The SIGGRAPH Computer Animation Festival, which opened up to the public as a full-fledged fest in 2008, will again take on an expanded role in the 2009 SIGGRAPH conference and expo. In addition to a comprehensive collection of juried and invited screenings showcasing the most recent advances in computer-generated imagery, this year’s fest will feature presentations and panels that focus on the art, science, and technology employed in creating the latest advances in production and projection of digital cinema and visualizations. The festival is also expanding its general call for submissions to include visual music and real-time rendering.
Submissions for real-time rendering are encouraged to highlight work produced interactively using real-time game engines that push the boundaries of what users and viewers have come to expect in all fields where real-time rendering is used’games, medicine, astrophysics, and more. The visual music focus aims to present work that spans visual music culture from the academic vision of visual music to the more urban pop culture vision of music combined with visuals such as music video. Live or captured DJ performances will be considered as well. Artworks that combine music and images into a captivating, multi-sensory experience are encouraged. Deadline for all submissions is March 4, 2009.
Expected to be one of the highlights of the Computer Animation Festival, the Evening Theater will run Monday through Thursday, showcasing a cross section of the best of juried and invited films. In order to allow attendees flexibility in their schedule, the screening times will alternate each night. The films will be chosen based on voting by a jury of industry experts.
Juried content will be featured during the daily screenings with attendees able to choose from several times based on their schedule preference. The daytime Competition and Invited screenings will be genre-focused. Plus, a special ‘Jury Chair’ reel will feature the favorite pieces of 2009 Jury Chair Miles Perkins from Industrial Light & Magic.
In addition, this year’s Computer Animation Festival has a special focus on multicultural representations and visualizations as part of its Invited Content program. The goal is to include works of all genres of animation, games, visual effects and storytelling that display a multicultural vision. Retrospectives and documentaries about computer graphics visionaries and their tools will also be featured. For more information on SIGGRAPH 2009, go to www.siggraph.org and watch the promo video below.
