SIGGRAPHITTI Issue 4- June 2013

Keynote Session

Marc Davis Lecture Series: Giants' First Steps

Eight distinguished directors share their years of experience along complex paths to filmmaking success. The Marc Davis Lecture Series was established to provide a forum for film animators and other experts in the craft to explore the challenges of creating animation for feature films.

Directors:

Moderator:
Randy Haberkamp, Managing Director of Programing, Education and Preservation, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Presented in collaboration between SIGGRAPH 2013 and The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Computer Animation Festival Awards

SIGGRAPH 2013 announces the Computer Animation Festival's Best in Show, Jury Award, Best Student Project, and Best Student Runner’s Up recipients. The SIGGRAPH 2013 Computer Animation Festival presents the year’s finest achievements in digital film and video from the world’s most innovative, accomplished, and amazing digital film and video creators. SIGGRAPH 2013 Computer Animation Festival highlights include outstanding achievements in traditional animation, shorts and features, visual effects, anniversary reels, and games. A total of 104 films will be shown during the SIGGRAPH 2013 Computer Animation Festival.

The Computer Animation Festival is recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as a qualifying festival. Since 1999, several works originally presented in the Computer Animation Festival have been nominated for or have received a "Best Animated Short" Academy Award.

BEST IN SHOW
A la Francaise
Directed by Morrigane Boyer, Julien Hazebroucq, Ren Hsien Hsu, Emmanuelle Leleu and William Lorton
It's an afternoon in Versailles, during the reign of Louis XIV.

JURY AWARD
Lost Senses
Directed by Marcin Wasilewski
A short story about an encounter in an abstract flying world, stylized as the paintings of Chirico. Will the lovers meet each other? A man tries very hard, climbing up the buildings. But one unguarded moment is enough to make him lose his senses. And his chance.

BEST STUDENT PROJECT
Rollin' Safari
Directed by Kyra Buschor
The balloon animals of the Serengeti are struggling to follow their daily routine.

BEST STUDENT PROJECT RUNNERS-UP

Sleddin'
Directed by John Pettingill
This metaphor for experiences that are larger than life explores the phenomenal childhood moments that are ultimately dependent on one's own perspective.

Harald
Directed by Moritz Schneider
Harald is a wrestler. Driven by his ambitious mother, he wins a vast number of challenge cups. But his true love is flowers. When his mother takes away his favorite flower, he has to fight for it.

Image Credit: A la Francaise, Author: Annabel Sebag. Directed by Morrigane Boyer, Julien Hazebroucq, Ren Hsien Hsu, Emmanuelle Leleu and William Lorton, France

Dailies

Dailies is a show celebrating excellence in computer graphics, showcasing images and short animations of extraordinary power and beauty. It is a fast-paced event where each presenter has less than two minutes to show an animation and describe their work.

While there's a huge variety of stunning imagery showcased at Dailies, what really makes Dailies special is hearing the artist tell the story behind the work. You may hear an entertaining tale about a tight deadline, or maybe a thought provoking discussion about a clever technique used to make incredibly complex imagery. Regardless, you'll walk away both entertained and inspired.

Though there will be overflow rooms, seating for the live show is limited and will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.

Dailies Highlights:

The Octopus and the Geisha
Presenter: Edward Dawson-Taylor, EDJFX
What began as a technical and creative personal project, to create an eerie underwater short film with tentacles, took the contributor to creating one of his proudest works and ended up being used as a music video and visuals for a band he has loved for over 15 years.

World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria Cinematic Intro
Presenter: Marc Messenger, Blizzard Entertainment
For this cinematic intro, the Blizzard Film Department explored a heightened level of stylization that influenced everything from character design and animation to environments, effects, and lighting.

Animator-Friendly Simulation - Rigging for Deep Dance
Presenter: Georg Schneider
Rigs that give animators the ability to use simulation at the beginning of the animation process and continue working on the result as if it had been animated by hand.

Sleddin'
Presenters: John Pettingill, Kelly Kin, Junze Zhou, Texas A&M University
In this short film, a daring boy sleds down a towering mountain. After crashing, he discovers that reality was not quite what it seemed. His adventure is a metaphor for larger-than-life experiences. These moments, often created in our childhood, depend on our perspective.

Monsters University: Art's Groom and Simulation Setup
Presenter: Laura Beth Albright, Pixar Animation Studios
For "Monsters University," the stylized design and unusual animation requirements of a new character, Art, presented unique challenges for grooming, shading, and simulation, which required custom solutions.

See the full list of Dailies contributors.

Image Credit: The Octopus and the Geisha, Edward Dawson-Taylor, EDJFX

Studio

In this collaborative working environment, the latest technologies and brightest minds come together to learn, experiment, and create. Explore the Studio and try out a wide range of new techniques and media with help from experienced hands. Play with the latest in 3D printing, modeling, and animation software. Bring your ideas to life with tomorrow's technologies in gigapixel imaging, motion capture, and more. The Studio showcases talks, workshops, and projects led by industry professionals. Drop by and learn a new skill or play with the latest technology including NVIDIA and Epson.

View more information on SIGGRAPH 2013 Studio Talks, Workshops and Projects.

SIGGRAPH 2013 Studio Highlights:

Wurm Hole One Minute Portrait Sculptures: Studio Project
Daniel Collins, Aubrey Wigner, Don Vance, Arizona State University
The Wurm Hole is a 12 foot high computer controlled “portrait station” where conference attendees are invited to create an original full body portrait sculpture. Attendees sit or stand on a custom rotating CNC platform while, simultaneously, a hacked Kinect unit does 3D scans of the attendee over the length of the 12 foot vertical arc. The resulting 3D data set is output to a bank of rapid prototyping machines for the creation of sculptural souvenirs.

Air Painting & More: Revolutionary New Ways to Paint!
Jeremy Sutton, Sutton Studios & Gallery
Experience air painting with the Leap Motion Controller and Corel Painter Freestyle, an exciting new digital-painting paradigm in which you control your brush strokes through the finger movements in the air, plus the latest in photo painting with Corel Painter and painting on the iPad.

WORKSHOP: Motion Capture Pipeline from Movies to Games
Kan Anant, PhaseSpace, Inc. and Oliver Hotz, Origami Digital
Dr. Anant and Oliver Hotz will present demonstrations from examples of recent movies, games and animations, of how Motion Capture has gone from being a career to simply being a tool that any artist or animator should master as tools from Autodesk Motion Builder, Maya, Jimmy Rig from Origami Digital and others allow users with no prior experience to bring their characters to life. Please bring your character with you or we will have to turn you into one on the spot, by attending the 3D scanning talk.

London 2012 - Olympic and Paralypic Opening and Closing Ceremonies - Audience Pixel Content
Ed Cookson, Crystal CG International
Crystal CG set about building a team in its London studio who would design and deliver the visually stunning motion graphic content. The team is comprised of 40 people; a mix of Producers, Motion Graphic Designers and Animators and 3D Designers. For everyone involved, this was a technical and creative challenge unlike any other.

Image Credit: Wurm Hole One Minute Portrait Sculptures: Studio Project, Daniel Collins, Aubrey Wigner, Don Vance, Arizona State University/Herberger Institute For Design And The Arts

Geek Bar

Enjoy real-time human networking at the Geek Bar, where content will stream from the SIGGRAPH 2013 session rooms throughout the conference. The Geek Bar serves many purposes: watch multiple live sessions at once through headphones on multiple screens and channels, network with fellow attendees and colleagues while lounging in a quiet, comfortable space or utilize the Geek Bar as an overflow room if conference sessions are full.

Housing Deadline

Make your SIGGRAPH hotel reservation through onPeak by 17 June for the best available discounted rates.

As time runs out, hotel rates get higher and availability will become limited, especially on online travel sites like Expedia. The good news is, official SIGGRAPH rates are locked in as long as you book by 17 June. View a list of participating hotels. Please note that these discounts are available to SIGGRAPH 2013 attendees only. Reservations made after 17 June are based on availability only, and rates may increase.

Book your hotel today online or contact onPeak, the SIGGRAPH 2013 travel partner, directly at 800.631.5557 (Continental US and Canada) or +1.312.527.7300. If you are contacted by any other companies to make hotel reservations for SIGGRAPH 2013, please be aware they are not reputable companies or endorsed by SIGGRAPH 2013.

Don't let these deals slip away.

Our Hotels	Our Rate	Expedia Rate	Nightly Savings
Hilton Anaheim (Headquarters Hotel)	$175	$209	$34
Red Lion Anaheim	$140	$149	$9
Anaheim Marriott	$175	$239	$64

Visit the SIGGRAPH site for more information on housing and travel.

Airport Shuttle Bus Discounts

SIGGRAPH 2013 has partnered with Super Shuttle to offer transportation to and from John Wayne Airport (SNA) and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Please click here for more information and for the discount code offered to SIGGRAPH attendees.

Cut&Paste at SIGGRAPH 2013

Cut&Paste is bringing the CHARACTERIZED Tour to SIGGRAPH 2013. Presented by HP, CHARACTERIZED at SIGGRAPH is a design competition focused on character design, technique, and intent. Three teams throw down in rapid, live onstage rounds, revealing their digital design process and original character artistry. It's a dynamic mashup of character designers in Cut&Paste's experimental team format. Cut&Paste invites character designers to team up via the Online Application Form.

For more information, visit the CHARACTERIZED page on the website.

Register by 28 June and save!

Register for SIGGRAPH 2013 on or before 28 June to receive a discounted registration rate. Learn more about becoming an ACM SIGGRAPH Member to attend SIGGRAPH 2013 at the best discounted rate, as well as enjoy a wide array of membership benefits year-round.

Select the registration category that works for your schedule and budget and register today! Register at the Full Conference level to enhance the value of your conference experience.

Full Conference Access Pass

 Includes admission to ALL conference programs and events, including: Art Gallery, Awards Presentation, Birds of a Feather, Computer Animation Festival (Daytime Selects, Electronic Theater), Courses, Dailies, Emerging Technologies, Exhibits Fast Forward, Exhibitor Tech Talks, International Resources, Job Fair, Keynote Session, Panels, Posters, Production Sessions, Real-Time Live!, SIGGRAPH Mobile, Studio, Talks, and Technical Papers and all days of the Exhibition. The registration also includes a ticket to the Reception and the Full Conference DVD-ROM.

Full Conference One-Day Pass

 Includes one day admission to ALL conference programs and events and the Exhibition (Tuesday - Thursday). The registration does not include Reception ticket or Full Conference DVD-ROM.

New Registration Categories: For SIGGRAPH 2013, registration categories have been revised to simplify the registration process, clarify the programs available in each category, and enhance the value of the conference for each attendee.

Important Notice Regarding New Discount for SIGGRAPH 2013:

SIGGRAPH understands that recent changes in the industry have resulted in members in our community finding themselves unemployed and thus finding it difficult to attend SIGGRAPH 2013. We believe that in these times it is especially important that members of the SIGGRAPH community continue to come together to make connections, provide mutual inspiration, and continue to look forward and help create the future. So we are extending our lowest possible registration rates, the same as Student Member rates, to unemployed members of our community who would otherwise be unable to attend the conference.

Please visit the registration pages of the SIGGRAPH 2013 web site for more information.