26 April 2012

SIGGRAPH 2012 Exhibition Sales Exceed 2011 and Still Surging

SIGGRAPH 2012 provides the year's largest, most comprehensive exhibition of products and services for the computer graphics and interactive techniques marketplace. As of today, SIGGRAPH 2012 exhibition sales are exceeding the past three year’s sales pace at this point in the conference life cycle and continue to surge. In fact, this year the Exhibition has surpassed the final 2011 exhibit numbers.

Mike Weil
"The SIGGRAPH Exhibit Hall has become notorious for delivering the newest leading hardware systems, software tools, and creative services. Not only are we witnessing an influx in exhibition sales, but also in first-time exhibitors as well. We are pleased to welcome several new exhibitors that bring with them some of the industry’s most cutting-edge and advanced technology," said Mike Weil, SIGGRAPH Exhibits Manager.

He continued, "SIGGRAPH 2012 first-time exhibitors include Infinite Z, producers of an all-encompassing virtual holographic experience, Leonar3Do with their virtual reality desktop kit, and VanGogh Imaging, delivering the latest in mobile 3D apps.”

View demographic information on why companies choose SIGGRAPH.

View more information on becoming a SIGGRAPH 2012 exhibitor or advertiser.

Here's a list of 2012 exhibitors as of today:
Booth(s)     
1031 3D Consortium
1114 3D3 Solutions
1020 3DTotal.com
951 3DVIA
1013 3Dconnexion, Inc.
923 3dMD
709 AMD
550 ARM
1011 ASC-American Cinematographer
534 Academy of Art University
919 Addison-Wesley
905 Andersson Technologies LLC
911 Animation Magazine Inc.
500 Autodesk, Inc.
328 Avere Systems
326 Axceleon Inc.
1022 CLO Virtual Fashion, Inc.
929 CRC Press / A K Peters
745 Cap Digital Paris Region
813 Cast Group
807 Computer Graphics World
1025 Costa Rican Investment Promotion Agency
955 Crescent, Inc.
231 CyberGlove Systems
217 DAZ 3D
1008 DePaul University
334 DigiPen Institute of Technology
1000 Digia Plc - Qt Commercial
1026 EDGE 3 Technologies, Inc.
901 EMC Isilon
957 Elphel, Inc.
345 Enochview Digital Art Co., Ltd.
335 Esri
553 F Track AB
1050 FXGear, Inc.
1001 Fusion-io
230 Hardcore Processing
622 Hitachi Data Systems
1123 IATSE
1106 IdN World
522 Imagination Technologies
316 IntegrityWare, Inc.
317 Intel Corporation
200 Isotropix
304 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
1018 JourneyEd.com
658, 759 Khronos Group
329 King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
309 Korean Creative Content Agency
1004 Lightspeed Design, Inc.
1137 Lightwork Design Ltd.
907 Louisiana State University, Center for Computation & Technology
510 Lumiscaphe
1101 Luxion
723 MAXON Computer GmbH
825 Morgan Kaufmann/Focal Press
717 Motion Analysis Corporation
634, 735 NVIDIA Corporation
701 NewTek, Inc.
544 Next Limit Technologies
223 NorPix Inc.
350 OC3 Entertainment, Inc.
945 OPTIS SAS
245 Objet Geometries Ltd.
753 Ontario Canada Delegation
610 OptiTrack
831 PNY Technologies
516 PipelineFX, LLC
644 Pixar Animation Studios
301 Pixologic, Inc.
237 Point Grey Research Inc.
330 Purdue University, Department of Computer Graphics Technology
801 Ringling College of Art and Deisgn
260 Robert McNeel & Associates
1115 Ross Video
300 Savannah College of Art and Design
845 ScanlineVFX LA
837 Shotgun Software, Inc.
528 Side Effects Software Inc.
244 SpeedTree
310 Spheron - VR AG
913 Springer
322 Stratasys 3D Printers & Production Systems
1007 Studica, Inc.
323 Tandent Vision Science, Inc.
652 TechViz
1145 The Bakery
1014 The CGAL Project
248 The University of the Arts
336 The3DShop.com
1037 Thinkbox Software Inc.
1030 Toon Boom Animation, Inc.
1105 VanArts - Vancouver Institute of Media Arts Ltd.
236 Vancouver Animation School
1124 Vancouver Film School
729 Vicon
819 Wacom Technology Services, Corp.
234 Web3D Consortium
1161 WorldViz
925 Xsens Technologies B.V.
354 Z Corporation
1029 Zygote Media Group, Inc.
314 cebas Visual Technology Inc.
 

09 April 2012

Conference Chair Previews SIGGRAPH 2012

Following below is a brief conversation with Rebecca Strzelec (pictured below), SIGGRAPH 2012 Conference Chair from Penn State Altoona, on her inspirations, background, and what to expect at SIGGRAPH this year.

What made you agree to take on the volunteer position of conference chair in 2012?
Rebecca Strzelec - '12 Conference Chair
When I decided to apply for the position of conference chair in 2009, it seemed like a natural progression of my volunteer work for SIGGRAPH. I felt like I had a pretty good sampling of the various roles within the conference from being an attendee, contributor, sub-committee member, and program chair. I could not have been more proud to be selected to serve in this role. I said “yes” for many reasons, but the most important was because I thought it would be both challenging and fun to be a part of the conference planning at this level.


Given your art background, how will art play a role this year that is different from previous years?
SIGGRAPH has made more concerted efforts to support the art areas of the conference over the last five or so years. Art has always been one of our core areas, but we’ve launched some new projects, including our collaboration with MIT’s Leonardo, the Journal of the International Society of the Arts, Sciences and Technology that will continue to grow stronger and more significant with each year. So that changes the landscape a bit. Our Art Gallery and Art Papers areas continue to have high submission rates and extremely rigorous selection thresholds allowing for the very best art and research to be brought to the conference.

Official SIGGRAPH 2012 Conference T-Shirts
The look and feel of the overall conference does a great job of defining and highlighting a large percentage of our attendees who consider themselves to be linked to, or practicing art. A difficult choice for most of our constituency (including myself) is that they don’t categorize themselves into just one thing. For instance, I take turns alternating between my “I AM ART” and “I AM SCIENCE” t-shirts.

In general, what should attendees expect this year in LA?
LA Live is a fantastic addition to the SIGGRAPH experience
Attendees should expect excellence. From day one, I asked our planning committee to find and choose the very best content. At SIGGRAPH, content always takes precedent and this year will be no different and will go a long way to setting the bar for Anaheim in 2013. Also,  attendees who haven’t been to LA in a few years need to be aware that the convention center area has blossomed into quite the place to be. “LA Live” has really allowed SIGGRAPH to carry its happenings into the nearby restaurants and places that are wonderful for networking and making new contacts..

Is it too late for someone to submit content?
Not at all. The Late-Breaking submission deadline is May 1 and Talks and Posters can still be submitted there. For folks who missed the submission deadlines in other areas, my suggestion would be to attend the conference and check out the submissions that were accepted. It is a great way to get a lay of the land to see how best to prepare for 2013.

How has the conference managed to stay relevant given the overall trend of smaller and more targeted shows?
Believe it or not, SIGGRAPH has become more targeted as well. From the conference schedule you’d never think it…but for the last few years SIGGRAPH has worked incredibly hard to make sure that we are focusing on our key areas of content. We have found that we can add a couple of new things each year, but for the most part we focus on  what we are really good at and make sure the conference is filled with excellent content. In 2012, we are expanding to include the venue SIGGRAPH Mobile and also bringing back the extremely successful SIGGRAPH Business Symposium.

Editor's note: the SIGGRAPH Business Symposium was new in 2011 and sold out.  For more details on it this year, check the SIGGRAPH 2012 web site.


How are Exhibition numbers looking?
By the nature of our community’s density around LA, we typically have strong years there from both an attendee and an exhibitor perspective as well.  This year is no different.  We are already out-pacing last year’s numbers and once again we will have a very strong international presence on the floor.

What specifically are you looking forward to at the 2012 conference?
I can’t wait to see it all come together in person. When you work on something for so long—especially when it remains abstract or described in images or emails, it is amazing to actually see it installed, presented, and celebrated. I suppose that is what I most looking forward to: celebrating the SIGGRAPH 2012 Committee for all of their achievements. They are an outstanding group of people that made my job really fun and rewarding.


Any advice for someone new to the group?
Other than introduce yourself to someone not-so-new to the group? In all seriousness though, my first SIGGRAPH was in 2003 and I was at the conference because I had a piece in the Art Gallery. I had no idea what to expect and was instantaneously overwhelmed by the pace and scope of the conference. I wandered into the Studio that year and made some friends, and they helped me to take full advantage of all that the conference has to offer. By the second day, I was hooked and felt very much in the know. There truly is no other experience that comes close to SIGGRAPH in depth and quality.

On a personal level, what inspires you as an artist at SIGGRAPH?
Having attended other art-based conferences, the thing that inspires me most about SIGGRAPH is that not all of the attendees are making art. It is quite wonderful to strike up a conversation with a non-artist at the conference. I often find I come to SIGGRAPH with a dozen or so loose ideas for new work and through interaction with the content and people at SIGGRAPH, I turn to processes and solutions that I otherwise would never have considered, or didn’t know existed. I always come home with such rich and lasting material. That kind of energy exists at other conferences, but the form it takes at SIGGRAPH is unique and something I cherish.

Why is SIGGRAPH relevant in the art world?
SIGGRAPH exhibits and publishes some of the most exciting and groundbreaking art and art papers in the world in the context of computer graphics and interactive techniques. The international juries that select this work are major contributors to their fields—going to great lengths to choose work that adds to the dialogue of art and art research. And while the work seen in the Art Gallery and presented as part of Art Papers are proudly included in the annual special issue of MIT’s Leonardo the Journal of the International Society of the Arts, Sciences, their presence at the actual conference allows for a special kind of synergy.

In addition, SIGGRAPH continues to establish the Studio venue each year. This creative space is designed to allow attendees to learn new about new tools, processes, and materials as well as actually spend time making art of all kinds. This creative experimentation space is an unusual addition to most conferences, especially when you consider that there aren’t additional fees to use the space other than conference registration. It is these three key areas as well as the other amazing content that makes for a relevant, educational, and enriching art experience at SIGGRAPH.

How did this year's theme evolve and how would you explain it in your own words?
The theme of this year’s SIGGRAPH is a mirror reflecting back on the people that make SIGGRAPH the vibrant thriving community that it is. The theme is actually a multi-year endeavor. Starting with 2012’s “I AM ART” and “I AM SCIENCE” the conference is highlighting two of our major groups of people at the conference. The theme evolved from conversations with the committee and our design team. I really wanted to have art as part of the theme somehow, but SIGGRAPH is so many things it really isn’t right to choose one. It quickly became clear that it would take many conferences to describe and capture all that SIGGRAPH’s attendees do and create.