2025 Schedule
9:45 AM – 10:30 AM
Keynote Speaker
10:45 AM – 11:45 AM
Speaker panel / q&a / lunch
11:45 AM – 1:25 PM
Hands-on demos / uiw student work showcase / mini campus tours
1:30 PM – 2:00 PM
Closing Remarks
2025 PRESENTERS
Lorena Cano Acosta, keynote speaker
Lorena is a CG Generalist, Look Development, and Lighting Artist with over 5 years of experience in 3D art and graphic design. She has worked with top VFX studios on TV commercials, cinematic game trailers, and episodic shows for brands such as Disney, HBO, Apple, EA, Amazon, and Coca-Cola.
Priscilla Chong-Macias
3D Modeler
Sonny Ponce
Programmer
Josh Starrett
Technical Artist
Why Attend
Want to get into the Game and Film Industry?
Start by attending this free conference and hear industry professionals speak on matters of interest.
UIW is Dedicated to Quality Education
Our 3D program has been around for over 20 years, and we plan to be around a lot longer than that. Learn from top talent in the industry who also have a passion to educate the next generation.
Results
Our students move on to work on industry recognized projects such as, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Death Stranding, and Marvel's Spiderman.
Frequently Asked Questions
UPGRADE is a conference for high school students interested in the game and film industries as 3D Animators, Model and Texture Artists, Programmers for games, and Production Management. We have invited professionals from those industries to come and speak on topics of interest.
The Seminar is being put on by the 3D Animation & Game Design department in the School of Media & Design at the University of the Incarnate Word.
High school students that are interested in pursuing education and careers in the game and film industry.
The Event will be held in-person.
Check-in is from 8:45 am – 9:30 am. The event will begin at 9:45 am and end at 2:00 pm on October 31, 2025.
We will host approximately 300 attendees.
Yes, and it is free of charge! If there are any special dietary needs, please bring what is needed.
Topics we will cover include but aren’t limited to the following: Film & Game Production, 3D Animation, modeling, visual effects, and Indie development.
Check the schedule above for details.
Please use the Contact Us page so we can answer them!
As there are further developments and updates, we will be updating this webpage. Please check back periodically!