Dancing rabbits. A worm party. THAT infamous U2 album? The Portland design and animation community came together for an incredible evening packed with fun conversations, industry insight, and new connections. Animated Music Video Production was AEPDX’s first in-person event in 2023, with what seemed like just as many returning members as there were newcomers.

As the new manager of the group, Deep Sky, the Portland-based animation and live action studio, will manage and host the group going forward, leading event programming, partnerships, and community engagement. Autodesk, the global leader in design and make technology, and Toolfarm, the leading reseller and distributor of video software products and plugins, have joined as sponsors.

The event featured a panel of industry-leading directors and producers sharing behind-the-scenes insight into how they created some of their most well-known animated music videos. John Robson (Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy”, Autre Ne Veut’s “Okay”), Mike Anderson (Meg Myers’ “The Underground”, Junior Jack & Pat BDS’s “Tecky Dream”) and Deep Sky (Big Wild’s “OMGarden”, The Smashing Pumpkins’ In Ashes) bared so much of their process in creating these projects, including both their successes and missteps along the way.