SIGGRAPH 2013 Real-Time Live Chair, Abe Wiley, discusses the amazing world of Real-Time Live, what the program is all about, and what content was shown at this year's show.

Hear from Attendees on What They Are Excited About @ SIGGRAPH 2013

SIGGRAPH's videography team (SCOOP) ventured inside and outside the halls of the Anaheim Convention Center on Sunday (21 July) to ask our enthusiastic and sometimes slightly jet lagged attendees what they're looking forward to most at SIGGRAPH 2013.

You Are Going Where?

Many who are on the outside of SIGGRAPH 2013 looking in may now be asking you the question, "Where are you going for the next week?"  Well, here's a simple landing page you can send them with the following text:

"I'm going to a convergence place where some of the most brilliant and thought-provoking minds on this planet come together for five days of mind-blowing sessions, events, and activities.  It's basically a year squeezed into less than a week.  And, oh yeah, by the way, they actually make insanely brilliant, delightful, incredible content like this:"

Now, they still may not totally understand where you are going, but they will be jealous.  For those that are SIGGRAPH veterans: safe travels, sleep on the plane, and see you soon.  For those that are coming and are new to SIGGRAPH, be sure to attend this or stop by the SIGGRAPH 2014 booth for advice or ask a student volunteer (look for the "Ask Me" button).

Q&A with SIGGRAPH 2012 Games Chair Naty Hoffman

Naty Hoffman - the 2012 Games Chair

Following is a brief conversation with Naty Hoffman, the SIGGRAPH 2012 Games Chair and Technical Director at Activision, regarding games and SIGGRAPH 2012. Please check back later this week for an article summarizing all the game industry content at SIGGRAPH 2012.

How does games content fit into SIGGRAPH and what are the can’t-miss sessions for this year?

Games are a core SIGGRAPH constituency, just like animation, VFX, fine arts, and research. As such, game content can be found in all the SIGGRAPH programs. There is a lot of great games industry content this year - please check out the full list. If I had to pick just one or two key sessions from each program, I would mention the "Advances in Real-TIme Rendering" Course, the "Game Worlds" and "Surf and Turf" Talk sessions, Ninja Theory's Production Session on "DmC Devil May Cry: Breathing Life Into Video Games", the "Battle for Motion-Controlled Gaming and Beyond" Panel, the "Big Game" Studio Talk session, the "VFX for Games: Pre-Baked Destruction" and "Building a Game Level" Studio Workshops and the SIGGRAPH Dailies! and Real-Time Live! sessions. 

Given the increasing convergence between the industries, I also recommend that game industry attendees check out some of the amazing and relevant content from the film industry, such as courses on cinematography and matte painting presented by legends in their respective fields, as well as Talks and Production Sessions by companies such as Dreamworks, ILM, and Pixar.

What are your thoughts on the growth of casual and mobile gaming, particularly as it relates to the new SIGGRAPH Mobile program?
Casual and mobile gaming are an immense growth area and we have been making special efforts (such at the Mobile Symposium) to bring related content to the conference. I hope we will continue to see more content in these areas at future SIGGRAPHs.

What do you think is the next big technology that will be featured in mainstream games? In your opinion, what is the key to next-gen success for console gaming?
While cutting-edge technology will always be a big part of game development, I feel that the next generation will bring a renewed emphasis on the importance of art - supporting talented artists with solid and powerful tools, workflows and best practices will be no less (and probably more) important than having the latest whiz-bang engine feature.

The industry has been buzzing about free-to-play games recently. How do you think this will affect game development? 
I think it's always good to have new ways to reach customers and fund development, though I believe that the traditional models will continue to thrive for a while yet.

SIGGRAPH 2012 Showcasing Advancements in Real-Time Graphics

SIGGRAPH Real-Time Live! is the premiere showcase for the latest trends and techniques for pushing the boundaries of interactive visuals. A series of 10 international jury-selected submissions will be presented in a fast-paced, 90-minute show of cutting-edge, aesthetically stimulating real-time work at SIGGRAPH 2012, 5-9 August at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

“As the momentum behind real-time photorealism accelerates, Real-Time Live! 2012 presents multiple projects pushing human character performance alongside physically based lighting and shading techniques,” said Jason RM Smith, Real-Time Live! Director and Digital Production Supervisor at LucasArts. “The show retains a strong breadth of diversity with breakdowns of an  audio-driven procedural graphics engine, an augmented reality gesture-based control solution, proprietary and commercial rendering engines, and a number of unreleased games titles.”

Pulling from a range of industries, this year’s selected submissions showcase the latest advances in real-time graphics; much of the content has never been displayed before and is exclusive to SIGGRAPH 2012.

SIGGRAPH 2012 Real-Time Live! Highlights:

Uncharted 3 Visual Effects
Mohammed Ikram, Naughty Dog


For Uncharted 3, Naughty Dog tackled the challenge of rendering multiple environmental effects, such as fire, water, and sand in the game set pieces. The biggest challenge was delivering high-quality visual effects in real time while keeping the strict cinematographic and artistic style of the game.

Unreal Engine 4 Elemental
Paul Oliver, Epic Games, Inc.


Developed by Epic Games, Elemental is the first real-time demonstration showcasing its next-generation Unreal Engine 4 technology. The demo presents rendering features utilizing DirectX 11 hardware. It takes per-pixel deferred shading to the next level: energy-conserving specular highlights from area lights and shadowed reflections from emissive materials creating area lights with shadowing, dynamic global illumination that affects both opaque and translucent materials, glossy surfaces that feature accurate reflections, subsurface scattering, and deferred decals. All lighting is complemented by the new GPU-accelerated particle simulation and the new post-processing pipeline.

Star Wars 1313
Lutz Latta and Roger Cordes, LucasArts

Star Wars 1313 delivers a cinematic experience by bringing traditional film techniques to real-time. Full-body performance-capture digitizes an actor’s appearance with complete body and facial realization; physically-based materials and lighting are calibrated to match the real world with indirect illumination and soft shadows. Visual effects model light emission, transmission, and scattering, allowing realistic fire, smoke, and particles to provide the gritty feel of the Coruscant underworld.

The compelling cinematic feel is completed with a number of post-process effects that simulate the behavior of real-world cameras. Star Wars 1313 is an integrated development that brings together great artists across the Lucasfilm organization, including LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic, Lucasfilm Animation Ltd. and Skywalker Sound.

View the full list of this year’s presentations at Real-Time Live! 2012.

Q&A with SIGGRAPH 2012 Real-Time Live! Chair - Jason RM Smith

Jason RM Smith, SIGGRAPH RTL! Chair

Following below is a brief conversation with Jason RM Smith, SIGGRAPH 2012  Real-Time Live! (RTL!) Chair and Digital Production Supervisor at LucasArts. 

Real-Time Live! is the premiere showcase for the latest trends and techniques for pushing the boundaries of interactive visuals. As part of the Computer Animation Festival, an international jury selected submissions from a diverse array of industries to create a fast-paced show of cutting-edge, aesthetically stimulating real-time work.

Here is the link to this year's content.

Why is SIGGRAPH's Real-Time Live! (RTL!) program relevant?

Real-time graphics is a growth engine of almost all CG-based industries and many other industries that embrace computer graphics anywhere in their process.  We see techniques running in real time now that were only recently being pioneered into a pre-rendered pipeline; the progress is staggering.

Ultimately real-time graphics allow creatives to be creative faster; improving iteration speeds by hundreds, thousands, sometimes tens-of-thousands of times, drastically driving up quality and reducing costs.  Looking at where the show has come—in five short years, it’s clear the pace is picking up; it’s hard to imagine what RTL! will look like in a few years from now, let alone another five.

How has your role changed this year in comparison to last year?

Last year involved outreach across industries, establishing a sub-committee and building recognition around the show.  This year has been more focused on evolving the show to be able to support the most cutting-edge work available.  It’s more of a challenge from a logistical standpoint; we have presentations requiring prototype hardware and complex machine configurations in addition to bleeding edge software builds.  More risk, but considerably more reward; there’s no doubt it’s what SIGGRAPH attendees expect and it makes for a much more exciting show.

Is there content that would appeal to both novice and expert?

One of the strongest and most unique pieces of the show is the format – it really helps ensure every project is accessible.  It’s informal; no slides – just the artists and engineers with their projects breaking down their approach and techniques used in creating the work.  When the presenters get technical, there are relevant and interesting visuals on screen supporting the dialogue; in terms of content delivery, RTL! is  as practical as it gets.

We have 10 pieces showing this year and have doubled the length of presenter time from four to eight minutes each.  It will make a difference to the depth of each talk but still allows us to cover a good number of projects.

Here's the video of highlights from 2011:

Any trends in RTL! content this year?

Yes!  The next generation of rendering engines, both commercial and proprietary, are really making a big play this year – we had so many strong game technology submissions that they could have filled their own show.

Then there are the projects built from the technology; we actually received more entries for unreleased games this year than released titles - another first.  I think it goes to show we’re really at a transitional point in the games industry right now as the hardware and software progression enables a very noticeable jump in visual fidelity.

To complement the heavy games focus, we received a number of real-time movies alongside a wide range of unusual, thought-provoking and entertaining projects like Beauty: Real-Time Visuals and the augmented reality gesture-based project, Arcade.

Switching gears a little, did the selection of Jane McGonigal as keynote speaker surprise you?

Not at all!  Jane’s knowledge, passion, and drive epitomize everything SIGGRAPH represents – she’s the perfect keynote. I’m planning on getting there early, because it’s going to fill up quick.

Do you share her philosophies about the potential for game development/gaming to solve real-world problems?

Absolutely; humans have been using games to solve problems for many years.  It is well proven that learning through an enjoyable experience is significantly more productive, and we achieve more through competition than without it.  There is definitely still work to be done, but Jane makes a very compelling case that it can be done— and it’s more a question of when.  Original thinkers with contagious attitudes, like Jane, are catalysts to make things happen.  The more people are aligned with this way of thinking, the sooner we’ll see previously unimaginable, world-changing results.  I’m on board!

So, to round up… how does the SIGGRAPH RTL! program differ from things like GDC and E3? What more does it have to offer?

There’s a number of differences, the first being the diversity and breadth of content.

RTL! accepts submissions from any area of research or industry.  This means we see incredible, 100-million dollar commercial projects and amazing independent, solo projects from completely different industries side-by-side on stage.  The breadth and quantity of submissions ensures there are always world-exclusive showcases for interesting and groundbreaking projects.

The second reason speaks to SIGGRAPH’s roots around sharing knowledge.

RTL! allows the project creators to present their tricks, techniques, and solutions with peers from all areas of computer graphics, and probably even beyond CG.  Last year we had a line of attendees speaking to the presenters after the show; there was a great buzz.  SIGGRAPH has always felt like a community, and like many other programs, RTL! carries the same vibe with the underlying goal of sharing knowledge.  It’s the cross-over with education, research, and many types of industries, both on-stage and with the attendees, that makes it unique.

Finally, what newsworthy / big announcements are you excited about with this year's content?

World exclusives!  Never-before-seen footage and breakdowns from a number of huge titles and technology projects, including Square-Enix, LucasArts, Epic Games, and Unigine to name a few.

RTL! provides the first opportunity to peek behind the curtain on these new projects – it’s fantastic that these studios and individuals are being so open and forthcoming with new intellectual property, ideas, and techniques. It’s a genuine privilege and very exciting to have them on stage at SIGGRAPH 2012.

SIGGRAPH Media Registration Now Open

At SIGGRAPH 2012, artistic ability, scientific innovation, and everything in between converge to inspire and be inspired by the largest, most diverse gathering in computer graphics and interactive techniques in Los Angeles for the 39th International Conference and Exhibition on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques, 5-9 August 2012.

Online media registration  is now open. To receive the latest breaking news from SIGGRAPH 2012 exhibitors, register by 29 June. Online registration will close 2 August.

Please note: Even if you have qualified for a SIGGRAPH media badge in the past, you must re-qualify for SIGGRAPH 2012. Register online and return all required supporting documentation via fax, mail, or email to the address below:

SIGGRAPH 2012 Media Relations
401 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 2200
Chicago, IL 60611
Phone: +1.312.673.4933
Fax: +1.312.673.6707
media@siggraph.org

For a list of the documents required to complete your registration, please reference the SIGGRAPH 2012 Media Policies.  For questions and assistance with your pre-show coverage, contact: media@siggraph.org.

SIGGRAPH 2012 Media Highlights include:

SIGGRAPH Mobile: A first-time SIGGRAPH program developed to showcase the incredible advancements in mobile development. Experience the latest discoveries in the field of mobile graphics and apps during a full day of presentations, panels, workshops, and demonstrations.

Computer Animation Festival: The leading annual festival for the world's most innovative, accomplished, and amazing digital film and video creators. This year’s selections include outstanding achievements in time-based art, scientific visualization, visual effects, real-time graphics, and narrative shorts. The Computer Animation Festival is recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as a qualifying festival. Since 1999, several works originally presented in the Computer Animation Festival have been nominated for or have received a "Best Animated Short" Academy Award.

Real-Time Live!: Real-Time Live! is the premier showcase for the latest trends and techniques for pushing the boundaries of interactive visuals. As part of the Computer Animation Festival, an international jury selects submissions from a diverse array of industries to create a fast-paced, 45-minute show of cutting-edge, aesthetically stimulating real-time work.

Technical Papers: The SIGGRAPH Technical Papers program is the premier international forum for disseminating new scholarly work in computer graphics and interactive techniques. At the conference, paper authors provide brief overviews of their work in the Technical Papers Fast Forward event, then they present their complete papers in 22.5-minute sessions that include 4.5 minutes of Q&A. A complete listing of all selected papers will be available on the web site in late May.

Courses: Presented by experts in the field, SIGGRAPH 2012 courses provide attendees inside knowledge that is critical to career advancement. The spectrum of Courses ranges from an introduction to the foundations of computer graphics and interactive techniques for those new to the field to advanced instruction on the most current techniques and topics.

Keeping you informed: Stay up to date on everything SIGGRAPH 2012 with our monthly conference newsletter SIGGRAPHITTI, Facebook, and Twitter.

For complete details on all of the dynamic content available at SIGGRAPH 2012, or to register as media for the event, visit the For Media section of the SIGGRAPH 2012 web site.