May 14, 2007 by Jen Stolzer.

I just wanted to let you all know that I sent our paperwork in today, so hopefully we’ll be official by the end of the week.  Conveniently postage went up today btw.  Letters are 41 cents and packages are 80.  Lucky me I had a dollar stamp lying around.

If anyone wants to help me out building the DVD on Wednesday we’ll be back in 202 Wednesday atfternoon.

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May 14, 2007 by joeljohnson66.

SIGGRAPH (Special Interest Group — Graphic artists, Interactive Media and Animation)–The premier organization for Interactive Media and Animation in the World.

SIGGRAPH conferences work on many levels. SIGGRAPH has a site http://www.siggraph.org/s2007/attendees/registration/value.html explaining why you should go.

My top 10 reasons for attending SIGGRAPH

1. Networking — professionals from every area at every level from students, to freelancers, to Pixar will be there. The atmosphere is very collegial and opportunities to discuss professional and personal issues abound.

2. Panels — discussions with major field representatives (last year I went to several held by lead animators and project managers from Open Season, Chronicles of Narnia, Disney). These are usually centered around the details of major projects.

3. Papers — Academic superstars discuss where the research is leading in the future (last year I went to several about camera arrays aka what you can do if you have 8 cameras in one place instead of 1). These are highly technical, but accessible (most, but some require certain math/science skills to understand).

4. Workshops — “How To” sessions on almost any aspect of the interactive and animation fields.

5. Exhibitors and Exhibitor sessions — Every major company involved in the industry sets up booths where you can test out the latest and greatest, get demos of software and training sessions by the pros who teach the pros. Beyond the commercial aspect, most major schools and training facilities set up as well.

6. Art Gallery — a technology masterpiece. 3D screens, touch technologies, and a lot of really out there uses of technology. Guaranteed to give you many hours of “Wow!”

7. Animation Festival — The best animation you will ever see in the best theater you will ever see. Simply amazing.

8. Guerilla Studio — Open throughout the event these are classes with artists and field pros where you can work with 3D scanners, 3D printers, the latest software and hardware to actually create materials.

9. Job Fair — for graduates this is likely the most important stop of the entire conference. Hundreds of employers in every area of the discipline looking for good employees NOW. Bring a resume, demo reel and/or portfolio.

10. Fjorg! — 32 hour animation contest. Teams of 3 work on a single concept for 32 hours in front of the toughest group of judges in the world. Given the sound and voice-over selections, rigged models, hardware, software, meals and entertainment the challenge is to create the best of the best for the right to call yourselves the Fjorg! Viking Animators.

Expect about 10 of us to be enthusiastic and re-enlivened, smarter, faster and more powerful on return.

How to get to the SIGGRAPH conference.

Sign up to be a student SIGGRAPH member on SIGGRAPH.org $25
Sign up for the conference registration ASAP (prices rise as the conference approaches) — $345 (before June 29)
Book a room — Most of our students are looking at The 500 West hotel that costs $35 per person Apr. $200 for the 5 nights (double occupancy http://www.500westhotel.com/index.html)
Book a flight — from $315 roundtrip (1 stop as of May 14)
Plan to eat something — Apr. $250 for 4-5 days eating out

Total Costs (allowing for $350 incidentals e.g. hotel taxes, bus passes, cab rides, maps, etc.) — Apr. $1500

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May 12, 2007 by sanjin2.

So im pretty much going, but I was looking at the site and prices and all that, and since I missed the first two meetings I dont know did you all sing up as student members?  Since Im going to go I’d rather pay 345 than 850, so can I just go to Siggraph’s site and register or do I have to do something “special” for webster siggraph??

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May 12, 2007 by Jen Stolzer.

Well, its the day after the Showcase. It was a bumpy ride, but our first annual SIGGRAPH Showcase is behind us.  It was a bumpy road, but we pulled it off… to a point anyway ^^

I’d like to thank everyone who contributed their projects to the show.  I apologize if your stuff didn’t make it in, there was a thirty minute section that was being stubborn.  I want to thank you all for being patient with the delays and I’d especially like to thank our MC, who filled time expertly (I’m sorry again Joel) and my hardworking team of compilation artists.  We’ve got a lot to be proud of, and matching ulcers.  Anyone up to doing it again next year?

So again, thanks everyone for showing up to the show, contributing to its content and compiling its media.  And boy am I glad it’s summertime.

Jen

Posted in Old News | 7 Comments »

May 10, 2007 by Lange Jared.

April 18 Minutes

Turn in your fees if you haven’t yes.  $20 to Jeremy “Moneybags” Johnson

ANIMATION INTM SHOWCASE

Please turn in anything you have to JenStolzer

Accepting anything from Animation and models to video and web design.

If you turn your projects in soon, your work may make it on THE WALL, which is our advertising space in the library.

Additionally, if anyone has any experience in large-scale composition and would like to help construct THE WALL please email Jen or post on the forum

We still need MODELERS to work on the New Facility project.  It’s going to be a fun and useful project.  Contact Carol or Jared if you’d like to be involved in production

SIGGRAPH CONFERENCE

Who all is actually going?  It would be nice to book together, so those who are for sure attending this summer please raise your hands so we can get started and nab some cheaper lodging.  Details about the conference can be found at the SIGGRAPH website.

NEXT MEETING: Sunday the 29^th at Joel Johnson’s house. 

Doors open at 3:00

Festivities (aka food) start at 5:00

Come and go as you please.  Rain date is the following Sunday

Please bring something for the group to eat and post what you’re bringing on the forum so we don’t all bring the same thing.

Meetings will be every other week from now on.  THERE IS NO MEETING THIS WEEK.

This weekend, there’s an Anime/Scifi Convention at  St. Louis Marriott West.  $40 for weekend passes.  Several Webster SIGGRAPH members have booths there, and if you volunteer you can get in free.  Talk to Jeremy for more volunteering information, he will refer you to the head honcho.

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May 7, 2007 by Jen Stolzer.

The Showcase is fast approaching.  We’ve gathered materials, we’ve amassed a fortune of media excellence, we’ve poked, prodded and annoyed anyone who will listen to us.  We’ve spoken about ourselves in the third person. And we continue to do so.  But now we ask more…

Anyone interested in helping put this project together… finding and syncing music, making video slideshows, helping pick the order of things… All volunteers are welcome.  i’ll be in the lab on Wednesday from 2 to 530.  Anyone who wants to help out can show up or email me or whatever.  I’ll take any help I can.  i’m going to need to sequence it all and find music for the silent parts and blend that music with the music existing on the musiked ones, put labels on every piece music-video-style and burn it to DVD.

And I’m still accepting stuff so if you’ve got things to give me you know where to find me too ^^

Jen

Posted in Old News | 1 Comment »

May 5, 2007 by CraigStrubing.

I was just looking at the registration form for the siggraph conference since I was going to buy my ticket soon. There is section where you have to list your preference of times for electronic theater showings.
Be sure to take that in consideration while we all look over the conference proceedings before the next conference meeting. I’m going to hold off on buying my ticket till then, cause it would be cool if we could all go to the theater at the same time.

Craig

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