Gnomon has announced the speaker line-up for Gnomon Live Australia 2017, a specially curated program of CG masterclasses and live demos. Taking place in Melbourne and Sydney in March and April, the two-city, two-weekend event will give local artists a chance to meet industry legends like Avatar, creature designer, Neville Page and Star Citizen, art director, Josh Herman, along with leading Australian studios Animal Logic, Plastic Wax and PlaySide Studios among others.
First held in Melbourne in 2016, Gnomon Live is returning to Australia, with attendees of the inaugural event describing its combination of technical insights and networking opportunities as “truly one of the most valuable learning experiences” and “something the Australian industry has been needing for a long time”, as well as “an opportunity to talk to industry veterans and obtain crucial information (for career development).”
This year’s show will again give attendees a chance to see industry techniques first hand, as artists share their experiences working on feature films, AAA and mobile games, commercials, and VR and AR experiences. Speakers include Neville Page who has worked as creature designer for movies including Avatar and Star Trek; character art director at Cloud Imperium Games, Josh Herman; environment artist at Naughty Dog, Brian Recktenwald; entertainment art director at Magnopus, Alex Nice; director and visual effects artist Miguel Ortega, who recently completed work on the acclaimed short The Ningyo; and Tran Ma, a character and environment artist whose credits include Transformers: Dark of the Moon and Alice in Wonderland.
The masterclass program is curated by Alex Alvarez who is the founder and president of Gnomon. Described by Fast Company magazine as a visionary who has helped change the face of computer graphics education, Alvarez is responsible for creating both leading international training institution Gnomon – School of Visual Effects, Games and Animation, named School of the Year at the 2014 and 2015 CG Student Awards, and The Gnomon Workshop, which provides professional online training for CG artists.
“We are excited to be returning to Australia in 2017 for Gnomon Live, with a new group of extremely talented industry artists,” said Alvarez. “This is a unique opportunity that we are all grateful for, and hope to bring some valuable knowledge, techniques and inspiration to the students and professionals who join us. With such a range of experience amongst the presenters – characters, creatures, environments, film and games – I can’t wait to also learn from my peers, while meeting new like-minded artists from the other side of the globe.”
The international speaker line-up will be complemented by a series of panel discussions highlighting opportunities and challenges for artists in the Australian CG industry. Firms taking part include Animal Logic, responsible for the animation and visual effects of the Oscar and BAFTA Award-winning films Happy Feet and The LEGO Movie; Plastic Wax, creators of cinematics for AAA games franchises including Gears of War and Civilization; and mobile games developer PlaySide Studios; alongside the Australian studios of international visual effects companies Luma Pictures, Method Studios, and Firemonkeys, the Melbourne studio of international video game developer Electronic Arts.
The panel discussions are curated by Australian nonprofit organisation ‘The Design Foundation’, responsible for the noted international Ideas on Design program of events. “As Gnomon begins its 20th year with the announcement of its first bachelor of fine arts, it is a great opportunity to be able to share more of what Gnomon has learned over the past two decades, evolving alongside the phenomenal advancements in the computer graphics industry,” said The Design Foundation, director and manager, Kristin McCourtie . “Working closely with leading studios, their considered development over this time has resulted in training programs that position Gnomon as the benchmark for computer graphics education in the world. Gnomon Live Australia is brought to our region with support and endorsement from government, philanthropic, and industry partners. We are pleased to be working with Collie Print Trust, Screen NSW, Film Victoria, Wacom, Chaos Group, and media partners ArtStation and CG Channel.”
Gnomon Live Australia takes place at Melbourne’s Abbotsford Convent on 31 March to 2 April, 2017 and at Sydney’s Factory Theatre on 7 to 9 April, 2017.
