SIGGRAPH 2018 is packing its conference program this year by looking both forward and back. The just-announced slate of Production Sessions includes the expected deep dives into current and upcoming projects including Blade Runner, Wreck-It Ralph 2, and Game of Thrones. But it also pauses to remember VFX and animation history, including storytelling challenges that have spanned generations.
With Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom just now finishing its theatrical run, SIGGRAPH will help kick off proceedings at the Vancouver Convention Centre on Sunday, August 12, with a 25th anniversary screening of Jurassic Park, introduced by artist Steve “Spaz” Williams, a CG animator on the film.
Incredibles 2
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Subjects of SIGGRAPH 2018 Production Sessions will include The Incredibles 2, featuring some members of the team who worked on the 2004 original as well as the 2018 sequel discussing the evolution of Pixar’s filmmaking process. And another session, “Generations of Houdini in Film” will assemble a panel to reminisce about how they’ve used Side Effects Software’s Houdini in the past — and how they expect cinoyter graphics to evolve in the future. Other sessions will look at processes behind Laika’s forthcoming Missing Link, Blade Runner 2049, the November release Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2, Game of Thrones season 7 and Avengers: Infinity War.
Meanwhile, the Production Gallery, first introduced at SIGGRAPH 2017, will return with an array of memorabilia from film, television and videogame productions, including items from Solo: A Star Wars Story and Crow: The Legend. But the highlight will be Progressions, a touring exhibition of 50 pieces of artwork from Syd Mead, the visionary often credited as “visual futurist” for forward-looking designs for films including both Blade Runner films, Tron, Aliens and Tomorrowland. The exhibit will feature a downloadable mobile app that allows interaction with Mead’s Pebble Beach Tryptic, as well as a selection of draft versions of the displayed artwork.
SIGGRAPH takes place at the Vancouver Convention Centre in Vancouver, BC, from August 12 – 16.
