Village Gamer

For nearly forty years SIGGRAPH has inspired, educated and influenced the direction of research, production and artistic communities. At SIGGRAPH 2011 in Vancouver this August 7th through 11th, the conference is introducing the SIGGRAPH Symposium: The Business Think Tank. This one-day event on August 7th will bring together leaders to address the past, present and future of the global computer graphics industry.

The Business Think Tank introduces an opportunity for industry leaders and visionaries to discuss issues related to finance, strategy, culture, and creativity in a conversational environment. This full-day event features discussion groups and two enlightening featured speakers intended to spark frank and honest interaction about the industry in the 21st century.

“The intimate, interactive nature of this inaugural Business Think Tank is the ideal forum in which to inspire idea-sharing and problem-solving among some of the visionaries within the global computer graphics community,” says Jill Smolin, SIGGRAPH 2011 Director from 3ality Digital. “This highly interactive day will feature conversations and presentations of industry-specific issues and challenges within our local and global community.”

Planned participants include:

Featured Speakers:

• Gail Currey, Head of Studio, PDI/DreamWorks
• Andy Hendrickson, Chief Technology Officer, Walt Disney Animation Studios

Business Session:

• Victoria Alonso: EVP, VFX and Post Production, Marvel Entertainment, LLC
• Rory Armes: CEO, Gener8 Digital Media Corp.
• Dan Glass: EVP, Senior VFX Supervisor, Method Studios
• Namit Malhotra: CEO, Prime Focus
• Don McGowan: General Counsel, The Pokémon Company International
• Marc Weigert: Executive Producer, VFX Supervisor, CEO, Uncharted Territory, LLC

Culture Session:

• Steve Bocska: CEO, Pug Pharm Productions Inc.
• Kim Davidson: Co-Founder, CEO, President, Side Effects Software Inc.
• Warren Franklin: CEO, Rainmaker Entertainment Inc.
• Jenny Fulle: Founder, Visual Effects Producer, The Creative Cartel
• Shannon Gans: CEO, Co-Founder, New Deal Studios, Inc.

This Symposium is a new initiative for SIGGRAPH, and is intended to accommodate approximately 200 people who are on the business side of the industry. They might be artists who are now company leaders or leaders who work with artists. They are the people who look to each other and other leaders to define and run the industry.

Registration for the SIGGRAPH Symposium: The Business Think Tank is now available – space for this event is very limited, so register soon if you plan on attending.

I only have a few minutes left before I have to head off for work, so here is a quick rundown of event news:

* If you haven’t yet registered for SIGGRAPH 2011, you should do so now, because ticket prices go up at midnight on June 18th.  Having the conference in Vancouver this year is a huge opportunity for our many-faceted digital media industry, and I hope that you all take advantage of it. We’ll be at the show, and we really hope to see you there, too.

* The Full Indie Game Jam that is happening this weekend at the Centre for Digital Media is sold out, but there is a waiting list. Registration is also now open for the June 23rd Full Indie meetup event, and with limited space available, I suggest signing up now. Games from the jam will be featured at the meetup.

* SIGGRAPH Vancouver Chapter presents The Art of Lighting and Rendering Rio next week at District 319. Jim Gettinger, Lighting Supervisor, will discuss lighting and lighting design as it pertains to the overall aesthetic of Blue Sky Studios’ latest animated hit, RIO. This talk will explore the developmental work pursued by Jim and his team taking the listener through many stages of the production process at Blue Sky. Lighting and lighting techniques will be presented from concept art, through pre-visualization, master lighting, and compositing.

* The next Women In Games Vancouver Martini Night is June 23rd at Guilt & Company. Ladies, come out for a relaxing evening of socializing with other women from the interactive media industry. RSVP on the event’s Facebook page.

* Annex Pro is hosting three (and free) software events in Vancouver; please click the event links for more information and to register. The first is happening tomorrow – Test-Drive Native Performance with new Avid Pro Tools|HD Native will be held at Annex Pro. Don’t Just Edit. Finish. Autodesk Smoke for Mac OS X takes place at Vancouver Film School on June 22. On June 28th, you can spend An Evening with The Foundry: Nuke 6.3, NukeX 6.3, Mari at Rainmaker Entertainment.

* New Media Manitoba presents iPad User Interface Design on June 21st. Chris, Olga, and Lee of Velocity Branding will guide you through their methodology for project management and designing for Tablets. This is a free event, and will take place at the NMM offices from 5-7pm.

* Interactive Ontario presents Interact Networking Mixer: Special Documentary Edition on June 29th at The Annex Live from 6 – 8pm. This event is free for DOC & IO Members or $10.00 for Non-Members. You are invited to come out and mingle with professionals in the interactive and documentary media industries, with the opportunity to uncover new possibilities for creative and business partnerships. This event is co-presented by docSHIFT (an initiative of the DOC Toronto) and Interactive Ontario.

* Tech Cocktail is coming to Vancouver on July 9th. The event will be very much focused on the future as we partner with Futurists:BetaLaunch as part of the World Future Conference by the World Future Society, a 45-year old non-profit organization dedicated to advancing ideas of the future. We’re also looking to engage with the local Vancouver tech community, inviting them to participate in this exciting event.

* Amazon invites you to come out and meet the Amazon Vancouver team, where you can learn about all the job opportunities at one of Amazon’s newest Software Development Centers in Canada. Meet and mingle with all the different teams that are growing and hiring at the new office. This will be a great opportunity to meet our engineers, learn about our culture, and find out about the exciting opportunities Amazon Vancouver has to offer. Have a drink and appetizers on us, but don’t forget to bring your resume. RSVP through LinkedIn required.

* The nationwide DEMO Innovation tour is back – it will be in Vancouver on June 23rd, Toronto on June 26th, and Montreal on July 15th.  Matt Marshall, DEMO Executive Producer and the DEMO team will travel around the country to connect with the DEMO community in search of the best innovation to showcase at DEMO Fall 2011, and they invite you to submit an application for a 30 minute private meeting with the DEMO team and leading Venture capitals in a city near you. There are ten spots available per tour stop. Each company selected will also have the opportunity to address a larger audience at the DEMO Tour party in the evening open to the entire DEMO community of VCs, investors, media and PR professionals.

Remember this is just a very small sampling of upcoming events – visit our Events Page for more listings.

The Saskatchewan Science Centre has partnered with IBM and its subsidiary, ISM Canada, as part of IBM’s Celebration of Service through which IBM  employees, retirees and business partners donate their time and expertise in communities around the world during IBM’s Centennial year.

On June 15, the Science Centre is hosting the third of many robotics workshops planned for this year using special educational robotics kits and laptops donated by IBM and valued at $10,000. Volunteers from IBM, ISM Canada, and the Science Centre will lead today’s robotics workshops for Imperial Community School students from Grades 6 through 8. Over the course of 2011, about 100 volunteers from IBM and the community are expected to participate in the program.

“The Saskatchewan Robotics Challenge workshop is a perfect fit for us, truly inspiring minds through science and innovation,” said Saskatchewan Science Centre Executive Director Sandy Baumgartner.  “Our volunteers make learning fun and accessible, and they help the students see the possibilities for futures in science.”

The Saskatchewan Robotics Challenge places special emphasis on reaching out to young people from First Nations and Aboriginal schools. “We’re finding that our First Nations are under-represented in science and technology careers, and we want to help change that,” said Hugh Hudson, IBM’s Senior Location Executive for Saskatchewan. “The Robotics Challenge workshop is a way of opening career doors. Students become more aware of the possibilities, and we hope they discover that the experience of building a robot with one of our mentor-volunteers sparks their interest in learning more about future careers in technology.”

In recognition of 100 years in business, the 2011 IBM Celebration of Service spans more than 120 countries where IBMers live and conduct business. The Saskatchewan Science Centre offers over 20 curriculum-based workshops designed to supplement what educators are teaching, or to introduce new concepts using resources not available at every school.

Canada’s top educators are expanding their traditional teaching methods to reach beyond reading, writing and arithmetic.  The new cornerstones of learning in their classrooms include social media, cyberspace and digitized projects.

Twenty-two remarkable teachers from across the nation are receiving national attention for bringing ‘history to life’ for their students.  These passionate educators are encouraging their students to digitally record interviews with World War II veterans and Holocaust survivors, create multimedia resources on Indian Residential Schools, and produce a film featuring Canada’s connection to the fatal voyage of the Titanic.

For their innovative and interactive teaching approaches, Canada’s History Society has selected the following twenty-two educators as the finalists of the 2011 Governor General’s Awards for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History.

Lindsay Anderson, Niv Stilman & Yossi Suissa – Calgary Jewish Academy – Calgary
Kimberly Bartlett – Pickering College – Newmarket
Raymond Bédard – D’éducation Internationale de McMasterville – McMasterville
Sarah Beech & Chad Howie – Valley Creek Middle School – Calgary
Gregory Birkett – Nelson A. Boylen Collegiate – Toronto
Shantelle Browning-Morgan – Walkerville Collegiate Institute – Windsor
Pam Calvert – Oakville Trafalgar High School – Oakville
Marie-Laure Chevrier – École Anne-Hébert – Vancouver
François Desmarais – École Secondaire de Mortagne – Boucherville
Flora Fung – Oshawa Central Collegiate – Oshawa
Cynthia Mundell Hahn – Wes Hosford Elementary School – Sherwood Park
Clint Lovell – Eastview Secondary School – Barrie
Scott Masters – Crestwood Preparatory College – Toronto
Gilles Paulin – Centre Scolaire et Communautaire La Fontaine – Neguac
Elizabeth Phipps – Mayfair Community School – Saskatoon
Sylvia Smith – Elizabeth Wyn Wood Alternate High School Program – Ottawa
Andrew Stickings – École Grosvenor Wentworth Park School – Halifax
Michael Sweet & Raymond Tomasino – Lester B. Pearson High School – Montreal

Now in its 15^th year, the Awards recognize the outstanding contributions of Canada’s history teachers, ranging from elementary grades through to secondary schools.  Deborah Morrison, President and CEO of Canada’s History Society says, “Teachers like this years finalists not only change students’ perceptions of Canadian history, but they’re changing our perceptions of teaching as well.”

A national judging panel will next select six recipients out of the 22 finalists, based on a submission outlining the nominee’s innovations and achievements in the field of teaching Canadian History or Social Studies.  Those six recipients will receive $2,500, a gold medal and a trip this fall to the Awards ceremonies at Rideau Hall.  Their respective schools will also be awarded a cash gift of $1,000.  The program, including the Awards prizes are made possible through the generous support of TD Bank Group.

“Few things are more powerful than a teacher’s passion for their subject.  Their in-class enthusiasm can excite, inspire and even transform the lives of their students,” says Frank McKenna, Deputy Chair, TD Bank Group.  “TD is proud to support the 2011 Governor General’s Awards for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History recognizing the incredible contributions our Canadian history teachers are making in the classroom.”

Canada’s relatively low number of people with advanced qualifications— such as PhDs—could be contributing to our failing grade on innovation, according to The Conference Board of Canada’s latest How Canada Performs analysis.

“The education and skills of the labour force are the underpinnings of innovation. Canada gets excellent results from its education system as a whole. However, Canada’s performance begins to slip as we climb the educational ladder. Indeed, Canada falls to the back of the pack when it comes to advanced knowledge and skills, such as graduates from PhD programs and science and engineering disciplines,” said Michael Bloom, Vice-President, Organizational Effectiveness and Learning. “Our analysis finds a link between a country’s innovation performance and the number of PhDs and science and engineering graduates.”

Canada ranked 14^th out of 17 peer countries in overall innovation performance in the Conference Board’s How Canada Performs Innovation report card (published in 2010). Moreover, Canada has obtained consistent “D” grades in innovation performance since the 1980s. Yet Canada is a consistent top performer overall in the Education and Skills report card, ranking second only to Finland in the most recent release. Canada’s ranking slips, however, as we move from high-school completion (second) to university completion (fifth) to PhD graduates (last of 17).

The Conference Board found a positive relationship between higher PhD graduation rates and a country’s patenting activity. Patents are a commonly used measure of innovation activity, tracking how knowledge is being transformed into invention. Countries that rank high on patents – such as Switzerland, Sweden and Germany – also have high PhD graduation rates. Canada ranked 14^th out of 17 countries on patents by population and last on PhD graduates. Read the rest of this entry »

The ESL Literacy Network at Bow Valley College in Calgary has won the National Adult Literacy Database (NALD) 2011 Innovative Technology Award for providing ESL literacy practitioners with access to innovative online resources that inform classroom instruction and support ongoing professional development.

“The website provides an in-depth look at ESL literacy levels, learning needs, programming considerations, curriculum development and strategies for classroom instruction,” the nominator’s submission reads.

“Finding level-appropriate learning materials for adult learners with interrupted formal education is a challenge that all ESL literacy instructors face.  More than just a website, the ESL Literacy Network is a place for literacy practitioners to connect, share ideas and learn from the expertise that has been amassed at Bow Valley College.”

The content provided on the website is based on years of classroom experience at the college combined with research and feedback from ESL literacy practitioners locally, provincially, nationally and internationally.  The website recognizes that ESL literacy programs are diverse and serve different learner populations in both urban and rural contexts and in part-time and full-time settings. The ESL Literacy Network is funded by the Government of Alberta.

“The ESL Literacy Network responds to the professional development needs of practitioners by providing a forum for ongoing professional growth and development,” said the NALD Board of Directors members who comprised the selection committee for the award competition.  “The innovative website has successfully leveraged technology and the Internet to provide more than an information hub – the website provides opportunities for extensive sharing of resources and in-depth discussion and reflection on classroom practice and research.”

“Educators will benefit from this user-friendly website, which provides a pedagogical approach for curriculum development, along with strategies and resources that support ESL literacy instruction. In this era of economic restraint, educators will appreciate the reproducible photo stories that can be downloaded and used in the classroom. The technical aspects of the ESL Literacy Network’s website – navigation, accessibility, aesthetic and visual appeal – are exemplary.”

The Indigo Love of Reading Foundation has selected 20 high-needs schools nationally to receive an annual Literacy Fund grant for the next three years. Since 2004, the Foundation has made a difference to over 29,000 students at schools nationally who have purchased nearly 900,000 books through the grant program.

The grants are vital now that some annual library budgets are as low as $2.81 per child – the equivalent of less than 1/3 of a book per student each year.  Canadians can’t get a cappuccino for what many Canadian provinces invest annually in books per student in some public schools and yet, with only a one per cent increase in literacy rates studies show we can add more than $18 billion to the Canadian economy, according to a Stats Canada study done on June 22, 2004 (Coulombe & Tremblay and Marchand, Department of Economics, University of Ottawa).

Recognizing the importance of investing in the futures of Canada’s children, the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation continues to respond to this funding challenge through the Literacy Fund grants. Based on the student population, each new Indigo Love of Reading Foundation Literacy grant recipient school will receive up to $176,000 over three years to help support literacy programs, purchase new books and dramatically improve literacy rates. Through the Literacy Fund grants, schools will be able to increase their literacy budgets to an average of $76 per child per year.

“My heart breaks for Canada’s public school children who are left uninspired by libraries with empty shelves or books that are decades old,” said Heather Reisman, Chair of the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation. “This is a special time of year for Love of Reading when we are able to help educators end Canada’s literacy crisis. Through the Literacy Fund we know we’ll be transforming the libraries and lives of students at another 20 schools.”

Ms. Reisman advised the recipients via conference call amid joyful tears and whoops of excitement. “You’ve just changed the lives of the children we serve every day,” exclaimed Principal Jill Maar, Armadale Public School, Markham, ON, where the literacy team persevered to receive funding after their third grant application attempt.

This year’s 20 new schools receiving Literacy Fund grants from the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation clearly demonstrated a passion and commitment to literacy as an important part of their curriculum, as well as a clear need to update their libraries to help them achieve their literacy goals. Recipient schools include: Read the rest of this entry »

Telefilm Canada is proud to support the 2011 Banff World Media Festival and nextMEDIA Banff, which run from June 12 to 15, 2011. Telefilm’s support focuses on two initiatives: the Banff World Media Festival’s International Co-Production Market at Banff and nextMEDIA’s Digital Business Market.

“These activities are directly aligned with our mission to stimulate demand for Canadian content through a variety of platforms, and provides us with an ideal opportunity to forge ties with international partners and to dialogue with experts,” said Sheila de La Varende, Telefilm Canada’s Director of National and International Business Development.

The International Co-Production Market at Banff (June 13 to 15, 2011) is designed to foster international opportunities for Canadian companies. With a dual focus on learning and connecting, the program aims to educate participants on opportunities in the international marketplace, facilitate one-on-one meetings and highlight successful projects.

The Digital Business Market (June 14 and 15, 2011) offers an ideal opportunity for professional development and networking. This initiative favours business opportunities within the industry and enables participants to meet one another in the aim of forging business ties.

The Banff World Media Festival is a major annual event focused on content creation and a forum where television and new-media professionals have an opportunity to explore new business and creative possibilities. nextMEDIA, one of a series of major conferences on digital media in Canada, brings together professionals involved in all areas of digital-media activity and enables them to network as well as obtain information about the creation, distribution and monetization of multiplatform content and about mobile applications.

The fourth annual International Conference on Interactive Digital Storytelling is coming to Vancouver this November 28th through December 1st, and the organizers have put out a call for Workshop Proposals, the deadline for which is July 15th. The Conference on Interactive Digital Storytelling (IDS) brings together researchers and practitioners from a wide variety of fields to share novel techniques, present recent results, and exchange new ideas. The venue has not yet been announced.

Enabled by the advent of interactive digital media, Interactive Digital Storytelling redefines the experience of narrative by allowing its audience to actively participate in the story. As such, IDS offers interesting new possibilities for games, training, and learning, through the enriching of virtual characters with intelligent behavior, the collaboration of humans and machines in the creative process, and the combination of narrative knowledge and user activity into novel, interactive artifacts.

Within the ICIDS 2011 framework, researchers and practitioners are invited to participate in affiliated workshops/tutorials, which will be held on Monday November 28, 2011.

Workshops

We invite proposals for practical, hands-on workshops from practitioners, professionals, and academics in the interactive digital storytelling field. We particularly welcome workshops which encourage interaction between participants, or provide insight into professional practices. All workshops must be conducted in English.

Proposal Format

All workshops proposals must consist of two documents: an extended abstract (two pages maximum in LNCS format) and an information sheet (plain text).  Proposals must be in English.

A) Extended Abstract: This component of the submission must follow the Lecture Notes in Computer Science format, and be a maximum of two pages long. Extended abstracts of accepted workshops will be included in the conference proceedings. Ensure that the following sections are included:

• Workshop objectives:
  • Think in terms of knowledge gain, expected outcome, and take away.
• Complete workshop description:
  • Elaborate on the foundations of the workshop and the main activities planned.
• References

B) Information Sheet: This document should contain more information about the organization and rationale of the workshop. No LNCS format is required for the information sheet (plain text is fine), but it should cover the following sections:

• Intended participants:
  • Who is your main intended audience? Mention what skills or background (if any) the attendees should have to fully benefit from your workshop.
  • If appropriate, indicate maximum number of participants that will be required to effectively deliver the workshop.
  • Include a 250-words call for participation that would be used for promoting the workshop.
• Workshop time:
  • Indicate how much time you would need to effectively deliver the workshop, from a minimum of 2 hours to a maximum of 6 hours. You can also think in terms of half or full day workshops. Include a tentative program with your activities.
• Materials needed:
  • Indicate if you would need supplies, equipment, AV, or specific furniture to run your workshop; we will do our best to obtain the supplies that you need.
• Workshop Organizers:
  • Include a short bio for each workshop organizer (250 words max), and their contact information.
• Any other relevant information:
  • As needed.

Submission Process:

Send both the extended abstract and the information sheet to Workshops Chair Veronica Zammitto.

Important Dates:

• Proposal Submission Deadline: July 15, 2011
• Notification of Acceptance: August 12, 2011
• Camera-ready Copies Due: September 12, 2011
• ICIDS 2011 Workshops:  November 28, 2011

Many computer, business and information experts argue that the internet is no longer just a huge repository of digital information, but that new programs, services and uses are transforming it into an intelligent and intuitive tool where “personalization” or “contextualization” of information is the primary product and goal. This new context-driven nature of the web is frequently referred to as “Web 3.0”.

In Web 3.0, developers and providers configure online technology, applications and services to automatically determine the content that is most relevant, and to organize and deliver it as personalized packets. But is this privacy-invasive? Are there information security issues? Or is personalization what the public wants and needs to effectively manage the overwhelming flow of data that is now an integral part of their daily lives? What are the opportunities with Web 3.0? What are the challenges? And is this the future we all want?

The 2011 Advisory Board of the Privacy and Information Security Conference invites the submission of papers or studies that directly address the opportunities and challenges raised by Web 3.0 digital technologies or applications. The Conference will take place on November 28th and 29th at The Westin Hotel in Ottawa.

Submission Deadline:

All entries must be received by midnight of July 30, 2011. Invited speakers will be notified by August 30, 2011.

Submission Process:

Submissions will be accepted electronically.

2011 Conference Suggested Topic Ideas:

• Smart Grids
• Social Media
• E-Health
• Mobility
• Net Neutrality
• Data Breaches
• Identity Management
• Cloud Computing
• Copyright/Digital Rights
• Behavioral Advertising
• Spyware
• E-Voting
• Workplace Surveillance
• Lawful Access
• Nanotechnology
• Cyber Security

Presentation Types:

Issue papers: An executive or management briefing on a prominent issue or aspect of information privacy or security.

Case studies: Descriptions of a given information privacy or security situation or incident, or research results. Names of organizations can be kept anonymous to maintain confidentiality if necessary.

New technology research: Results or developments in cutting edge research on new information privacy and security technologies.

Sociological/ Philosophical perspective: A candid and/or introspective look at the impacts of new technological developments on privacy, security, social consciousness, or social functioning.

Papers in the above categories may be selected for a 15 to 20 minute presentation as part of a specified panel session at the conference.