SIGGRAPH Asia lands in Japan, bringing to life the future of Computer
Graphics and transforming the way we think, work and live
For the first-time ever, SIGGRAPH Asia introduces the Symposium on Education and theSymposium on Visualization in High Performance Computing

KOBE, Japan, 3 November 2015 - From 2 to 5 November, the 8th edition of SIGGRAPH Asia
will bring together more than 7,000 of the world’s leading computer animation experts,
researchers, technologists, graphics pioneers and trade visitors from close to 50 countries
around the world. Both a conference and a trade exhibition, SIGGRAPH Asia is taking place inthe vibrant and eclectic city of Kobe, Japan, at the Kobe Convention Center, to help further growand foster strong connections with important communities in Asia.
In addition to featuring crowd favorites such as the Art Gallery, Computer Animation Festival,
Emerging Technologies and the Symposium on Mobile Graphics and Interactive Applications,this year’s edition of SIGGRAPH Asia will also introduce two new programs for the first-time ever– the Symposium on Education and the Symposium on Visualization in High Performance
Computing. Hundreds of industry experts and professionals are also expected to contribute to
the strong line-up with a diverse range of demonstrations, courses, workshops, posters, technical briefs,and technical papers.

Leading the Keynote at SIGGRAPH Asia 2015 is Ronnie del Carmen, co-director of Inside Out,the Pixar film that has touched audiences worldwide and been ranked the tenth highest-grossing
animated film of all time. Del Carmen has been a member of the story team that worked on anumber of the studio’s most famous feature films, including the Academy Award®-winningfeatures Finding Nemo, Ratatouille and Up (on which he served as the story supervisor). His
keynote today, From Story to Screen: Ronnie Del Carmen’s Path to Pixar and A Peek Inside The
Making of Inside Out, will cover stories of his career path from being an advertising art director inthe Philippines to becoming a co-director at Pixar, while walking the audience through theintricacies of crafting an animated work of massive scale, scope and ambition.
Joining del Carmen is Satoshi Tadokoro, a project manager of the Japan Cabinet Office
ImPACT Project, a research professor at Tohoku University, Japan and president of theInternational Rescue System Institute. In his closing keynote on 5 November, Tadokoro will
discuss the use of robotic systems for disaster response and recovery, including its potential
effectiveness and existing gaps.
A premier gathering of leading names
Featuring about 80 participating companies from Asia and beyond, the SIGGRAPH Asia 2015
Exhibition demonstrates the versatility of computer graphics today. Among the leading namesthat will be showcasing their latest works and innovations are Amazon Data Services, Christie
Digital Systems, Digital Hollywood Japan, Forum8, Google, Intel Corporation, Isotropix,Khronos Group, Polygon Magic and PIXAR Animation Studios. Visitors will also gain aholistic view of the developments in hardware and software in computer graphics as well asservices such as interactive technology and hardware device expertise from AnimaeTechnologies and 3D graphic solutions by Born Digital, Inc.
The SIGGRAPH Asia 2015 exhibition will feature a Thailand Pavilion, organized by theBangkok ACM SIGGRAPH, showcasing current content and research in CG and VFX, mediaand games from Thailand. In addition, the Kobe City government will be showcasing works fromPage 1 of 6the Kansai region and Tokyo in a Kobe City Pavilion. 19 participating companies will bedemonstrating their products and services and creating a knowledge sharing platform to connect
with other businesses and individuals.
The exhibition floor will play host to 21 educational institutions which will be presenting theirlatest research and ideas that can potentially bring the industry forward. Japanese educational
institutions, including Kansai University, Kobe Institute of Computing, Multi-plAtform Game
Innovation Centre (MAGIC), NTU, Ritsumeikan University and Technology & Management
Research Institute of KYOTO will display their work in creative media, including audio and filmproduction, games technology and related research as well as animation. The Carnegie Mellon
Entertainment Technology Center will also be exhibiting work by students from its two-year
Master’s Degree in Entertainment Technology program.
Reflective of the growing potential of the computer graphics market in the region, establishedplayers such as FLAME (Japan) x Neun Farben (Philippines); FOVE.inc (Japan); OLM Digital,Inc. (Japan); and Polygon Magic (Japan) will be holding recruitment drives at the Job Fair on
the SIGGRAPH Asia 2015 exhibition floor.
Emerging Technologies
Each year, the Emerging Technologies showcase features the latest interactive and graphics
technologies in the 3D, virtual reality and projection mapping industries, including practicalapplications. Visitors will have a chance to play first-hand with the latest interactive and graphics
technologies before they transform the way we live and work.
The 2015 Emerging Technologies program received a total of 78 submissions from Asia (Japan,Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore) and beyond (Canada, Australia, USA, Italy,UK, Norway, Russia, and France), and 29 outstanding submissions were accepted by theEmerging Technologies Committee. The audience can expect highly sophisticated andimpressive emerging technologies demonstrations that show a preview of what the future could
look like.
Program highlights include:CalibraTable: Tabletop System to affect estimating food-volume by Sho Sakurai, Takuji
Narumi, Yuki Ban, Tomohiro Tanikawa, Michitaka Hirose, The University of Tokyo (Japan)– In order to realize computer interaction technology to control over all valance of eating
meals without the user's effort, they propose a tabletop system that affects estimating
food volume interactively by projecting the virtual dish around food on the tabletop andcontrolling the size of the projected virtual dish.

TransformTable by Yusuke Asar, Kazuki Takashima, Yoshifumi Kitamura, Tohoku
University (Japan)
A moving and deforming interactive digital table designed to dynamically customize users’workspaces. Unlike existing semi-fixed tables, the TransformTable allows users to keep
their workspace efficient and comfortable in an effortless way through its self-actuatedlocomotion and shape transformation capabilities.

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Practical Ball Sports Platform by Sachiko Kodama, Shuzo Matsuno, Ryutaro Ogawa,Kenji Inokuchi, Toshio Sato, Takahiro Shida, Yasuki Takeno, Eitetsu Komiyama, The
University of Electro-Communications (Japan), Mikasa Corporation (Japan), Prototype,Ltd. (Japan), Tokyo Institute of Technology (Japan)
The Mikasa Digital Ball platform is a ball that enhances ball sports through the use ofdigital technology. It organizes dynamic ball interaction with real-time computer graphics
and sound output using a rubber ball that incorporates a BLE wireless module, sixsensors and one rechargeable LiPo battery.

ThirdHand: Wearing a Robotic Arm to Experience Rich Force Feedback by Liao Yi-Chi,Yang Shun-Yao, Liang Rong-Hao, Chan Liwei, Chen Bing-Yu, National Taiwan University(Taiwan), Keio University (Japan)
Mobile devices such as smartphones have become prevalent gaming platforms. Toenrich gaming experiences, researchers are increasingly interested in bringing various
haptic feedback to the mobile games. This work presents ThirdHand, a wearable roboticarm which provides 5-DOF force feedback to enrich gaming experiences.

ChameleonMask by Kana Misawa, Jun Rekimoto, The University of Tokyo (Japan), Sony
Computer Science Laboratories (Japan)
Chameleonmask is a telepresence system that shows a remote user's face on the otheruser's face. A surrogate user wears a mask-shaped display that shows a remote user's
live face, and a voice channel transmits a remote user's voice.

Recognizing high-quality, artistic and technical animation works
The Computer Animation Festival works span the multiple disciplines of visual effects, animation,
research and development, games, advertising, and education. As one of the most popular
programs at SIGGRAPH Asia, the annual Computer Animation Festival received 400
submissions from 36 countries this year, with films conceived and produced by students making
up 51 percent of all submissions. A total of 50 films from around the world have been selected forthe final screenings at the Electronic Theater and Animation Theater
Here is the list of the SIGGRAPH Asia 2015 Computer Animation Festival Award Winners:
Jury Special Prize
Afternoon Class by OH Seoro, OH Seoro (South Korea)
In this unique and visually stunning piece, audiences are taken through the first person
perspective of someone in an afternoon class. Follow him as the hits during the afternoon
lessons, and as his head gets heavier and as he tries to stay alert.

Best Student Project Prize
Natural Attraction by Marc Zimmermann, Filmakademie Baden-Wuerttemberg (Germany)
Natural Attraction showcases a natural spectacle which turns a sparse, dry landscape into
a fruitful place bearing new life. The interplay between sky and earth reminds of a sensual
love act to express the dependency and perfect correlation of both elements.

Best in Show Award
Chase Me by Gilles-Alexandre Deschaud, Gilles-Alexandre Deschaud (France)
Chase Me is a hybrid film exploring two worlds, stop-motion and CGI films. The project firstbegan as a CG movie, which was then 3D printed frame by frame. Each second of the film

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is made up of 15 frames. Everything on the screen has been 3D printed, from the sets tothe characters. Chase Me is made up of about 2500 printed parts.
True to its identity as Asia’s premier computer animation festival, the Computer Animation
Festival at SIGGRAPH Asia 2015 will also host a series of panels and talks by industry experts
and pioneers who have worked on some of the latest animations to hit our screens.
Highlights include:

The technology behind Big Hero 6: Toby Jones and Rajesh Sharma from Walt Disney
Animation Studios go behind the scenes of 3D computer-animated superhero comedy
film Big Hero 6. Jones and Sharma will discuss some of the concepts and work that went
behind the creation and animation of the characters, including Baymax, effects, crowds,
lighting and rendering.
Disney/Pixar’s The Good Dinosaur: Sanjay Bakshi, Matt Webb, Sharon Callahan and
Ana Lacaze from Pixar Animation Studios discuss the making of the latest
Disney/Pixar release, The Good Dinosaur, including some of the technical challenges
behind the making of the film. The panel will share with audiences the process of creating
expansive and believable environments, illustrating the challenges of making 3Dvolumetric clouds, locations based on scanned elevation data, procedurally generating
millions of trees and foliage and tying it all together with an integrated lighting solution.
Artist talks with the Computer Animation Festival award winners: OH Seoro, Marc
Zimmermann and Somphout Chanhthaboutdy discuss with the inspiration behind theiraward-winning works, Afternoon Class, Natural Attraction and Chase Me.
CG in Anime – Seven major animation studios from Japan (Digital Frontier; Graphinica;
Kamikazedouga; Polygon Pictures; SANZIGEN; SHIROGUMI; Toei Animation)
present their creative challenges on implementing computer graphics and digitalproduction to Japanese traditional "Anime".

Life on Earth?
The theme for Art Gallery this year explores the intersections of art and life and questions how
art can improve current conditions of life on Earth to extend human experience. The SIGGRAPH
Asia 2015 Art Gallery welcomed a myriad of proposals for art works and artistic installations thatutilize digital technology, including visual and sound works, performances, audio visualinstallations, and most are collaborations across different fields of arts and sciences.
Art Gallery received 134 applications from all over the world, including Hong Kong, South Korea,Japan, the UK, Germany, France, Portugal, and the US. Of the 20 artworks selected for theexhibition, visitors can keep an eye out for:
Conglomerate Distortions by Peter Williams and Sala Wong, Indiana University (USA)A series of stereoscopic, immersive animations that cleave parallel experiences ofheightened spectacle, displacing geographic location and site.

Unnecessary Signage by Don Ritter, City University of Hong Kong, School of CreativeMedia (Hong Kong)
A series of industrial road signs that depict humanity’s struggle with morality and thehuman condition, including our experience of birth, childhood, love, marriage, parenting,social recognition, and death.

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Inner Mind Architecture by Kenta Nakagawa, Kenta Academy of Media Arts Cologne(Germany)
A virtual architecture installation that expresses the" inner mind" in physical architectureand question the concept of home and family.

“SIGGRAPH Asia provides an opportunity for attendees to be presented with the possibilities thatcomputer graphics and interactive techniques can offer. Celebrating the successes of pioneers,emerging artists, researchers and professionals in the field, this year’s committee has worked
hard to put together an exceptional line-up of pre-eminent works and pieces that we hope will
inspire future breakthroughs in Asia and the world. With an increase in the number of high caliber
contributions from all over the world, the return of interactive programs, such as the Art Galleryand Emerging Technologies, and a consistency in the programming to stay up-to-date on
industry trends, I am confident that SIGGRAPH Asia will continue to be an important platform forthe computer graphics and interactive techniques communities around the globe,” said Jeff
Jortner, President of ACM SIGGRAPH.
###Media Contacts
Jamie Huang
SIGGRAPH Asia c/o Koelnmesse+65 6500 6730 / +65 9232 9738
j.huang@koelnmesse.com.sg

Lara D’Souza / Keri Lee
Text100 for SIGGRAPH Asia 2015
+65 9622 7065 / +65 9337 2628
siggraph@text100.com.sg

Find us on:
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram with the official event hashtag, #SIGGRAPHAsia--About SIGGRAPH Asia 2015
The 8th ACM SIGGRAPH Conference and Exhibition on Computer Graphics and InteractiveTechniques in Asia will take place in Kobe, Japan at the Kobe Convention Center from 2 – 5November 2015. The annual event held in Asia attracts the most respected technical andcreative people from all over the world who are excited by research, science, art, animation,gaming, interactivity, education and emerging technologies.
The 4-day SIGGRAPH Asia 2015 conference will include a diverse range of juried programs thisyear, including an Art Gallery, Computer Animation Festival, Courses, Emerging Technologies,Posters, Technical Briefs, Technical Papers, Symposium on Mobile Graphics and Interactive
Applications, Workshops, and two new Symposiums – Symposium on Education andSymposium on Visualization in High Performance Computing. A 3-day exhibition held from 3 – 5November 2015 will offer a business platform for industry players to market their innovativeproducts and services to the computer graphics and interactive techniques professionals andenthusiasts from Asia and beyond.
About ACM SIGGRAPH
The Association of Computing Machinery’s Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics andInteractive Techniques (ACM SIGGRAPH) sponsors SIGGRAPH Asia 2015. Founded in 1947,
ACM is an educational and scientific society uniting the world’s computing educators,

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researchers, and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources, and address the field’schallenges. ACM strengthens the profession’s collective voice through strong leadership,promotion of the highest standards, and recognition of technical excellence. The ACM
SIGGRAPH deals with all aspects of graphical user/computer communication and manipulation:
hardware, languages, data structure, methodology, and applications.

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