Press Release

SIGGRAPH Asia 2018 Makes Crossover History in
Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques in TokyoTOKYO, Japan, 13 December 2018 – SIGGRAPH Asia 2018 concluded on a record high note in Tokyo, Japan.
The 11th edition of the conference drew close to 10,000 attendees worldwide including computer graphics
professionals, researchers, enthusiasts and trade visitors from 59 countries and regions. This makes it thelargest and most successful SIGGRAPH Asia edition in the history of the event.
“SIGGRAPH Asia is a story of a diverse group of individuals coming together to celebrate the intersection ofscience, technology, art and entertainment. The variety of expertise under one roof allows for the crosspollination of ideas which is what makes it a great place for collaboration, disruption and innovation. Weknew from the onset that SIGGRAPH Asia in Tokyo was going to a great destination and the end-result has
proven that it was indeed an excellent choice. Tokyo’s achievement has been the cumulation of over two
years of dedication from the conference and local SIGGRAPH Asia committees. SIGGRAPH Asia 2018 has seta new benchmark and we will strive to make the event even more impactful in the coming years.” said PrakashRamajillu, Division Director – (Technology, Digital Media, Entertainment & Mobility) Koelnmesse Pte Ltd &Chief Staff Executive SIGGRAPH Asia.
Around 750 speakers presented at the conference, discussing the latest industry developments and future of
the computer graphics and interactive techniques industry. The exciting line-up featured distinguishedkeynote speakers such as David Oh, Senior Systems Engineer at NASA JPL who shared about NASA’s recent
Mars exploration and their latest mission, Psyche – The first metal asteroid that humankind will visit; ErikDemaine, Professor in Computer Science at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) who spoke about
computational origami and how he uses math to create artistic sculptures; and Kaname Hayashi, Founderand CEO of GROOVE X (A member of Pepper Project in Softbank) who gave the final keynote on a “NewGeneration Household Robot’s” and his LOVOT concept (Love x Robot) exploring the relationship between
human beings and robots.
Production and visual effects teams from Pixar Animation Studios, Weta Digital Ltd and ILM Singapore took
to the stage to showcase their crossover work; from creating realistic virtual humans, to unforgettablecharacters in films such as Lord of the Rings and the Avengers franchise, to developing a backstory for Star
Wars’ most iconic character, Han Solo.
Page 1 of 7

Emerging Technologies featured strongly at SIGGRAPH Asia 2018 with several presentations on how
interactive technology has played a vital role in driving the development of research communities in thepursuit of technological innovations that will impact the public. The Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR)
program showcased emerging media and cutting-edge technologies in virtual, augmented, and mixed reality.
The highly engaging sessions were a dive into these emerging digital media and interactive technologies. TheArt Gallery featured fascinating crossover pieces titled Candle TV (1975) by Nam June Paik, which is designed
to represent two interrelated organisms in a communication system, and Mannbi (1981), a mask used inclassical Japanese musical drama Noh, by Ayako Iwai.
The largest exhibition in SIGGRAPH Asia’s history featured 93 exhibitors from over 14 countries showcasing
the latest hardware, software, technologies and innovations from around the world. Key exhibitors andbrands included: ASTRODESIGN, Inc., AWS Thinkbox, BANDAI NAMCO Studios Inc., BinaryVR, Inc., CLO VirtualFashion Inc, CyberAgent, Inc., Dell Japan Inc., Digital Hollywood University, Dwango Media Village, EEZ
Production Studios Co., Ltd., FORUM8 Co., Ltd., HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES JAPAN K.K., IMAGICA GROUP,InstaLOD GmbH, NOITOM, teamLab, Too Corporation, Tsinghua University-Tencent Joint Laboratory, UnityTechnologies Japan G.K., VFX-Japan Association, Visual Computing Center at KAUST, Xsens Technologies B.V.,
YGGDRAZIL Group Co., Ltd, Zero C Seven, Inc. and more.
Award Winners at SIGGRAPH Asia
SIGGRAPH Asia featured an awards component for the Computer Animation Festival, Virtual and AugmentedReality (VR/AR) and the Emerging Technologies programs.
The winners for the Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR) are:•Best VR/AR Technology Voted by Committee:
FiveStar VR: Shareable Travel Experience ThroughMultisensory Stimulation To The Whole Body by Kouichi
Shimizu, Gaku Sueta, Kentaro Yamaoka, Kazuki Sawamura,Yujin Suzuki, Keisuke Yoshida, Vibol Yem, Yasushi Ikei,
Tomohiro Amemiya, Makoto Sato, Koichi Hirota, Michiteru
Kitazaki

Page 2 of 7•Best VR/AR Content Voted by Committee:
Rapture of the Deep VR by Monja Dietrich, Vincent Suttner,
Theres Buehler

Second and third places of each of the above award categories can be found in Annex A.
Under Emerging Technologies, the winning teams are:•Best Demo Voted by Attendees
Hap-Link: Wearable Haptic Device on the Forearm thatPresents Haptics Sensations Corresponding to the Fingers
by Taha Moriyama, The University of ElectroCommunications, Japan•

Best Demo Voted by Committee
Relaxushion: Controlling the Rhythm of Breathing forRelaxation by Overwriting Somatic Sensation, by Yuki Ban,
The University of Tokyo, JapanThe Computer Animation Festival honored the top talent in animation including:•Best in Show: L'oiseau qui danse (France), directed and produced by Jean-Marie Marbach•

Jury Special Award: Vermin (Luxembourg), directed by Jérémie Becquer, Miyu Distribution and producedby Michelle Ann Nardone, Miyu Distribution, Denmark•

Best Student Film: Reverie (Mexico), directed by Philip Louis Piaget Rodriguez, Miyu Distribution andproduced by Michelle Ann Nardone, Miyu Distribution, Denmark

Click here for the press release on the announcement of the Computer Animation Festival Award Winners.
SIGGRAPH Asia 2019
Next year’s edition, SIGGRAPH Asia 2019 will be held at Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre (BCEC),Brisbane, Australia from 17 – 20 November 2019.
Page 3 of 7

“Next year’s edition of SIGGRAPH Asia 2019 (SA2019) will be held for the very first time in Australia, in thebeautiful subtropical city of Brisbane, which is referred to as Brissy by the locals,” said Tomasz Bednarz,
SIGGRAPH Asia 2019 Conference Chair. “The leading theme of the conference is a DREAM ZONE!, therefore
you can expect lots of magical experiences that expand perception and interaction through the creative useof computer graphics and interactive techniques, delivered in completely new innovative ways. SIGGRAPH
Asia 2019 will include the Studio Program from the North American editions. We will also debut a Demoscene
Program, which is inspired by limitation-driven creative, real-time computer graphics underground hackcode-art communities. Mark your calendars for SIGGRAPH Asia 2019! Join the conference and take theopportunity to explore beautiful Queensland.”
Visit the website for more details: http://sa2019.siggraph.org.
-- end -Notes to editors:
For the event pictures taken at SIGGRAPH Asia 2018, please visit: http://bit.ly/sa2018presskit. All photos
should be credited to SIGGRAPH Asia 2018.
About SIGGRAPH Asia 2018
The 11th ACM SIGGRAPH Conference and Exhibition on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques in Asia
(SIGGRAPH Asia 2018) took place in Tokyo, Japan at the Tokyo International Forum from 4 – 7 December 2018.
The event attracted the most respected technical and creative people from all over the world excited byresearch, science, art, animation, gaming, interactivity, education and emerging technologies.
The four-day conference included a diverse range of juried programs, such as the Art Gallery, ComputerAnimation Festival, Courses, Emerging Technologies, Posters, Technical Briefs, Technical Papers and Virtual &Augmented Reality. The exhibition held from 5 – 7 December 2018 also offered a business platform forindustry players to market and showcase their innovative products and services to the computer graphics andinteractive techniques professionals and enthusiasts from Asia and beyond. For more information, please visit
http://sa2018.siggraph.org. Find us on: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube with the official event
hashtag, #SIGGRAPHAsia.
About ACM SIGGRAPH
The ACM Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques is an interdisciplinary
community interested in research, technology, and applications in computer graphics and interactivetechniques. Members include researchers, developers, and users from the technical, academic, business, andart communities. ACM SIGGRAPH enriches the computer graphics and interactive techniques community
year-round through its conferences, global network of professional and student chapters, publications, andPage 4 of 7

educational activities. For more information, please visit www.siggraph.org.
About Koelnmesse
Koelnmesse Pte Ltd is one of the world's largest trade fair companies. Its more than 80 trade fairs andexhibitions have the broadest international scope in the industry, as 60 percent of the exhibitors and 40
percent of the visitors come from outside Germany. The Koelnmesse events include leading global trade fairs
for 25 sectors, such as Imm Cologne, Anuga, IDS, INTERMOT, Interzum Cologne, Photokina, Gamescom, andthe International Hardware Fair Cologne. Koelnmesse is ACM SIGGRAPH’s event organizer for the last 10editions of SIGGRAPH Asia. For more information, please visit www.koelnmesse.com.sg.
Media Contacts
Hitoshi Kasai
Head of Communications, SIGGRAPH Asia 2018
MIACIS Associates
hitoshi.kasai@siggraph.org
Jamie Huang
Marketing & Media Partnerships, SIGGRAPH Asia 2018
Koelnmesse Pte Ltd
jamie.huang@siggraph.org

Page 5 of 7

Annex A - VR/AR Award Winners (Second and Third Places)•Best VR/AR Technology Voted by Committee
2nd Place: MR360 Interactive: Playing With Digital Creatures In 360° Videos
Author(s): Taehyun Rhee, Andrew Chalmers, Ian Loh,
Kazuki Kumagai, Lohit Petikam, Ben Allen, Ken Anjyo
Organization, Country: Victoria University of Wellington,OLM Digital, Inc, New Zealand, Japan

3rd Place: Lotus: Enhancing The Immersive Experience In Virtual Environment With Mist-Based
Olfactory DisplayAuthor(s): Yang-Sheng Chen, Ping-Hsuan Han, Kong-Chang
Lee, Chiao-En Hsieh, Jui-Chun Hsiao, Che-Ju Hsu, KuanWen Chen, Chien-Hsing Chou, Yi-Ping Hung
Organization, Country: National Taiwan University,
National Taipei University of Technology, National Chiao
Tung University , Tamkang University,Tainan National

University of the art, Taiwan
3rd Place: Space Fusion: Context-Aware Interaction Using 3D Scene ParsingAuthor(s): Hiroyuki Yabe, Daichi Ono, Tsutomu Horikawa
Organization, Country: Sony Interactive EntertainmentInc., JapanPage 6 of 7•Best VR/AR Content Voted by Committee
2nd Place: The player is the star - Futuristic vision for Mixed Reality World dfAuthor(s): Hirofumi Motoyama
Organization, Country: Bandai Namco Studios. Inc, Japan

3rd Place: Art Plunge: Experiencing the Inner Worlds of Famous ArtworksAuthors(s): Martin Eklund, Space Plunge, VRcollab,
Singapore; Martin Christensen, Space Plunge,Independent, Sweden

3rd Place: Flow Zone: A Cross-Modal Music Creation VR Experience to Induce FlowAuthors(s): Tanner L. Person, Keio University Graduate
School of Media Design, Japan; Benjamin Outram, Keio
University Graduate School of Media Design, UnitedKingdom; Kouta Minamizawa, Keio University Graduate
School of Media Design, JapanPage 7 of 7