Maansi Sunkara is the founder and co-director of AQIA. She is located in San Francisco and is currently a Production Coordinator at Nickelodeon working on an unannounced TV series. She has prior experience working at Warner Bros Animation, DreamWorks Animation and Lucasfilm. She is an aspiring producer and hopes to advocate for diversity on and off-screen in animated film/television as she builds her career. In her free time, she loves to go to craft fairs, spend time at parks and trying new food spots.
Sanisha Agarwal is a Senior 3D Animation Student at Pratt Institute. In the past, she has interned at Cartoon Network, Titmouse and Sesame Workshop, and hopes to build a career in Production Management after she graduates! When she is not working or in class, she loves to read and illustrate new designs for her art store!
Aimee is an enthusiastic individual with a desire to develop skills in marketing and digital art. Aside from being an Engagement Assistant for AQIA, she works as a yoga instructor and as an administrative assistant at Accenture. In her free time, she loves to take yoga classes, go hiking, visit museums and watch animated movies.
Wei Wei Chen is a media professional who strives to tell and give a platform to stories that allow individuals from all backgrounds to feel seen. She is currently a Writer/Producer at CNN Creative Marketing. Previously, she held creative roles at Cartoon Network, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Coca-Cola, and elsewhere.
Nikki is an aspiring character designer looking to meet more people that share her passion for animation and entertainment by getting involved with organizations like AQIA. She enjoys traveling in search of good food and going to the movies with her fiance.
Ashley is a current 4th year traditional student at UCLA majoring in Asian American Studies and minoring in Film/TV/Digital Media Studies. She is hoping to pursue a career in the entertainment industry post-grad, but will go wherever the wind takes her!
Lia Correia is a visual development artist and illustrator based in Los Angeles. She became a volunteer to help foster community among other underrepresented individuals in animation and help uplift their voices. In her free time, she enjoys reading, cooking, and playing tabletop RPGs with her friends.
Victoria Lai is a character designer, muralist, and graphic designer based in Boston, MA. As a Vietnamese American, Victoria’s artwork celebrates her heritage and creates a space for community building. She hopes to continue sharing the narratives of diverse voices in animation and beyond.
Sameera is a graphic designer specialising in branding, marketing and business development. She is passionate about providing value to others by developing unique and meaningful design solutions. She believes in the transformative power of high-quality design—intentional design in branding, physical spaces and the digital realm—to make an impact on the end user.
Ally started her animation production journey at Dreamworks Animation. Since then, she has worked at studios such as Netflix Animation and Marvel Studios and has recently made the jump to feature animation as a Production Coordinator. She is currently working on several collaborative projects as steps towards creating her own animation studio.
Ananya Bhat currently works at Microsoft. They have a love for creating and strive to make stuff that sparks both joy and wonder in the hearts of others! When they're not working, you can find them making music, designing new products for their art store, or rewatching episodes of Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Allison is passionate about equity, diversity, and inclusion in entertainment. This passion stems from her roots in public health, where she studied how people learn behaviors and beliefs from storytelling. Allison's goal is to continue working in entertainment and helping improve representation behind the camera and on the screen.
Mahi is a 3D artist specialized in Technical Animation. Currently she’s working with Walt Disney animation studio as character TD Apprentice. Her work experience includes Netflix’s Entergalactic and Disney’s newest film Strange World. Aside from that she love watching Anime and playing Basketball..and she’s also an avid movie-watcher, and cartoon fanatic.
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