2025 Speakers
Meghdad Asadilari, Assistant Professor, Rochester Institute of Technology
Meghdad Asadilari is an Assistant Professor of Motion Picture Science at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). Previously, he was a Professor of Animation at Savannah College of Art and Design and a Visiting Assistant Professor at RIT’s 3D Digital Design program.
An award-winning animator, Meghdad leverages his technical expertise to create innovative workflows and brings this knowledge to courses like Advanced Rigging, Programming, Particles and Dynamics, Real-Time Simulations, and VFX. He has collaborated as a rigger, tool developer, and VFX artist with studios in the U.S. and abroad.
Meghdad’s expertise in 2D puppet animation led him to become the Animation Director and Lead Animator for the Emmy-nominated web series Storyline Online, where he directed and animated six episodes using procedural techniques to enhance 2D puppet animation workflows. This industry experience shapes his teaching of 2D Puppet Animation courses, where he guides students through the process of rigging and animating characters using ToonBoom Harmony and AfterEffects.
Meghdad’s short animations have been recognized at Academy-qualified festivals and exhibited at venues like the Walt Disney Family Museum and Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg. As a member of RIT’s Epic MegaGrant recipient team, he developed a course on Unreal’s Niagara particle systems and collaborated on building the virtual production curriculum.
