SIGGRAPH Spotlight

ABOUT THE EPISODE SIGGRAPH Spotlight welcomes SIGGRAPH 2019 Production Sessions Chair Derrick Nau (CG texture & look development artist, DreamWorks) as he leads our latest podcast discussion on VFX for streaming. Derrick is joined by Sean Santiago (director, Original Series VFX, Netflix), Chrysta Burton (manager, Original Series VFX, Netflix), Paul Graff (VFX Supervisor, Crazy Hours Effects – “Stranger Things”), and Chris White (VF... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE In this episode of SIGGRAPH Spotlight, host and SIGGRAPH 2019 Technical Papers Chair Olga Sorkine-Hornung (professor, ETH Zurich) sits down with four of the leading minds in machine learning and artificial intelligence research: George Drettakis (senior researcher, Inria), Jaakko Lehtinen (professor, Aalto University), Adriana Schulz (professor, University of Washington), and Daniel Cohen-Or, Ph.D. (professor, Tel... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE SIGGRAPH Spotlight welcomes Kent Bye (Voices of VR) to the podcast as host of this timeless episode. Bye takes the mic to lead the discussion and share his expertise and insight alongside two augmented reality titans: Paul Reynolds (CEO and co-founder, Torch 3d Inc.) and Alexandria “Ali” Heston (UX and interaction designer, Magic Leap). The group chats about the past, present, and future of augmented reality, shed... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE Just in time for Women’s History Month, SIGGRAPH 2019 Conference Chair Mikki Rose (senior fur technical director, Blue Sky Studios) is joined by Jinko Gotoh (a producer and consultant in animation, and vice president of Women in Animation), Danielle Feinberg (director of photography, Pixar Animation Studios, and advocate of Girls Who Code), and Erin Summers (senior software engineer – AR/VR, Facebook, and co-found... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE Welcome back to SIGGRAPH Spotlight! In this episode, ACM SIGGRAPH International Resources Committee member Santiago Echeverry (professor, University of Tampa) sits down with Hernando Bahamon (animation director, Globizco Inc.; and, director, Bogota ACM SIGGRAPH Chapter) and Cristián Freire (academic coordinator of digital animation, Universidad de las Américas; and, president, Santiago ACM SIGGRAPH Chapter). Our g... Read more

SIGGRAPH Spotlight is back with an all-new episode! Join International Resources Committee member Bektur Ryskeldiev and SIGGRAPH Asia 2018 Student Volunteer (SV) Lead Rianti Hidayat, as they discuss working on the SV committee and working internationally. || MUSIC Podcast theme, "SIGGRAPH," composed by Julius Dobos. || LINKS *Episode* www.siggraph.org/connect/international-resources | www.latelieranimation.com/ | www.rooftopan... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE In this episode of SIGGRAPH Spotlight, ACM SIGGRAPH International Resources Committee member Afsaneh Rafighi is joined by Hasan Karimi (president, Iran Computer and Video Games Foundation). The two discuss the international games community, SIGGRAPH’s role in worldwide, collaborative game development, and how Hasan is working to transform Iran into an industry leader. || MUSIC Podcast theme, "SIGGRAPH," compos... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE SIGGRAPH 2018 Virtual, Augmented & Mixed Reality Chair Pol Jeremias-Vila (Pixar Animation Studios) sits down with Niantic, Inc.’s Diana Hu (lead, augmented reality engineering) and Niniane Wang (senior director, engineering) to discuss their Immersive Pavilion project — which will be showcased in Vancouver — and the Niantic development process, spanning everything from Pokémon GO to Codename: Neon. The two also sh... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE SIGGRAPH 2018 Production Sessions Chair Emily Hsu (associate producer, Blizzard Entertainment) sits down with a panel of independent creators in production and animation to chat about what led them to go “independent.” The group discusses the challenges — and joys — of financing and producing projects as well as what keeps them motivated to push the limits of storytelling, and offers advice for the next generation... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE ACM SIGGRAPH International Resources Committee member Rebecca Ko (co-founder, Rooftop Animation) sits down with 3D artist and Vancouver native Natalia Freitas (independent animator) to discuss Freitas’s experience with renowned studios, her geographical and cross-cultural work – which spans projects from Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “Moana” to Sony Pictures Imageworks’ “Hotel Transylvania 3” – and how SIGGRAPH h... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE For part one of the ACM SIGGRAPH International Resource Committee's "next generation" series, Rebecca Ko (co-founder, Rooftop Animation) sits down with Myriam Beauvais (graphics programmer and intern, Ubisoft Montreal) and Caroline Beyne (pipeline technical director and software engineer, L'Atelier Animation) to discuss the gaming and animation industries in Montreal, their experiences working in Canada and abroad... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE SIGGRAPH 2018 Real-Time Live! Chair Jesse Barker (software developer, Unity Technologies) sits down with gaming and interactive innovators Kim Libreri (CTO, Epic Games), Jerry Rees (creative lead – Magic Bench, Disney Research), and Joji Tsuruga (realtime supervisor, The Mill). In addition to their expertise, two of our guests have been honored with the SIGGRAPH Best Real-Time Graphics and Interactivity Award at r... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE ACM SIGGRAPH International Resources Committee member Santiago Echeverry (professor, University of Tampa) sits down with Łukasz Mackiewicz and Francho Melendez, two members of the team behind “Loving Vincent,” the first-ever, fully painted animated feature film, which takes viewers through the life of artist Vincent van Gogh. Mackiewicz and Melendez discuss their work on the film, what it was like to work in Polan... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE Bektur Ryskeldiev (ACM SIGGRAPH International Resources Committee member; and, Ph.D. candidate, University of Tsukuba) sits down with Mark Billinghurst (professor of virtual and augmented reality, University of South Australia and the University of Auckland) to talk about the current and future state of virtual and augmented reality. The two discuss cultural differences of international collaboration, what’s next ... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE SIGGRAPH 2018 Emerging Technologies Chair Gerry Derksen and Studio Chair Nik Aberle are joined by Steven M. LaValle (professor of computer science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) and Ben Malouf (director of marketing, Aleph Objects, Inc. – Makers of LulzBot 3D Printers) to talk about the history and future of technology… and SIGGRAPH! MUSIC Podcast theme, "SIGGRAPH," composed by Julius Dobos. LINKS ... Read more

To celebrate the “generations” of SIGGRAPH and the 50th anniversary of the Leonardo journal, Danielle Siembieda (Managing Director, Leonardo/ISAST) sat down with an expert panel to discuss Leonardo’s history with the SIGGRAPH conference, its upcoming 50th anniversary and where the future of art — and the conference — is headed. Panelists include: Ernest Edmonds (Professor of Computational Art, De Montfort University; Founding Direc... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE The ACM SIGGRAPH International Resources Committee’s Anupama Hiregouda sits down with Mohammed Saeed Harib (animator), of the United Arab Emirates, to talk about his work on the UAE-based cartoon series “FREEJ” and reflect on the animation industry. MUSIC Podcast theme, "SIGGRAPH," composed by Julius Dobos. EDITING Asiya Asha, ACM SIGGRAPH International Resources Committee Member LINKS *Episode* http://www.free... Read more

ACM SIGGRAPH International Resources Committee (IRC) member Bektur Ryskeldiev (Ph.D. candidate, University of Aizu) sits down with SIGGRAPH Asia 2017 Student Volunteer Chair Pisut Wisessing (Ph.D. candidate, Trinity College Dublin/ADAPT Centre), and Computer Animation Festival Producer Marisa Ginger Tontaveetong (executive director, ASIFA-South) to talk about their careers, work with SIGGRAPH, and insights on the upcoming conferenc... Read more

ABOUT THE EPISODE SIGGRAPH 2017 VR Village Chair Denise Quesnel sits down with one of the creators of the virtual and augmented reality experience Neurable, Ramses Alcaide (President and CEO, Neurable). The experience uses neuroscientific insights and advanced machine learning to interpret user intent. MUSIC Podcast theme, "SIGGRAPH," composed by Julius Dobos. LINKS *Episode* http://www.neurable.com/ *Social Media* http://blog.s... Read more