HITS

Matthew Luhn, who spent 23 years working as a storyteller, consultant, writer and instructor at Pixar Animation Studios, will be the first keynote to take the stage Oct. 18 in Los Angeles at the HITS Fall: Digipalooza Conference, and attendees may be in for a surprise from someone who’s made his career in creativity.

“I will be sharing how big data has being successfully used at Pixar to make stronger connections with people through the stories and characters we create,” Luhn told the Media & Entertainment Services Alliance (MESA). “I’m hoping that attendees will take away how big data can help create memorable, impactful, and personal stories and companies.”

His presentation — “Synthesizing Creativity and Business Success in Hollywood” — will have attendees looking at a different way of creating content, that leveraging big data can impact storytelling in everything from content development, to the corporate culture of the studio itself. Luhn will share how the characters and stories he helped create at Pixar were impacted by delving into data, and how that process can be used by everyone in the business, including publishers, advertisers and innovators.

“At Pixar we use big data and research to create great stories and characters in films like ‘Toy Story 3,’ ‘Inside Out,’ and ‘beyond,” Luhn said. “Art inspires technology, and technology inspires art.”

You’ve seen Luhn’s work: His story credits include every “Toy Story” film, “Monsters Inc.,” “Monsters University,” “Finding Nemo,” “Up,” “Cars” and “Ratatouille,” and outside of Pixar, he’s worked on “The Simpsons” and currently works as a story consultant for Adidas.

He’s helped advise top-tier clients on how information technology can transform the way they tell their corporate stories, including Facebook, BBC, Microsoft, Sony, Warner Bros., Apple and Google.

Taking place at Loews Hollywood Hotel, the HITS Fall: Digipalooza Conference is produced by the Media & Entertainment Services Alliance (MESA) and the Hollywood IT Society (HITS) with sponsorship by Cast & Crew Entertainment Services, GrayMeta, Teradata, Okta, Microsoft Azure, FilmTrack and Zaszou IT Consulting.

To register or for more information, click here.