Victoria Alonso Wows Crowd at Annual Women in Tech Luncheon
Marvel Exec Talks Opportunity, Community
It was a packed room and an enthusiastic crowd that greeted Victoria Alonso, executive vice president of physical production for Marvel Studios, who spoke at the annual Women in Technology luncheon on 24 October, presented by HPA and SMPTE®. Attendees were eager to hear Alonso’s take on women in visual effects and opportunities in entertainment technology. The conversation with Alonso was moderated by Kari Grubin, co-chair of HPA Women In Post and Vice President, Mastering at The Walt Disney Studios.
Alonso noted that a mixed playing field is the goal, saying “Our rooms should be 50/50. If any of you — men or women — can lift women up, we’ll all be better for it.” She also noted that elevating the environment is ts a shared responsibility to act, highlighting three things that women can do, immediately, to help. “Make three calls, today.” That means, make one call on behalf of you want to help, one for someone that you might not want, and make one for yourself. That simple act, Alonso said, will have immediate impact.
Victoria Alonso and Kari Grubin – (Photo by Ryan Miller/Capture Imaging)
Alonso is an exuberant and consistent voice advocating for women to play key roles in the visual effects (VFX) sector of the industry. Over the course of her career, Alonso’s extensive credits include an array of VFX-driven projects, including Big Fish, Kingdom of Heaven, Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor, The Avengers, Thor: The Dark World, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Iron Man, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, and Ant-Man, to name a few. Dr. Strange, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2., Thor: Ragnarok and Avengers: Infinity War are on the horizon between now and 2018. Alonso is one of the few women to ever hold a position as physical production chief at a major studio. She has been a member-at-large of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) since 2013.