Computer Graphics World

Edition 1 2018

Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/977547

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 46 of 49

44 cgw | e d i t i o n 1 , 2 0 1 8 N E W S T he visual effects industry this year dominated the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Scientific and Technical Awards that will be given to 10 scientific and technical achievements represented by 34 individual award recipients, as well as one organization. In addition, visual effects technologist Jonathan Erland will receive the Gordon E. Sawyer Award (an Oscar statuette) for technological contributions that have brought credit to the industry. "This year we are happy to honor a very international group of technologists for their innovative and outstanding accomplish- ments," says Ray Feeney, Academy Award recipient and chair of the Scientific and Technical Awards Committee. "These individuals have significantly contributed to the ongoing evolution of motion pictures, and their efforts continue to empower the creativity of our industry." Achievements receiving these awards need not have been devel- oped and introduced during 2017. Rather, the achievements must demonstrate a proven record of contributing significant value to the process of making motion pictures. Receiving Technical Achievement Awards (Academy Certificates) are: Jason Smith and Jeff White for the original design, and Rachel Rose and Mike Jutan for the architecture and engineering, of the BlockParty procedural rigging system at Industrial Light & Magic. BlockParty streamlines the rigging process through a comprehensive connection framework, a novel graphical user interface, and volu- metric rig transfer, which has enabled ILM to build richly detailed and unique creatures while greatly improving artist productivity. Joe Mancewicz, Matt Derksen, and Hans Rijpkema for the design, architecture, and implementation of the Rhythm & Hues Construc- tion Kit rigging system. This tool set provides a novel approach to character rigging that features topological independence, contin- uously editable rigs, and deformation workflows with shape-pre- serving surface relaxation, enabling 15 years of improvements to production efficiency and animation quality. Alex Powell for the design and engineering, Jason Reisig for the in- teraction design, and Martin Watt and Alex Wells for the high-perfor- mance execution engine of the Premo character animation system at DreamWorks Animation. Premo's speed and simplicity enable animators to pose full-resolution characters in representative shot context, significantly increasing their productivity. Rob Jensen for the foundational design and continued devel- opment, Thomas Hahn for the animation tool set, and George ElKoura, Adam Woodbury, and Dirk Van Gelder for the high-per- formance execution engine of the Presto Animation System at Pixar Animation Studios. Presto allows artists to work interac- tively in scene context with full-resolution geometric models and sophisticated rig controls, and has significantly increased the productivity of character animators at Pixar. Receiving Scientific and Engineering Awards (Academy Plaques) are: John Coyle, Brad Hurndell, Vikas Sathaye, and Shane Buckham for the concept, design, engineering, and implementation of the Shotover K1 Camera System. This innovative six-axis stabilized aerial camera mount, with its enhanced ability to frame shots while looking straight down, enables greater creative freedom while allowing pilots to fly more effectively and safely. Jeff Lait, Mark Tucker, Cristin Barghiel, and John Lynch for their contributions to the design and architecture of the Houdini visual effects and animation system. Houdini's dynamics framework and workflow management tools have helped it become the industry VFX ACHIEVEMENTS RECOGNIZED BY THE ACADEMY SIDE EFFECTS' HOUDINI DREAMWORKS' PREMO ILM'S BLOCKPARTY

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of Computer Graphics World - Edition 1 2018