburger: Go behind the scenes of Disney Lorcana TCG and explore the creative partnership between Ravensburger and The Walt Disney Company. Join celebrated illustrator Nicholas Kole and Ravensburger Principal Artist John Loren, moderated by Creative Director of Illustration Matthew Eng, for a look at the collaboration behind some of the game's most iconic cards.
  • Lost Shorts of Disney TV Animation: In 1995, Disney TV Animation green-lit a direct-to-video compilation of shorts called "Totally Twisted Tales." Only two were completed — "Redux Riding Hood" and "The Three Pigs" — before the project was scrapped. Both shorts, long shelved in the Disney vault, screen at LightBox presented by their directors, Steve Moore and Darrell Rooney.
  • Star Wars Animation: How Stories Get from Idea to Screen: Join creative development executives at Lucasfilm as they discuss project and story development across a wide breadth of animated series and specials set in a galaxy far, far away — from Lucasfilm Animation's Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord to LEGO Star Wars, Star Wars: Visions, and more. (Josh Rimes, Jane Riegler, Kinga Barnett, Matt Martin)
  • Finding a Personal Style after Marvel Studios: Artist Rodney Fuentebella shows a peek of the new personal art he's been working on after being with Marvel Studios for over 15 years.
  • Out of the Blue: Culture and Legacy of Blue Sky Studios: A group of renowned Blue Sky Studios artists — Andrea Blasich, Michael DeFeo, Mike Knapp, and Jason Sadler — look back on their formative years at the studio, its distinct East Coast creative culture, and the profound impact it had on their careers.
  • The Art of Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu: Join a discussion of the art and artists behind Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, covering creative process and behind-the-scenes stories from bringing Star Wars to life. (Christian Alzmann, Jama Jurabaev, John Romulo, Benjamin Last, Brian Matyas)
  • The Legacy of Eyvind Earle: Celebrate the legacy of Eyvind Earle, one of this year's Concept Art Awards recipients, with a panel of legendary Disney animators, animation historians, designers, and executives who knew and worked with him. (Donald Paul Hahn, Floyd E. Norman, John Canemaker, Jill Culton, Michael Giaimo, Eric Goldberg, and more)
  • Billion Dollar Janitor: Kris Wimberly walks through his 18-year career and the mindset he used to build bridges of opportunity, from custodian at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim to Supervising Director on the return of Sofia the First.
  • Designing Avatar: Fire and Ash – Environments and Vehicles: Join the production designers and concept artists of Avatar: Fire and Ash as they walk through bringing the environment and vehicle designs to life for James Cameron's epic film, from the Windtrader Gondola and Ash Village to Bridghead City and the Factory ship. (Steven Messing, Dylan Cole, Jonathan Bach, Ben Procter, Fausto DeMartini)
  • Ravensburger: What We Look for in Freelance Illustrators: Join the creative team behind Disney Lorcana TCG and Ravensburger tabletop games for an inside look at the freelance illustration process, portfolio tips, and what Ravensburger looks for across products including Disney Lorcana and Disney Villainous. (Matthew Eng, Liz Richards, Jake Breish, Dawn Yamazi)
  • Figure Drawing – Jam Session Open to All – Part 2!: Round two of Disney Lorcana Art Director Andrew Theophilopoulos's costumed-model drawing jam.
  • The Art Of Predator Badlands: A deep dive into the art of the mech, worldbuilding, and costume design of the hit movie, featuring key designers whose work spans environment art, creature design, industrial design, and alien flora and fauna. (Matt Allsopp, Benjamin Last, Crystal-Jade Vaughan, Dane Hallett)
  • Introducing the Art of Star Wars: Unlimited: Meet the lead Art Directors behind Star Wars: Unlimited for an inside look at the concept-to-card pipeline for the trading card game, what makes it unique, and what they look for when reviewing artist portfolios. (Kate Swazee, Steve Hamilton, Olivia Lothary, presented by Fantasy Flight Games)
• Additional panels with a Disney presence:
  • Dylan Cole – Creating Worlds: Academy Award-nominated production designer Dylan Cole shares work and insights from his 25-year career spanning from Lord of the Rings to Avatar: Fire and Ash, celebrating his new retrospective book.
  • Movie Magic: Editing for Animated Films: A panel on how animated films are crafted in the edit, featuring Bret Marnell, ACE (Ultraman: Rising, Smurfs: The Lost Village), along with editors from Netflix, Disney, and Pixar.
  • Storyboard Smorgasbord: Brainstorming for Comedy & Character: Storyboard veterans Christian Roman (The Simpsons, Disney TVA, Pixar, Aardman), Josh Lieberman, and Mike Daley (Blue Sky, Pixar) run an interactive workshop on drawing your way out of a story or comedy rut.
  • How to Break Into Storyboarding for Feature Films: Hollywood storyboard artists share their paths into the industry, moderated by Jeffrey Henderson (Predator Badlands), with panelists Aaron Sowd (Predator Badlands), Amy Umezu (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), Dwayne Turner (Star Wars Skeleton Crew), Sam Tung (Iron Man 3), Tony Liberatore (Black Panther, Thunderbolts*), and William Groebe (Star Wars Star Fighter, Deadpool & Wolverine).
  • Crafting Comedy in Storyboards: Josh "Hat" Lieberman and Michael Daley (Turning Red, Luca, the Incredibles franchise) discuss crafting visual comedy and writing jokes for storyboards.
  • The Art of Imagining the Future: Concept artist and Art Director David Levy explores science fiction worldbuilding through examples from Avatar, TRON: Legacy, Dune Prophecy, Star Wars, and other productions.
  • Illustrating The Point: Tales from ADG's Greats!: Art Directors Guild concept and storyboard artists discuss the process behind some of cinema's most memorable designs, with credits spanning Avatar, Avengers: Endgame, Iron Man, and The Phantom Menace. (Warren Manser, Neville Page, Sean Hargreaves, Eric Ramsey, Benton Jew)
  • A handful of other talks name-check Disney properties in passing: Víctor Paredes cites Star Wars Visions – Screecher's Reach in his Moho animation demo, Stephan Martiniere's career talk touches on Guardians of the Galaxy, Michael Knapp's two solo panels list Blue Sky/20th Century credits like Spies in Disguise and the Ice Age franchise, Jarom Vogel's Procreate demo mentions Disney among his clients, Matt Braly's career retrospective touches on Disney Channel's Amphibia, "The Irreplaceable Spark" uses Captain Marvel as one of five case studies, and Disney is listed among the sponsors of the 24 Hours Animation Contest for Students screening.
• Additional headlining panels include Brad Bird's Netflix/Skydance feature Ray Gunn, a 25th-anniversary retrospective from Cartoon Saloon, and Sony Pictures Animation's GOAT.
• The 2026 Concept Art Awards take place Saturday, October 24th at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, with Eyvind Earle among this year's honorees.
• Tickets for the Pasadena event are on sale now.