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Call for Nominations: SIGGRAPH Distinguished Artist Award for Lifetime Achievement in Digital Art

Nov 18, 2016 |

The deadline of December 15, 2016 is fast approaching. Please submit your nominations for the award through the ACM SIGGRAPH website by visiting the URL listed below and clicking on "Artist Award Chair." Please include as much information about your nominee as possible, including web links. Nominations must be submitted through the ACM SIGGRAPH website in order to be considered.

https://www.siggraph.org/participate/awards

Description

The Distinguished Artist Award is awarded annually to an artist who has created a substantial and important body of work that significantly advances aesthetic content in the field of digital art. Not all qualities are required.

Nominations

Nominations are due by December 15, 2016 and should include:

  • Name(s) of the individual(s) being nominated (address and/or phone number and/or email address are also appreciated).
  • References to websites with the artist's works and texts when applicable (multiple references are welcome).
  • Nominator's name, address, telephone number, fax number, and email address.

A statement by the nominator describing the significance of the artist's contributions according to the following criteria (not all criteria are mandatory):

  1. The Artist has been contributing internationally to the digital arts for more than Twenty (20) years.
  2. The Artist has produced important work(s) that is (are) referenced in digital art history/theory papers/books.
  3. The Artist has established an unexplored area in the field of digital art/media art.
  4. The Artist has been advancing the use of digital technologies in creative expression.
  5. The Artist has contributed to the history and/or theory and/or practice of digital art through writing and presentations at conferences and symposia.
In Memoriam: David Arnold

In Memoriam: David Arnold

Oct 31, 2016 |

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of David Arnold, longtime ACM SIGGRAPH member and Fellow of the Eurographics Association.

According to a communication from the Cultural Informatics Research Group at the University of Brighton, where David served as Director of Research Initiatives and Dean of Brighton Doctoral College, he passed away suddenly on the night of October 25, 2016.

In the words of David Anderson, David Arnold's colleague at the University of Brighton,

"David joined the university in 2002 as Dean of the Faculty of Management and Information Sciences. In 2010, he moved to a more central role as both Director of Research Initiatives and Dean of the Brighton Doctoral College. He was briefly Interim PVC (Research) until he retired earlier this year. Through all of this David was also the director of the university’s Cultural Informatics Research Group, which he founded in 2002. With so many roles, David touched the lives of many in the university. As a scientist, colleague and friend, he will be sorely missed. "

2016 VIEW Awards Announces Winners

Oct 30, 2016 |

Source: VIEW Press Release

The 2016 VIEW Award winners have been announced. Citing director Chen Chen’s ability to create an expressive story without dialog, a story with layers of meaning, and an animation style that is perfect for the design, the jury awarded “Vieil Ours” (Old Bear) the 2016 VIEW Award. Chen Chen will receive the first prize of 2000 Euros. The 11:32 minute film was produced in 2016 by Citron Bien and distributed by Yummy Films. Pierre Dron was the producer.

Honorable Mention went to the emotional short animated film “Drifting Away – A La Derive” directed by Fabian Driehorst and distributed by APEmanStudio in Barcelona. Jurors noted the unique style, the painterly environments,and the interesting use of transparency to show the impact of a father’s depression on his small family.

“Beer by Charles Bukowski,” created at NERDO Creative Studios received the award for Best Design.

“Fox and Whale” directed by Robin Joseph received the award for Best Environments.

The robot in the animated short “Green Light” received the award for Best Digital Character. Seongmin Kim directed the film produced at DF Lab. Haejung Suk was the producer.

Visit the AWN story for video and images of the award-winning films.

Jurors for the 2016 VIEW Awards included: Director Conrad Vernon (Sausage Party), Director David Feiss(Open Season: Scared Silly), Byron Howard (Zootopia), Disney Animation Studios, technical Director John Halstead (Pixar), Creative Director Adam Volker (MoonbotStudios), Professor Deborah Fowler (SCAD), Visual Effects Supervisor Lucia Modesto (TV Globo Productions), Visual Effects Supervisor Steve Emerson, Bit Films Founder Chris Perry, Daniele Volpe, Gnomon Workshop, Elisa Cantamessa, Student University of Turin, Agata Soccini, University of Turin, Prof. Maria Elena Gutierrez, President of the Jury, Director VIEW Conference & VIEWFest, and Journalist Barbara Robertson, Chair of the Jury.

ACM Awards: Call for Nominations

Oct 30, 2016 |

Source: Association for Computing Machinery

Each year, ACM recognizes technical and professional achievements within the computing and information technology community through its celebrated Awards Program. And annually, ACM's award committees evaluate the contributions of candidates for various awards that span a spectrum of professional and technological accomplishments. You and your colleagues are invited to nominate candidates for ACM awards, including:

  • A.M. Turing Award
  • ACM Prize in Computing (formerly AACM-Infosys Foundation Award in the Computing Sciences)
  • ACM/AAAI Allen Newell Award
  • Software System Award
  • Grace Murray Hopper Award
  • Paris Kanellakis Theory and Practice Award
  • Karl V. Karlstrom Outstanding Educator Award
  • Eugene L. Lawler Award for Humanitarian Contributions within Computer Science and Informatics
  • Distinguished Service Award
  • Outstanding Contribution to ACM Award
  • ACM Athena Lecturer Award

The deadline for nominations is November 30. Please take a moment to consider those individuals in your community who may be suitable for nomination. Refer to the ACM award nominations page for nomination guidelines and the complete listing of Award Subcommittee Chairs and Members.

Visual Effects Society Names Ken Ralston Recipient of VES Lifetime Achievement Award

Visual Effects Society Names Ken Ralston Recipient of VES Lifetime Achievement Award

Oct 21, 2016 |

Source: VES Press Release

On October 20, 2016, the Visual Effects Society (VES), the industry’s professional global honorary society, named multiple Academy Award®-winning visual effects pioneer Ken Ralston as the recipient of the VES Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his enormous contributions to filmed entertainment. The award will be presented at the 15th Annual VES Awards on February 7, 2017 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

The VES Lifetime Achievement Award, bestowed by the VES Board of Directors, recognizes an outstanding body of work that has significantly contributed to the art and/or science of the visual effects industry. VES will honor Ralston for his intuitive vision and unparalleled mastery of visual effects. Ralston’s creative vision and fierce technical expertise have earned him an impressive five Academy Awards®. His groundbreaking work has built a rich legacy, one that has profoundly impacted future generations of artists and innovators.

Ken Ralston"Ken Ralston is an amazing force and a defining voice of the visual effects community,” said Mike Chambers, VES Board Chair. “His creativity, leadership, and ability to use technologies to enhance the art of storytelling have brought us some of the most memorable films of all time. His pioneering work has truly raised the bar and helped redefine entertainment and our industry on a global level. For this, and more, we are honored to award him with the prestigious Visual Effects Society Lifetime Achievement Award.”

Ralston is Senior Visual Effect Supervisor and Creative Head at the Academy Award® winning visual effects studio, Sony Pictures Imageworks. He has earned five Academy Awards® including a Special Achievement Oscar® for the visual effects in the 1984 phenomenon, Star Wars: Episode VI – The Return of the Jedi. In addition to this, he received Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects for his work as visual effects supervisor on Forrest Gump (which was also awarded the Oscar for Best Picture), Death Becomes Her, the revolutionary Who Framed Roger Rabbit andCocoon. Ralston followed his Academy Award-nominated work as senior visual effects supervisor on Disney’s Alice in Wonderland (3D), with Columbia Picture's Men in Black III and most recently Disney’s Alice Through the Looking Glass.

Many groundbreaking projects at Sony Pictures Imageworks have benefited from Ralston's artistic acumen including his many collaborations with Academy Award® winning director Robert Zemeckis on the epic Beowulf (3D), The Polar Express (3D) and Cast Away. Prior to joining Imageworks, Ralston placed his artistic and technical stamp on the films at Industrial Light & Magic. Breaking technological ground, Ralston played a pivotal role in advancing the company's renown.

Ralston's other notable film credits include visual effects supervisor on The Rocketeer, Jumanji, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Dragonslayer, for which he was also nominated for an Oscar, and all three films from the Back to the Future trilogy, earning an Academy Award® nomination for best visual effects onBack to the Future II.

Ralston's career began at the seminal commercial animation and visual effects company, Cascade Pictures in Hollywood, where he worked on more than 150 memorable advertising campaigns in the early 1970s. He built sets, sculpted models, animated puppets, created optical effects and stop motion animation for such iconic commercial characters as Poppin' Fresh, the Pillsbury Dough Boy, and The Jolly Green Giant.

Previous winners of the VES Lifetime Achievement Award have included James Cameron, Steven Spielberg, Ray Harryhausen, George Lucas, Robert Zemeckis, John Dykstra, Frank Marshall & Kathleen Kennedy and Sir Ridley Scott.