Speakers
Keynote Speaker: Rob Au
Rob Au is an award-winning VFX and CG Supervisor whose artistry has lit up the big screen, television, and game cinematics for over two decades. An alumnus of BYU’s acclaimed Animation BFA program, his early work earned multiple Student Emmys and a Sundance Film Festival selection—setting the tone for a career defined by visual innovation and storytelling excellence.
Rob has led creative teams at Rhythm & Hues, Method Studios, Pixomondo, and the LDS Motion Picture Studio, where he built and expanded the VFX department from the ground up. His portfolio includes Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Fear the Walking Dead (VES Award nomination), The Golden Compass, a Taylor Swift music video, and numerous AAA game trailers.
Known for blending technical mastery with an artist’s eye, Rob began his career as a lighting artist and rose to become head of the lighting department at the Academy Award–winning Rhythm & Hues Studios. His craft as an artist of light is woven through his work in look development, environments, compositing, and FX—infusing emotion and energy into every project. He uses light to enhance realism while adding emotional depth, making the worlds, creatures, and effects he creates as moving as they are visually stunning. As an educator, Rob is passionate about inspiring the next generation of artists to discover and use light as a powerful storytelling tool.
Rob and his wife, Melissa Au, live in Spanish Fork, Utah, where they enjoy raising their five children and welcoming a fantastic daughter-in-law into the family. Together, they enjoy serving in the temple. Rob also has a passion for gardening and restoring old cars, and he’s a trivia master with an uncanny gift for recalling the most random—yet often surprisingly useful—facts.
Rob has led creative teams at Rhythm & Hues, Method Studios, Pixomondo, and the LDS Motion Picture Studio, where he built and expanded the VFX department from the ground up. His portfolio includes Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Fear the Walking Dead (VES Award nomination), The Golden Compass, a Taylor Swift music video, and numerous AAA game trailers.
Known for blending technical mastery with an artist’s eye, Rob began his career as a lighting artist and rose to become head of the lighting department at the Academy Award–winning Rhythm & Hues Studios. His craft as an artist of light is woven through his work in look development, environments, compositing, and FX—infusing emotion and energy into every project. He uses light to enhance realism while adding emotional depth, making the worlds, creatures, and effects he creates as moving as they are visually stunning. As an educator, Rob is passionate about inspiring the next generation of artists to discover and use light as a powerful storytelling tool.
Rob and his wife, Melissa Au, live in Spanish Fork, Utah, where they enjoy raising their five children and welcoming a fantastic daughter-in-law into the family. Together, they enjoy serving in the temple. Rob also has a passion for gardening and restoring old cars, and he’s a trivia master with an uncanny gift for recalling the most random—yet often surprisingly useful—facts.