News

The upcoming ACM SIGGRAPH conference Motion in Games 2016 will take place in San Francisco, California, from October 10-12. Motion in Games brings together researchers from a variety of fields to present their most recent results, initiate collaborations, and contribute to the establishment of new research areas. This year's MIG conference is co-located with the Twelfth Annual AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment, providing further opportunities for networking.

Games have become a very important medium for education, therapy and entertainment – and motion plays a crucial role in computer games. Characters move around, objects are manipulated or move due to physical constraints, entities are animated, and the camera moves through the scene. Even the motion of the player nowadays is used as input to games.

Motion is currently studied in many different areas of research, including graphics and animation, game technology, robotics, simulation, computer vision, and also physics, psychology, and urban studies. Cross-fertilization between these communities can considerably advance the state-of-the-art in the area.

The Motion in Games conference consists of regular paper sessions, poster presentations and presentations by a selection of internationally renowned speakers in all areas related to games and simulation. The conference also includes entertaining cultural and social events that foster casual and friendly interactions among the participants.

MIG's keynote speakers are: Simon Clavet from Ubisoft, who will discuss game animation, Michiel van de Panne from the University of British Columbia, who will discuss physics-based animation, and Mark Walsh of Motional A.i. (and formerly from Pixar), who will discuss effective use of story and animation.

Click here to register now for MIG 2016.

Source: VIEW Conference, August 2016 Press Release

TURIN, Italy – VIEW Conference 2016, Italy’s largest computer graphics and digital media conference will swing into action October 24, showcasing the largest and most diverse cross-section of industry professionals in animation, visual effects, virtual reality and digital design in the conference’s 17-year history. The renowned Turin, Italy confab spans five days of talks, workshops, panel discussions, interactive sessions and awards presented to an expected audience of 6,000 students and professionals. This year, VIEW is headlined by three exciting Keynotes:

• Byron Howard – Co-Director of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ blockbuster animated hit Zootopia, Howard will discuss the film’s five + year evolution.
• Dr. Donald Greenberg – Director of the Program of Computer Graphics at Cornell University, with research supported by Pixar, DreamWorks, Microsoft, Intel, Oculus, Valve and Autodesk, and with government funding, Greenberg will address the question of what’s necessary to make VR real.
• Brad Lewis – Producer of Warner Animation Groups’ second animated feature, Storks, will discuss creation of the highly anticipated release.

The VIEW Conference has also launched, and is now accepting submissions to, an exciting competition for animated short films or videogames created during 2015 and 2016. Competition entry information and continually updated information about the conferences’ growing list of speakers, sessions and workshops is available at http://www.viewconference.it.

“We are thrilled and honored to announce the largest and most diverse panel of industry leaders in the history of our show,” said conference director Dr. Maria Elena Gutierrez. “In 2016 we’re hosting a fantastic cross-section of industry leaders from animation and special effects, and showcasing the burgeoning world of virtual reality.”

VIEW Conference 2016 will also include a host of Talks and Workshops. The growing list includes:

• WORKSHOP: ‘The DNA of Disney Character Design’ – Byron Howard. In addition to his keynote, Howard will present this workshop on creating appealing characters for animation, including for Tangled and Bolt, of which he directed.
• WORKSHOP: ‘Visual Imaging in the Electronic Age’ – Dr. Donald Greenberg. In addition to his keynote, Greenberg’s workshop will discuss where technology is going, where it comes from, the future of graphic environments, and with much of the answers depending on how we see or how we interpret what we see, how the medium is dependent on recent research in perception psychology.
• TALK: The Visual Design of ‘The Good Dinosaur’ – Sharon Calahan – Director of Photography, The Good Dinosaur, Pixar Animation Studios
• WORKSHOP: ‘Storytelling with Light’ – Sharon Calahan
• TALK: ‘Kubo and The Two Strings’ – Marc Haimes – Screenplay Writer, Kubo and The Two Strings, Laika
• TALK: ‘Finding Hank’ – John Halstead – Supervising Technical Director, Finding Dory, Pixar Animation Studios
• TALK: Virtual Reality – Jump Into The Story – Maureen Fan – CEO, Co-Founder, Baobab Studios
• TALK: Google Spotlight Stories – ‘Rain or Shine’ – Luke Youngman,
• Executive Producer / Deputy Head of Production and Felix Massie, Director, Nexus
• TALK: The Making Of Open Season: Scared Silly – David Feiss, Director, Open Season: Scared Silly, Sony Pictures Animation
• WORKSHOP: The Fundamentals of Storyboarding– David Feiss
• TALK: The Power of Ambition as a Motivating Force in Creative Endeavors – Josh Holmes, Franchise Creative Director – 343 Industries
• TALK: Neuroscience and Video Games: A New Class of Medicine, Adam Gazzaley, Co-Founder, Chief Science Advisor, Akili Interactive, Matt Omernick, Co-Founder, Chief Creative Officer, Akili Interactive
• TALK: The Emotions of Game Development – Daryl Anselmo – Art & Creative Director, Zynga
• TALK: ADR1FT and at Peace – Adam Orth – CEO, Creative Director, Three One Zero
• TALK: Alice Through the Looking Glass – Troy Saliba – Animation Supervisor, Alice Through the Looking Glass, Sony Pictures Imageworks
• WORKSHOP: Animation Posing and Composition – Troy Saliba
• TALK: New Directions for Stylized CG – Chris Perry – Associate Professor of Media Arts and Sciences, Hampshire College
• WORKSHOP: Directing the Visual Story- Chris Perry
• WORKSHOP: Portfolio review with J.C. Cornwell – J.C. Cornwell – Director of Training and Artist Development, Sony Pictures Imageworks
• WORKSHOP: 3D Animation Taster – Alex Williams – Head of Animation, Escape Studios

VIEW AWARDS

• The VIEW conference is now accepting submissions in four categories for animated short films or videogames created during 2015 and 2016.
• VIEW Award – 2000 Euro first prize will be awarded to the best short film with 2D or 3D animation or visual effects. The category is open to students and professionals. In addition, awards will be given for Best Short, Best Design, Best Character, and Best VFX.
• VIEW Social Contest – A Wacom Intuos Pro Medium will be given for a short film, music clip, or commercial with 2D/3D animation and VFX that focuses on social issues.
• VIEW Game Award – 500 Euros will be given to the game with the best story, design and mechanics.
• VIEWTube Video Award – 500 Euros for the best YouTube video in 2016 about recycling.
• Italianmix – Wacom Intuos Pro Medium Tablet for the best short film (30 minutes or less) focusing on Italian themes.

The deadline for submissions is September 15.

The VIEW 2016 Conference is made possible with the support of Compagnia Di San Paolo, Fondazione CRT, Piedmont Region, Turin's Chamber of Commerce and the City of Turin.

Please visit http://www.viewconference.it for more information.