“Standing at the Intersection of Creativity, Technology, and Business,”
Unique Event to Welcome Computer Graphics Leaders from Around the World

CHICAGO — (BUSINESS WIRE) — July 26, 2018 — SIGGRAPH 2018, the world’s leading annual interdisciplinary educational event showcasing the latest in computer graphics and interactive techniques, will bring back its Business Symposium for this year’s event. The 45th SIGGRAPH conference takes place 12–16 August at the Vancouver Convention Centre.

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Pictured (left to right): Rajiv Chilaka [Green Gold Animation], Clive Downie [Unity Technologies] (Photo: Business Wire)

Regarding the return of Business Symposium, SIGGRAPH 2018 Conference Chair Roy C. Anthony said, “The exciting Business Symposium makes its triumphant return to our event this year and is sure to provide busy decision-makers with a weekend of insights into the state of the computer graphics industry and its future. The two-day event will include talks, panels, networking opportunities, an exclusive sneak preview of the Emerging Technologies program, and much more.”

The Business Symposium, which occurs over the weekend from 11-12 August, will present 22 speakers and expects to welcome close to 200 executives from over a dozen countries (including Korea, India, Japan, China, France, Russia, and Cameroon). With attendees spanning every specialty from business and technical management to software development and film production, the program will analyze and discuss trends in computer graphics, exploring the responsibility that comes with launching new technologies and fostering opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration. Among the expected attendees are representatives from the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, including Rick Glumac, Parliamentary Secretary for Technology, and Lisa Beare, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture.

The two-day event will explore the intersection of creativity, technology, and business. Symposium topics include: the social and human implications of technology that impact the way we design prototypes; how AI is programmed; how technology is creating rapid convergence of business models and design interfaces; and, how we innovate.

Among the speakers are:

• Clive Downie, Chief Marketing Officer, Unity Technologies. As representative of the world’s leading real-time 3D development platform and company, Downie will deliver the program’s keynote on “How Real-Time 3D is Driving Creative Endeavors.”
• Carolina Cruz Neira, Executive Director, National Academy of Engineering. Neira is known as one of the pioneers of CAVE and virtual reality.
• Rajiv Chilaka, Chief Executive Officer, Green Gold Animation. Chilaka is known as “the Walt Disney of India” and is the creator of “ Chhota Bheem,” a hit children’s series with 90 million fans and growing.
• Dr. James Foley, Professor, Georgia Tech, and co-author of Computer Graphics: Principles & Practice. Foley’s book is renowned as “the bible of computer graphics.”
• Ethan Miller, VR Product Design, Facebook. Miller developed the “VR Memories” project (announced at F8 in May 2018), which allows users to relive meaningful moments inside the spaces where they happened.
• Greg Estes, VP of Corporate Marketing and Developer Platforms, NVIDIA. Estes is building the world’s best platform for GPU-accelerated computing in deep learning, HPC, virtual reality, gaming, self-driving cars, product design, and intelligent machines
• Steve Garrad, Head of Method Vancouver Studio. Garrad is a longtime production executive and a VFX producer who has worked with studios Cinesite, DNEG, and Clear Ltd. on films including “R.I.P.D.,” “Fast & Furious 6,” “Zero Dark Thirty,” and others.
• Spandana Govindgari, Co-founder, Hype AR. Govindgari is changing advertising models by leveraging her experience on the monetization team at Snapchat.

Adding to the impressive roster of presentations will be three plenary talks over the two days. These speakers include: Cheryl Bayer, current CEO of Living Popups and a former VP of FOX Comedy; Andrew Glassner, a leading expert on deep learning; and, Stan Ruecker, an expert in design research whose work has been applied to solving problems ranging from furniture design (Steelcase) to the creation of a preferred future (Columbian rebel group FARC).

“We are thrilled to be bringing back Business Symposium after a hiatus from the conference,” said SIGGRAPH 2018 Business Symposium Chair Paul Salvini. “Our goal for the event is to create an environment where business strategists, creatives, and academics can intersect and share their knowledge, wisdom, and expertise across a wide swath of interdisciplinary challenges. Through a number of sessions, leaders in attendance will discuss a variety of topics on how best to apply the latest advances across the arenas of animation, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence to numerous other industries, such as health care, education, or automotive.”