Please join Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH, along with your fellow industry friends and colleagues on Tuesday, December 09, 2014, for Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH’s annual Holiday Party. We will be screening a curated version of the SIGGRAPH 2014 Computer Animation Festival, which highlights the best work this year in the theatre! Combine this with drinks, networking, appetizers and a live DJ, and this is a party you won’t want to miss.

Admission to this special event is FREE to members ( including 2 drink tickets)

When: Tuesday December 09, 2014

Members– FREE (Login to get your advance tickets or become a member now )

Non-members – $15

Group – $10 (5 or more)

**There are no physical tickets to pick up. We have a list with the purchaser’s name at the ticket desk at the event. If the purchaser is not attending OR you have a group of people and want to have them enter on their own, please contact us with the names and purchaser information. Thanks!

SPARK brings the most talented artists, inventors, directors and studio executives from around the world to Vancouver to share their experience and inspire the animation community. This 5-day festival and 2-day conference attract local and international animation leaders.

FILM FESTIVAL: October 22 – 26

A showcase and celebration of the best of animation arts from around the world, from independent animation to special premieres.

CONFERENCE: October 24 – 25

• Panels and presentations from animation’s top players
• Cutting edge exposure and insight into the latest techniques of the industry
• Networking — build long-lasting relationships with a growing community of local and international attendees

JOB FAIR: October 24 – 25

Looking for work? Come meet recruiters from Vancouver’s leading studios! Online registrations are now open. Check Job Fair webpage for details.

WHO SHOULD COME?

Industry policy-makers, executives, professionals and students all have something to gain from the conference. The Festival offers something for all film buffs, art lovers and cartoon fans out there.

Get your tickets now!

Creatives – let’s get together and celebrate summer! The BC Chapter of the Society of Graphic Designers of Canada is holding their annual summer BBQ and we are all invited! Lots of fun to be had in the park – free food, sunshine, dogs, family, bocce, and more!

When: Wednesday, August 20th, 2014 from 6pm – 9:pm
Where: Trout Lake Park Picnic Area Pavilion
Located in the SE corner of John Hendry Park
Free Admission – Please register here
Burgers & Hotdogs Provided

Hosted by:
GDC/BC, CAPIC, TAAC, BCID, SEGD, SIGGRAPH, IXDA, IES, VDW, AIBC

Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH is excited to announce that we will be showing  of the SIGGRAPH Asia 2013 Computer Animation Festival Electronic Theatre.  Come see the select series of outstanding achievements in time-based art, scientific visualization, visual effects, real-time graphics, and narrative shorts, including the Academy Award winning short: Mr Hublot! Download the program here!

Additionally, we would like to invite all of our active members to join us for a short Annual General Meeting beforehand where we will update you on what our chapter has done over the last year! 

Finally, if that still isn’t enough, we will be giving away a few SIGGRAPH 2014 Select Conference One Day passes! You must attend in order to win!

When: 7:00pm Thursday June 19, 2014

Members– FREE (Login to purchase advance tickets or become a member now )

Non-members – $10

Group – $5 (5 or more)

**There are no physical tickets to pick up. We have a list with the purchaser’s name at the ticket desk at the event. If the purchaser is not attending OR you have a group of people and want to have them enter on their own, please contact us with the names and purchaser information. Thanks!

Event Sponsor

We would like to announce that our final event of the season is coming up on June 19, 2014 and that we will be holding our Annual General Meeting beforehand. We will be holding the AGM at the VIFF’s Vancity Theatre at 7:00PM and it is open to all active members.

We will be announcing the event itself soon, so please check our site, twitter feed or our facebook page for details when they are announced.

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Please join us Thursday, May 22, 2014 as Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH Unmasks the Secrets Behind “The Amazing Spider-Man 2”!

Sony Pictures Imageworks created much of the visual effects for THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2, the sequel to the 2012 blockbuster directed by Marc Webb. The visual effects team was challenged with the creation of new villains and extensive digital environments while seamlessly blending live-action stunt work with CG character animation. Join Sony Pictures Imageworks Digital Effects Supervisor, David Smith, for a behind-the-scenes look at the cutting edge visual effects on this “amazing” film.

When: 7:00pm Thursday May 22, 2014

Members– $10 (Login to purchase advance tickets or become a member now )

Tickets for groups and non-members will be open to the public on May 9, 2014.

Non-members – $20

Group – $15 (5 or more)

**There are no physical tickets to pick up. We have a list with the purchaser’s name at the ticket desk at the event. If the purchaser is not attending OR you have a group of people and want to have them enter on their own, please contact us with the names and purchaser information. Thanks!

David Smith
Digital Effects Supervisor

David Smith is a digital effects supervisor at Sony Pictures Imageworks, most recently completing work on THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2.

Smith’s previous credits include the 2012 blockbuster THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, directed by Marc Webb, GREEN LANTERN, EAGLE EYE, I AM LEGEND and the Academy Award® nominated film for Best Visual Effects THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE.

During his time at Imageworks, Smith has worked on many other films including CATS AND DOGS 2, BEOWULF, HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE, HOLLOW MAN (2000 Academy Award® nominee, Achievement in Visual Effects), STUART LITTLE (1999 Academy Award® nominee, Achievement in Visual Effects), GODZILLA, and STARSHIP TROOPERS (1998 Academy Award® nominee, Achievement in Visual Effects).

Prior to joining Imageworks, Smith was a technical director at Warner Digital, working on such features as MARS ATTACKS! and BATMAN AND ROBIN.

He began his entertainment career as a runner at Boss Film Studios in 1991. While working in the Boss purchasing department, Smith offered to also work nights and mornings in the rapidly expanding CGI department. He started with texture and paint work and was soon asked to create animation and effects for television commercials such as “Bud Bowl VI” and “MGM Grand ‘Lion’.” Smith quickly moved up to senior technical director working on such features as SPECIES and OUTBREAK and animating on the theme park ride “Scuba Dog.” Eventually he was promoted to scene supervisor for MULTIPLICITY, creating on-set pre-visualization and leading a team of compositors to complete the effects work.

Smith received a Bachelor of Science degree in Television and Film from San Diego State University.

Please join us Thursday, April 17, 2014 as Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH presents FREE TO PLAY, a film by Valve followed by a Q&A session with Valve’s Documentary Team!

FREE TO PLAY is Valve’s feature-length documentary that follows three professional gamers from around the world as they compete for a million dollar prize in the first Dota 2 International Tournament. In recent years, E Sports has surged in popularity to become one of the most widely-practiced forms of competitive sport today. A million dollar tournament changed the landscape of the gaming world and for those elite players at the top of their craft, nothing would ever be the same again. Produced by Valve, the film documents the challenges and sacrifices required of players to compete at the highest level.

When: 7:00pm Thursday April 17, 2014

Members– $5 (Login to purchase advance tickets or become a member now )

Tickets for groups and non-members will be open to the public on April 11, 2014.

Non-members – $15

Group – $10 (5 or more)

**There are no physical tickets to pick up. We have a list with the purchaser’s name at the ticket desk at the event. If the purchaser is not attending OR you have a group of people and want to have them enter on their own, please contact us with the names and purchaser information. Thanks!

Valve is an entertainment software and technology company founded in 1996. In addition to creating several of the world’s most award-winning games, Valve is also a developer of leading-edge technologies including the Source® game engine and Steam®, the premier online gaming platform.

Dota is a competitive game of action and strategy, played both professionally and casually by millions of passionate fans worldwide. Players pick from a pool of over a hundred heroes, forming two teams of five players.

With the arrival of next generation consoles comes more processing power and memory… and with that, a whole lot more possibilities. Take an exclusive look behind the scenes of this Playstation 4 launch title and learn more about some of the engines new tech like Position Based Dynamics, Force Fields and Volumetric Lighting. Hear about the challenges the team was faced with during production and take a closer look at some of the games effects including dynamic dust and rain, our process for procedurally breaking models, breakdowns of larger cinematic set-pieces and particle effects.

Marijn Giesbertz

Marijn (pronounced Ma-Ryan) is Lead Visual Effects Artist at Guerrilla Games Amsterdam. Having an interest in computer graphics and games ever since the C64 days, in 1999 he started his career working on CG for television commercials. Marijn has always had a great passion for videogames and after 7 years of post-production he decided it was time for a new challenge and joined Guerrilla Games to work on their Killzone games. Today, 3 games and 8 years later he’s currently working on a new unannounced IP for the Playstation 4.

When: 7:00pm Thursday March 20, 2014

Members– $10 (Login to purchase advance tickets or become a member now )

Tickets for groups and non-members will be open to the public on March 10, 2014.

Non-members – $20

Group – $15 (5 or more)

**There are no physical tickets to pick up. We have a list with the purchaser’s name at the ticket desk at the event. If the purchaser is not attending OR you have a group of people and want to have them enter on their own, please contact us with the names and purchaser information. Thanks!

Pixar transitioned to physically based lighting approaches for the recent show Monsters University. This work led to more “natural” ways for lighting shots, reducing considerably the complexity of the setups, as well as providing looks never quite (easily) achieved before within the company.

We will dive into the specific technologies at the core of this rendering revolution. Along the way, we will take some examples among the new area lights and energy conserving materials developed for MU.

We will also show how these new sets of tools were used on The Blue Umbrella short film, to accomplish a true photographic vision. Specific “macros” were developed in production, to dress such luminaries as the various neon signs and the lamp posts in the city.

When: 7:00pm Thursday February 20, 2014

Members– $10 (Login to purchase advance tickets or become a member now )

Tickets for groups and non-members will be open to the public on February 13, 2014.

Non-members – $20

Group – $15 (5 or more)

**There are no physical tickets to pick up. We have a list with the purchaser’s name at the ticket desk at the event. If the purchaser is not attending OR you have a group of people and want to have them enter on their own, please contact us with the names and purchaser information. Thanks!

Christophe Hery

Pixar – Senior Researcher

Christophe Hery joined Pixar in June 2010, where he holds the position of Senior Scientist. He has recently been writing new lighting models and rendering methods for Monsters University and The Blue Umbrella. An alumnus of Industrial Light & Magic, Christophe previously served as a research and development lead, supporting the facility’s shaders and providing rendering guidance. He was first hired by ILM in 1993 as a senior technical director. During his career at ILM, he received two Technical Achievement Awards from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.

The transition to the next generation of consoles, particularly the Xbox One and PS4 has after 8 years unleashed a new power to game developers worldwide, and new heights to expectations from games.  Come for an exclusive, inside look under the hood and see how the visual effects team at Infinity Ward tackled this challenge.  New technology was added to the engine to allow for much higher fidelity in destruction sequences.  And several film techniques were adopted to help raise the bar.  Lead Visual Effects Artist David Johnson and Senior Visual Effects Artist Alessandro Nardini will present their work on their latest blockbuster work:  Call of Duty: Ghosts.

When: 7:00pm Thursday January 23, 2014

Members– $10 (Login to purchase advance tickets or become a member now )

Tickets for groups and non-members will be open to the public on January 6, 2014.

Non-members – $20

Group – $15 (5 or more)

**There are no physical tickets to pick up. We have a list with the purchaser’s name at the ticket desk at the event. If the purchaser is not attending OR you have a group of people and want to have them enter on their own, please contact us with the names and purchaser information. Thanks!