SIGGRAPH 2020 Computer Animation Festival Virtual Screening
This weekend, the Toronto ACM SIGGRAPH Chapter is continuing our tradition of screening the year’s SIGGRAPH Computer Animation Festival. We’re making the SIGGRAPH 2020 Computer Animation Festival Electronic Theater Travelling Show available to watch from the comfort of your home!…
We hope every member of the community is doing well. We’re midway through Spring 2021 and it’s time for the Toronto ACM SIGGRAPH Chapter’s annual elections. This year, we are looking for nominees to run for the following roles on our executive board for a 2-year term: Vice President and Treasurer. We are also having a special election for a 1-year term for the position of Secretary. We would love your help in bringing together the various Computer Graphics-related communities in Toronto to share some of their knowledge on the latest techniques and technologies!
Not ready to jump in as a board member? We also welcome passionate people to join as general volunteers. These positions include Event Manager and General Volunteer. All job descriptions can be found here.
You can self-nominate for executive positions or apply for volunteer positions here. We are looking forward to receiving your application! If you have any questions about the Chapter or volunteering with the Chapter, please contact us via email or reach out to us via our Facebook page.
Please submit your application by end-of-day Friday May 21 2021.
Know anyone who might be interested in getting involved? Please don’t hesitate to share this with them.
SIGGRAPH 2020 Computer Animation Festival Virtual Screening
This weekend, the Toronto ACM SIGGRAPH Chapter is continuing our tradition of screening the year’s SIGGRAPH Computer Animation Festival. We’re making the SIGGRAPH 2020 Computer Animation Festival Electronic Theater Travelling Show available to watch from the comfort of your home!
The SIGGRAPH 2020 Computer Animation Festival Electronic Theater Traveling Show features a selection of innovative animated short films, visual effects reels, and more. The films were produced by professionals and students from around the world and were originally shown as part of the SIGGRAPH 2020 Computer Animation Festival Electronic Theater, a leading annual festival for the world’s most groundbreaking, accomplished, and amazing digital filmmakers. For 2020, the content in its original form premiered during the first-ever virtual SIGGRAPH conference, 17–28 August. The annual festival is a qualifying event of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Since 1999, several works originally presented in the SIGGRAPH Computer Animation Festival have gone on to be nominated for or receive the Best Animated Short Film Oscar.
How to Watch
The show is hosted on Eventive (https://eventive.org/).
On Saturday morning (December 19th), the Toronto Chapter will send you an Eventive ticket to the email address you specified on Eventbrite. You will then have 48 hours to unlock the ticket and 12 hours to watch the Travelling Show from the moment you unlock the ticket.
You can find out more on Eventive’s system requirements at https://watch.eventive.org/help .
Featured Work
It’s All Graavy
ESMA
Laurent Wassouf
(France)
Worlds Beyond Earth
American Museum of Natural History
Carter Emmart
(United States)
O28
Supinfocom Rubika
Otalia Caussé
(France)
His Dark Materials
Framestore
Russell Dodgson
(United Kingdom)
Stem Cells: The heroes in Crohn’s perianal fistula treatment
MadMicrobe Studios
Alan Smith
(United Kingdom)
*HONOR: Special Recognition*
Shibuya
Eddy
Olivier Lescot
(France)
Gunpowder
Supinfocom Rubika
Romane Faure
(France)
*WINNER: Best Student Project*
Visual ASMR
Onesal Studios
(Japan)
MAVEN Explores Mars to Understand Radio Interference at Earth
Conceptual Image Lab/NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Immersive Technologies for Creation and Communication
The Toronto SIGGRAPH Chapter is thrilled to present the fourth online event in our ACM SIGGRAPH Webinar series: Immersive Technologies for Creation and Communication.
In this panel, professionals with experience in industry and academia will discuss their views on how immersive technologies can be used as creation and communication tools. Immersive technologies have been growing in popularity among the general public and are being used in a wide variety of fields. From telepresence to art and design, immersive technologies are rapidly changing the face of work. Our webinar will bring together professionals from various industries that use immersive technologies to share their take on how these tools will change their workflows.
When: Thursday July 9th 2PM EDT / 11AM PDT
This webinar will be moderated by Ian Hall (Director at Pixel Tours). Ian will be leading the discussion with the following panelists:
Dave Cardwell, Co-Founder, SPIN VR
Anand Agarawala, Co-Founder & CEO, Spatial
Michael Nebeling, Assistant Professor, University of Michigan Information Interaction Lab, XR Faculty Innovator-in-Residence with U-M’s Academic Innovation
Working From Home in Animation
We’re proud to present the second online event in our ACM SIGGRAPH Webinar series: Working From Home in Animation! Register for free here.
The CG industry has been working from home for nearly an entire quarter. In our follow-up to the “Working from Home in VFX” discussion, representatives from three animation studios will share their experiences with the transition to working from home as well as the long-term effects the pandemic may have on the industry.
The “Working from Home in Animation” panel will take place on Thursday, June 11 at 2 PM EDT / 11AM PDT and be moderated by Jessica Glass, Production Technology Department Manager, DNEG. Jessica will be leading the discussion with the following panelists:
Ken Zorniak, CEO, President and Producer, Tangent Animation
Troy Brooks, VP Technology, WildBrain Studios
Working From Home In the VFX Industry
ACM SIGGRAPH: Fostering Inclusion Through Storytelling is a new initiative to foster inclusion by learning from the experiences of others. We will have regular online presentations year round. Our first few presentations will address issues resulting from the world wide pandemic. Our first event will stream live on May 21st at 2PM EDT/11AM PDT and be available for later viewing on the siggraph.org web site. Sign up here.
Working From Home In VFX
Our first event will be a panel covering issues faced by companies in the VFX industry adapting to employees working from home. Joining us are representatives from three major visual effects studios to share their experiences and discuss the challenges they faced when transitioning to our new reality.
The panel will be moderated by Troy Brooks, VP Technology, Wildbrain. Troy will be leading the discussion with the following panelists:
Michael Ford, SVP, Software Development & Systems Engineering , Sony Pictures Imageworks
Luke Groves, Global Head of Production, MR. X
Christa Tazzeo Morson, VP Sales Post Production / VFX Executive Producer, Deluxe
Come join us online on Thursday May 21st and don’t miss out on this exciting panel!
Bios
Troy Brooks, VP Technology, Wildbrain
As Vice President of Technology for Wildbrain, Troy Brooks oversees technology infrastructure, operations, and strategic direction. Troy brings more than 25 years of experience leading technology and pipeline teams in CG television, feature animation, video games, and VFX for film, for studios such as Digital Domain, Electronic Arts, Square Pictures, and Mainframe Entertainment. He is a co-founder of PipelineFX, and holds a BSc in Computer Science from Simon Fraser University.
Michael Ford, SVP, Software Development & Systems Engineering, Sony Pictures Imageworks
Michael Ford is the Vice President of Systems Engineering and Software Development at Sony Pictures Imageworks.
Previously, Ford served as visual effects supervisor of the box office hit HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3: SUMMER VACATION and SMURFS: THE LOST VILLAGE for Sony Pictures Animation. He also worked on Columbia Pictures’ CONCUSSION. While at Imageworks, Ford served as CG supervisor on STORKS for Warner Animation Group, Sony Pictures Animation’s HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA, ARTHUR CHRISTMAS and CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS 1 & 2. Ford’s Imageworks credits also include the Academy Award®-nominated film SURF’S UP and OPEN SEASON. He has been nominated for four Visual Effects Society Awards. Prior to joining Imageworks, Ford has worked on numerous feature films at Industrial Light and Magic and Centropolis FX including THE MUMMY, THE PERFECT STORM and GODZILLA. Ford is a graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles.
Luke Groves, Global Head of Production, MR. X
Luke began his career at MR. X in 2005; working on Silent Hill, Shoot ‘Em Up and the Resident Evil series, among other projects. Groves then pursued visual effects production at C.O.R.E. Digital Pictures and SPIN VFX, where he continued to focus on genre films Suck and Splice, as well as high profile television series The Tudors, The Borgias and Game of Thrones. Returning to MR. X in 2015, Groves produced visual effects for The Strain, Bates Motel and Marvel’s Inhumans, followed by more feature film projects such as Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, xXx: Return of Xander Cage, and, most notably, Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water, winner of the Best Picture Academy Award in 2018. Over his career Luke Groves has worked on over 40 shows, earning multiple Gemini, Canadian Screen Award, Visual Effects Society and Primetime Emmy nominations. Luke currently serves as Global Head of Production for MR. X where he oversees production across all studio locations in North America and India ensuring successful project deliveries for MR. X.
Christa Tazzeo Morson, VP Sales Post Production / VFX Executive Producer, Deluxe
Christa Tazzeo Morson is an 20-year veteran of the film and television industry. With long standing roots in visual effects and postproduction, as a producer and business development executive, she has worked with international filmmakers to deliver the best creative driven solutions for the screen. Tazzeo Morson is credited with work on the Academy Award winning feature SPOTLIGHT (Open Road Films) and the Emmy award winning television series GAME OF THRONES (HBO). Additional credits include READY OR NOT (Searchlight), UMBRELLA ACADEMY (Netflix), SUICIDE SQUAD (Warner Bros./DC) and A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS (Netflix). A founding board member of the Visual Effects Society (VES) Toronto section, Christa is an active member of the Toronto production community. She currently sits on the City of Toronto Film Board, the Industry Advisory Council for OnCreates and the WIFT-T Engagement Committee.
