SIGGRAPH Summary: 20,000 Attendees, In San Diego For 2007

Organizers of the recent SIGGRAPH 2006, the 33rd International Conference on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques, announced that the Boston event drew 19,764 artists, research scientists, developers, filmmakers, and academics from 80 countries. More than 230 companies exhibited, including 76 first-time exhibitors. In addition, organizers have confirmed that the next edition of SIGGRAPH will be held at the San Diego Convention Center, 5-9 August 2007. The conference, which was covered in depth by Gamasutra, was highlighted by a keynote speech given by Disney's Joe Rohde. Currently in charge of design and development for Disney's Animal Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, Joe Rohde has led conceptualization, design, and production for Disney's Animal Kingdom since its inception in 1990. The essence of Rohde's keynote was the prime importance of a consistent narrative when telling a story - no matter if it is a written novel or a Hollywood blockbuster. The event also included SIGGRAPH 2006 Computer Animation Festival Awards, which saw various exceptional animated offerings recognized by the show's jury. Chosen from the 726 submitted entries, Alex Weil won Best in Show for his portrayal of a New York City rat from his gritty world to the interior of a futuristic laboratory in One Rat Short. Jan Bitzer, Ilija Brunck, and Tom Weber picked up Special Jury Honors for 458nm, a romantic tale involving mechanical snails. In addition, two video game related animated offerings were showcased at the event, including animation from Tecmo's Monster Farm 5 Circus Caravan, directed by Goh Fujita of Digital Media Lab. Inc. in Japan, and the intro cinematic from Namco Bandai's upcoming PC release, Warhammer: Mark of Chaos, which was directed by Istvan Zorkoczy of Digic Pictures in Hungary. The event also saw a number of additional awards given out, including the Computer Graphics Achievement Award, which was given to Thomas W. Sederberg from Brigham Young University; the Significant New Researcher Award, which was presented to Takeo Igarashi from The University of Tokyo; and the ACM SIGGRAPH Outstanding Service Award, which was given to John M. Fujii from Hewlett Packard Company. "Returning to Boston for the first time since 1989 was met with a resounding response from the local and international community," commented John Finnegan, SIGGRAPH 2006 Conference Chair from Purdue University. "The city of Boston did a fantastic job at welcoming the computer graphics and technology community to this part of the country."