UNM Word & Image Screening this Friday

UNM's Word and Image class is one of our longest running classes for bringing a small movie production team together to plan, shoot and edit new student work.  Taking scripts from our Advanced Screenwriting class and featuring actors from the Theatre and Dance Acting for the Camera class, some of UNM's most talented young directors have been producing really good work for years.  Please join us this Friday evening at ARTS Lab for the latest edition with three new works and some of last year's faves...

Join us for an exciting premiere of original UNM student motion pictures Friday December 19, 2008 at 7PM in ARTS Lab, 131 Pine St, NE (One block west of University, half a block north of Central).

The Thing Inside – Producer: Franklin Whitman, Director: Brooks Rudolph, Writer: Mike Smith

Apples – Producer: Grant Roberts, Director/Writer: Taylor Lane

The Truth Within – Producer/Writer Paul Porter, Director Alyse Daunis

We start the evening with two past audience favorites:

The Life, Death, and Aptitude of Todd Winters – Producer: Charles D. Care II, Director: Matt Garcia, Writer: Gary Montry

Nightmares Outside of Dreams – Producer: Justin Pichardo, Director/Writer: Justin Golightly.

These works were produced in WORD & IMAGE (MA429), written in ADVANCED SCREENWRITING (MA 390), and feature actors from Acting for the Camera (THEA 326).

WHAT:     2008 Word & Image Student Work Screening
WHEN:    Friday, January 17th, 7PM - 9PM
WHERE:  UNM ARTS Lab, 131 Pine Street, NW (one block west of Unviersity, half a block north of Central)
COST:      Free


--
New Mexico's 5th Annual Media Industries Conference -- "MIX" -- is coming January 17th.  Sign up at http://www.nm-mix.org

Eric Renz-Whitmore, Program Coordinator
ARTS Lab
MSC04 2570
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131
office:  505-277-2253
cell:     505-227-1086
http://artslab.unm.edu

[Gfx-cafe] ECE/CS 412 Video Game Competition

The students of ECE/CS 412 Introduction to Computer Graphics have
been working on their final video game projects, which run on
the PC and the XBOX360. On Thursday, December 11 the public will
have the opportunity to come by and play their games at the second
annual video game development competition. If you are interested
in game development and want to see what our students were able
to achieve in only one month, come by and check it out!

The schedule is as follows:

Thursday, December 11, 2008
Atrium of ECE Building (Bldg#46 on campus map)

9am - 5pm Public Play Session: Your chance to play the games yourself!

5pm - 6:30pm Juding for game competition: Learn how the teams developed
their games

See you there!

LOCATION:
The ECE building is located on the campus of the University of
New Mexico (building 46 on the campus map). Directions can be found
here: http://www.ece.unm.edu/visitors/parking.htm

--
Pradeep Sen
Assistant Professor
Advanced Graphics Lab
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of New Mexico

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This Week: Animators, Game Developers & Tech Legislation

Lots of good things going on this week that we'd like you to know about.

AniMotion NM Holiday Meet-up (12/9)
IGDA Holiday Fundraiser (12/11)
NMITSA Tech Legislation Preview (12/12)

Animotion NM
Animotion NM is teaming up with the Art Center Design College Animation club for
a holiday potluck celebration with film, food and friends: entries from 2008 motionawards and motionfest will be shown and they're also planning a holiday exchange, so please bring books, software and/or hardware that's collecting dust to swap with others and the items they've brought

WHEN: Tuesday, December 9th from 7:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in the
WHERE: The Art Center Design College Auditorium ( Map ).
For more info, contact the Art Center Design College's Animation Club President, Jake Anthony Mirabal, at jayxter@gmail.com


IGDA Child's Play Charity Game Night

The Rio Grande International Game Developers Association chapter is glad to announce our 2nd annual holiday fundraiser for Child's Play (http://www.childsplaycharity.org/).

Since 2003, over 100,000 gamers worldwide have banded together through Child's Play, a community based charity grown and nurtured from the game culture and industry. Over two million dollars in donations of toys, games, books and cash for sick kids in children's hospitals across North America and the world have been collected since our inception.

Participants will have a chance to play different games of skill and chance to become tournament champion. All proceeds go to Child's Play.

WHEN: Thursday, December 11th, 6-9PM
WHERE: O'Niells Pub, 4310 Central SE Albuquerque
COST: $10 Donation
Info: More info at: http://groups.google.com/group/riogrande-igda?hl=en

Can't make it? You can also donate at http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/registry.html/?_&id=21EIN5ZGOFY3U

NMITSA Tech Legislation Preview
For our December luncheon, NMITSA heads north to hear what we can expect from the 2009 session of the New Mexico State Legislature. State Science and Technology Adviser Tom Bowles will provide an overview on state priorities and expected legislation. Also on the program, former ACI director (and current NMITSA board member) Sayuri Yamada will discuss how to work with the legislature and Santa Fe Complex Executive Director Don Begley will explain ways to become more engaged with the legislative actions affecting our businesses and our lives.

WHEN: Friday, December 12th 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM (Presentation begins at noon)
WHERE: Santa Fe Complex, 624 Agua Fria, Santa Fe.
Click here for directions
COST: $25 to NMITSA & Affiliate Members; $40 to other guests.
Please RSVP to Eric Renz-Whitmore (mailto:ewhitmore@gmail.com)
Or sign up and pay online here.

Following the luncheon session, we're also planning discussions of potential activities for a northern chapter of NMITSA -- and on digital media use of NMCAC, New Mexico's Supercomputer.

We hope you can join us!

[Gfx-cafe] GFX Cafe Seminar Friday Dec 5, 2008

Last GFX Café for the Fall semester!

GFX Café Seminar Friday December 5, 2008
12noon - 1:15pm, ECE 118

Food will be served

TITLE:
Recent ideas in visualization
by Joe Kniss, UNM Advanced Graphics Lab

ABSTRACT:
Joe will be talking about interesting developments in visualization.

BIO:
Joe Kniss is an assistant professor in Computer Science and a member
of the Advanced Graphics Lab.

LOCATION:
The ECE building is located on the campus of the University of
New Mexico (building 46 on the campus map). Directions can be found
here: http://www.ece.unm.edu/visitors/parking.htm

--
Pradeep Sen
Assistant Professor
Advanced Graphics Lab
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of New Mexico

_______________________________________________
gfx-cafe mailing list
gfx-cafe@lists.eece.unm.edu
http://lists.eece.unm.edu/mailman/listinfo/gfx-cafe

Tonight (Thursday) @ ARTS Lab:

The Alibi's Laura Marrich picks up on our new Experimental Music Series:

SPECTRES@ARTS Lab

Last month, UNM's ARTS Lab (short for Art, Research, Technology and Science) added an experimental music series to its already large petri dish of creative-science projects. The monthly SPECTRE SERIES is helmed by William Fowler Collins, a dude about noise-town. Its point, according to the event's blog, is to feature "composer-performers who work inside (and outside) the musical fields of electroacoustic, acousmatic, noise, and free improvisation."The second go-around is on Thursday, Dec. 4, when Martin Back and Father of the Flood perform. Doors open at 7, and the music starts at 7:30 p.m.You can find the ARTS Lab Garage at 131 Pine NE, just north of Central and one block west of University. Bring something to sit on and a $5 to $10 donation. Learn more about ARTS Lab at artslab.unm.edu and the SPECTRE music series at artslabmusic.blogspot.com.

Spectre Series This Thursday Night @ ARTS Lab

The SPECTRE SERIES Presents MARTIN BACK and FATHER OF THE FLOOD. Thanks to all who came out for the first show last week. You'll find photos below. We are lucky to have Martin Back and Father of the Flood with us for the upcoming December 4th show.

Doors are at 7:00 PM, with the first performance starting by 7:30 PM.

Where: ARTS Lab Garage - 131 Pine Street NE, Albuquerque, NM 87106, just north of Central and one block west of University
When: 7:00 PM
Cost: $5-10 sliding scale
Web: artslab.unm.edu/where.html

Artist Bios and more info at ARTS Lab's Experimental Music Blog.

GC Video & JVC @ ARTS Lab this Wednesday

Join us this Wednesday at ARTS Lab when GC Video, JVC and Broadcast Pix team up to show how their systems integrate quite nicely.

WHAT: GC Video Integrated Production System Presentation
WHEN: Wednesday, December 3 1-4PM
WHERE: UNM ARTS Lab, 131 Pine St, NE

IGDA December Event: Child's Play Fundraiser @ O'Niell's

The Rio Grande IGDA chapter is glad to announce our 2nd annual holiday
fundraiser for Child's Play (http://www.childsplaycharity.org/).

More details to come, but for now, save the date:

When:    Thursday, December 11th, 6-9PM
Where:   O'Niells Pub, 4310 Central SE Albuquerque

Since 2003, over 100,000 gamers worldwide have banded together through Child's Play, a community based charity grown and nurtured from the game culture and industry. Over two million dollars in donations of toys, games, books and cash for sick kids in children's hospitals across North America and the world have been collected since our inception.

For more information about "Child's Play" visit their website at: http://www.childsplaycharity.org/
Local donations benefit New Mexico's Children's Hospital.  Can't make it?  You can also donate at http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/registry.html/?_&id=21EIN5ZGOFY3U

Want to help out?  Please visit our group site if you'd like to volunteer or help sponsor.
We're at http://groups.google.com/group/riogrande-igda?hl=en

[Gfx-cafe] GFX Cafe Seminar Friday Nov 14, 2008

GFX Café Seminar Friday November 14, 2008
12noon - 1:15pm, ECE 118

Food will be served

TITLE:
Playing in the Sandbox: 3D table visualization and other interfaces
for community decision making
by Stephen Guerin, Redfish Group and Santa Fe Complex

ABSTRACT:
This talk will demonstrate recent work by Redfish Group at Santa Fe
Complex developing multiuser interactive 3D sandtable interfaces. The
sandtable is used by community stakeholders to visualize dynamic
geographic data streams and to interact with agent-based models of
urban systems.

An opensource structured light approach for scanning a 3D surface
using a projector and webcam will be shown. An alternative method will
also be demonstrated using the 3DV ZCam which will be available to the
game market in spring 2009. Lastly, I will discuss a preliminary
approach for mapping machine vision events in camera coordinates to
projected images on non-planar surfaces.

This talk will include a broad invitation to individuals to come play
at sfComplex and collaborate on interesting projects.

BIO:
Stephen Guerin is President of RedfishGroup <http://www.redfish.com>,
a R&D consultancy applying the emerging science of complex adaptive
systems. His work centers on visualization, modeling and the design of
self-organizing systems. He is the founder of Santa Fe Complex
<http://www.sfcomplex.org>, a non-profit project workspace that
fosters connections in technology, science and art. He lectures on
agent-based modeling and visualization as a faculty member of Santa Fe
Institute's Complex Systems Summer School.

Stephen lives in Santa Fe with his wife, Alison, and two young sons.

LOCATION:
The ECE building is located on the campus of the University of
New Mexico (building 46 on the campus map). Directions can be found
here: http://www.ece.unm.edu/visitors/parking.htm

--
Pradeep Sen
Assistant Professor
Advanced Graphics Lab
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of New Mexico

_______________________________________________
gfx-cafe mailing list
gfx-cafe@lists.eece.unm.edu
http://lists.eece.unm.edu/mailman/listinfo/gfx-cafe

New local UX Group Meet-up Next Thursday

Building our local networks and connections between them is, we believe, a key part of growing our local creative media community. And this one is particularly fun -- please check it out.

=======================================

USER EXPERIENCE (UX) SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP -- IxDA LOCAL PRELIMINARY MEETING

=======================================

Are you an avid reader of IxDA mail list? Or do you design the behavior of digital products, websites, applications and software? Or are you an Interaction Designer, User Experience Designer or Information Architect? Or do you call yourself something else like Usability Engineer or UI Designer? Maybe you don't have a fancy title, but are totally into user experience and interaction design?
If so join us for the inaugural meet-up of the IxDA New Mexico Local Group.

We're meeting at Savoy Bar and Grill at 10601 Montgomery Blvd NE in Albuquerque (we'll be in the bar) for an initial meet and greet at 5:30pm on November 19th.

Come meet with other UX Professionals to chat about all things UX and to discuss building a local IxDA community here in New Mexico.

The IxDA (Interaction Designers Association) is a member-supported organization committed to serving the needs of the international interaction design community. With more than 5,000 members since 2004 IxDA hosts a vibrant online community. To find out more about IxDA go to: www.ixda.org

For more information about the IxDA New Mexico Local Group contact
kevin at clearwired dot com.

[Gfx-cafe] GFX Cafe Seminar Friday Nov 7, 2008

GFX Café Seminar Friday November 7, 2008
12noon, ECE 118

Food will be served

TITLE:
SIGGRAPH @ UNM
Performance Capture from Video

ABSTRACT:

Details in mesh animations are difficult to generate but easy to observe.
In this GFX Café, we take a look at recent work presented at this year's
SIGGRAPH conference on capturing mesh animations from video streams.
Specifically, we will show the presentations for the following three
papers:

- Articulated Mesh Animation from Multi-view Silhouettes
by Daniel Vlasic, Ilya Baran (Massachusetts Institute of Technology),
Wojciech Matusik (Adobe Systems Inc.), Jovan Popovic (Massachusetts
Institute of Technology)

- Performance Capture from Sparse Multi-view Video
by Edilson de Aguiar, Carsten Stoll (Max-Planck-Institut Informatik),
Christian Theobalt (Stanford University), Naveed Ahmed, Hans-Peter
Seidel (Max-Planck-Institut Informatik), Sebastian Thrun (Stanford
University)

- Markerless Garment Capture
by Derek Bradley, Tiberiu Popa, Alla Sheffer, Wolfgang Heidrich
(University of British Columbia), Tamy Boubekeur (TU Berlin)

LOCATION:
The ECE building is located on the campus of the University of
New Mexico (building 46 on the campus map). Directions can be found
here: http://www.ece.unm.edu/visitors/parking.htm

Camera Mapping at Next AniMotion NM

AniMotion NM meeting November 11th at 7pm at the ARTS lab located at 131 Pine St. (northwest corner of University and Central)

UNM Instructor Brad Swardson will be presenting a lecture on camera mapping at the 11/11 AniMotion NM meeting. Brad holds a bachelor's degree in art studio with a concentration in electronic arts from UNM and is completing his master's degree in broadcast design and motion graphics through the Savannah College of Art and Design. He works as a Maya generalist for Boeing and teaches 3d animation and visual effects at UNM.

Description:

In a small production group the number of artists and time allowed for production may be limited, but the expectations of the customer are not. As such, we must develop techniques and work flows that allow us to create the best visuals in the least amount of time. This must be done while keeping the final product competitive with groups that are much larger and have more resources.

One of the many time saving techniques available to artists is called "Camera Mapping." This technique is widely used in film and television, in conjunction with digital matte painting, to bring non-existent environments to life without having to generate the entire environment in 3D. This presentation will include examples and walkthroughs of this technique being used in Maya and After Effects for use in both environmental creation and live set extensions.

Where: ARTS Lab Garage - 131 Pine Street NE, Albuquerque
(just north of Central and one block west of University)
When: 7:00 PM Tuesday, 11 November
Cost: FREE
Web: http://artslab.unm.edu/where.html

Check out "THE SPECTRE SERIES: Experimental Music Series Thurs. November 06"

This Thursday at ARTS Lab...

ARTS Lab presents the first in a series of experimental music concerts featuring composer-performers who work inside (and outside) the musical fields of Electroacoustic, Acousmatic, Noise, and Free improvisation.

The first evening features a collaborative performance by Raven Chacon and William Fowler Collins and a set by Luperci. Doors are at 7:00 PM, with the first performance starting by 7:30 PM.

Where: ARTS Lab Garage - 131 Pine Street NE, Albuquerque, NM 87106, just north of Central and one block west of University
When: 7:00 PM
Cost: $5-10 sliding scale
Web: http://artslab.unm.edu/where.html

For more information, visit: http://artslabmusic.blogspot.com/

The Excitement: an Event Update

Hi everyone...

Been a little while, but after this Tuesday's excitement (Please VOTE, if you haven't already), there are a few things we're involved with that we'd like to share some information on...

Thursday, November 6th
ARTS Lab Experimental Music Series

ARTS Lab presents the first in a series of experimental music concerts featuring composer-performers who work inside (and outside) the musical fields of Electroacoustic, Acousmatic, Noise, and Free improvisation.

The first evening features a collaborative performance by Raven Chacon and William Fowler Collins and a set by Luperci. Doors are at 7:00 PM, with the first performance starting by 7:30 PM.

Where: ARTS Lab Garage - 131 Pine Street NE, Albuquerque, NM 87106, just north of Central and one block west of University
When: 7:00 PM
Cost: $5-10 sliding scale
Web: http://artslabmusic.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, November 11th
AniMotion NM

ARTS Lab hosts this monthly meeting of the local animation and visual effects community, with guest speaker Brad Swardson. More info to come...

Where: ARTS Lab Garage - 131 Pine Street NE, Albuquerque, NM 87106, just north of Central and one block west of University
When: 8:00 PM
Cost: always FREE
Web: http://www.nmaug.com/

Tuesday, November 11th
Rio Grande IGDA: An Evening with Novint Technologies
This month the Rio Grande IGDA proudly presents an evening featuring Novint Technologies, creators of the critically-acclaimed Novint Falcon.

Born out of haptics (3D touch) research conducted at Sandia National Laboratories, Novint Technologies has made it possible to simulate realistic sensations of touch through a low-cost consumer device. Recently, Novint Technologies has been a buzz in the game development world, with major publishers such as Electronic Arts and Valve signing up to have the Falcon integrated into their respective titles. Along with these titles, Novint has self-published several games featuring the Falcon, and just released the Pistol Grip addition to the Falcon, giving a new experience to the first person shooter genre. Representatives will be on hand discussing the latest developments at Novint and have plenty of Falcons on hand for attendees to try.

From the company website:

"Novint Technologies, Inc. (NVNT) is the pioneer of 3D touch for consumer computing. Novint is developing a new category of products that add high-fidelity interactive three-dimensional touch to computing, beginning with our introduction of the award-winning Novint Falcon. The Novint Falcon is a first-of-a-kind game controller that lets you experience realistic 3D touch and force feedback when playing touch-enabled games."

What: Rio Grande IGDA Meeting: An Evening with Novint Technologies
When: November 11, 2008. 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm (meeting starts promptly at
7:00).
Where: Arts Center Design College (5000 Marble Ave NE)
Cost: Free!
Web: http://groups.google.com/group/riogrande-igda?hl=en


Thursday, November 13th
NMITSA Tech Lunch: IT Projects as a Catalyst for Change

For our November luncheon, NMITSA is pleased to welcome Dr. Chelle Stringer in a preview of her talk to the Ninth International Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Change in Organisations:

IT Projects as a Catalyst for Organizational Changes: The Other Side of IT Projects

There is a synergistic relationship between information technology projects and organizational change. Organizations decide to implement new technology in order to achieve something they are not currently achieving or to continue performing in a changing environment. The technology implementation usually initiates and often requires changes to policies and procedures, job duties and responsibilities, communication channels, and use of terminology. Additionally, the technology design should address the organizational need which prompted the technology project in the first place.

This presentation will outline five hurdles that IT projects face and strategies for overcoming each hurdle. These strategies have been proven in both private and public sector organizations.

WHEN: Thursday, November 13th 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM (Presentation begins at noon)

WHERE: Technology Integration Group (TIG) 2731 Broadway St NE Suite F

COST: $25 for members of NMITSA Organizations (1 free each); $40 for other guests

WEB: http://www.nmitsa.org

Also coming up with NMITSA (full disclosure, I'm a board member), we're pleased to kick off both our Santa Fe meeting series and relationship with the Santa Fe Complex with our December event:

Friday, December 12th
NMITSA Launches Santa Fe event series with Tech Legislation Preview

As part of NMITSA's efforts to better serve our Northern New Mexico members, we're launching a quarterly luncheon in Santa Fe at the Santa Fe Complex Friday December 12th with our annual Tech Legislation Preview.

From the NM Supercomputer to broadband access and other technology initiatives, the 2009 NM legislative session will shape our tech business landscape for years to come. Featuring State Science and Technology Advisor Tom Bowles, Economic Development Department Director for Science and Technology Stephan Helgeson, and others in technology development, this special NMITSA membership luncheon will provide attendees with a rundown of legislation to watch and the players involved.

WHEN: Friday, December 12th 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM (Presentation begins at noon)

WHERE: Santa Fe Complex, 624 Agua Fria, Santa Fe

COST: $25 for members of NMITSA Organizations (1 free each); $40 for other guests

WEB: http://www.nmitsa.org


And... in January, the NM Media Industries Conference returns on Saturday, January 17th as "MIX" at UNM's Student Union Building. Please save the date.

[Gfx-cafe] GFX Cafe Seminar Friday Oct 31, 2008

GFX Café Seminar Friday October 31, 2008
12noon - 1:15pm, Centennial Engineering Center Auditorium
**note change of venue**

TITLE:
Case Studies In Producing Computer Generated Elements For Animated Films
by Tad Gielow, Sony Pictures Imageworks

ABSTRACT:
Creating and integrating computer generated elements into animation
films takes a lot of planning, communication, collaboration, and
sometimes luck. Join Tad Gielow, a 25 year Animation Industry veteran of
13 feature films and 4 short subjects, as he shares some of the processes
and techniques used in the making of the animated films: "The Great Mouse
Detective", "Oliver And Company", "Aladdin", "Mulan", "The Iron
Giant", "Osmosis Jones", and "Monster House".

BIO:
Tad Gielow has been in the Animation industry for the past 25 years
providing technical expertise and leadership on such feature films as
"The Great Mouse Detective", "Oliver And Company", "Aladdin",
"Pocahontas", "Mulan", "The Iron Giant", "Osmosis Jones", "Monster
House", and "Beowulf". Whether integrating 3D elements with 2D drawings,
supervising animators and technical directors, or architecting software
solutions, his knowledge of the artistic and technical aspects of
producing animated films keeps growing. He is currently a Lead Engineer
in the Pipeline/Software Group at Sony Pictures Imageworks.

Along with his day job, Tad is also an avid nature photographer and has
just come from exploring the fall colors of Canyon De Chelly, Arizona.

LOCATION:
For this special presentation, we are moving the GFX Café to the
auditorium (room 1041) of the new Centennial Engineering Center (CEC).
This is the brand new building located near building #117 in block H-2
of the standard campus map. Other diagrams of this part of campus
that include the new building can be found here:

http://www.soe.unm.edu/PDFs/UNM_Map_2008.pdf

and here:
http://www.soe.unm.edu/PDFs/2008_UNM_Engineering_Map.pdf

Note that the CEC is not the same as the Centennial Engineering Library.

--
Pradeep Sen
Assistant Professor
Advanced Graphics Lab
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of New Mexico

_______________________________________________
gfx-cafe mailing list
gfx-cafe@lists.eece.unm.edu
http://lists.eece.unm.edu/mailman/listinfo/gfx-cafe

[Gfx-cafe] GFX Cafe Seminar Friday Oct 24, 2008

GFX Café Seminar Friday October 24, 2008
12noon - 1:15pm, ECE 118

Food will be served

TITLE:
SIGGRAPH @ UNM
Intel's Larrabee and the Future of GPU's
by Larry Seiler and Tom Forsyth, Intel
Kayvon Fatahalian, Stanford University

ABSTRACT:
The rapidly-changing world of graphics processors (GPU's) was shaken
earlier this year with Intel's announcement of the Larrabee processor,
a custom, parallel multi-core processor built from Pentium x86 cores
designed specifically for graphics applications. In this talk, we
will introduce the fundamentals of graphics hardware and explain how
things are rapidly evolving in this industry. Developments like Intel's
Larrabee propose to increase the flexibility of graphics architectures
and could significantly impact other parallel applications such as
scientific simulation and financial analysis. The talks presented
during this special session of SIGGRAPH @ UNM were first given at
SIGGRAPH 2008. We will replay both Larry Seiler's Larrabee paper talk
as well as a series of presentations from the Beyond Programmable Shading
course at SIGGRAPH.

LOCATION:
The ECE building is located on the campus of the University of
New Mexico (building 46 on the campus map). Directions can be found
here: http://www.ece.unm.edu/visitors/parking.htm

--
Pradeep Sen
Assistant Professor
Advanced Graphics Lab
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of New Mexico

_______________________________________________
gfx-cafe mailing list
gfx-cafe@lists.eece.unm.edu
http://lists.eece.unm.edu/mailman/listinfo/gfx-cafe

Alvin Curran @ ARTS Lab Monday (and on KUNM Tonight!)

The ARTS Lab and UNM are glad to help welcome renowned composer Alvin Curran back to New Mexico. He'll be talking with Christopher Shultis' students tomorrow in our space (details below) and talking with Chris and artist in residence Jack Ox tonight on KUNM (during "Other Voices, Other Sounds" from 9-11:00 PM, 89.9 FM).

More info on Alvin and his visit below...

American composer Alvin Curran co-founded the group Musica Elettronica Viva and has been active with solo performances, international radio concerts and large-scale sound installations since the 1960s. Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Curran studied composition under Ron Nelson at Brown University, and afterward with Elliott Carter at Yale. After completing his studies -- which also included piano and trombone -- in 1963, Curran went with Carter to Berlin, where he remained for a year before moving to Rome. In 1966, Curran co-founded the free music collective Musica Elettronica Viva with Richard Teitelbaum and Frederic Rzewski. In the '70s, Curran focused on solo performances that utilized keyboards, taped sounds, voice and more; over the years, he has also performed on sampler and electronics. The '80s found Curran creating large-scale environmental works in quarries, ports, caverns, on lakes, etc. During this time, he also staged radio concerts of three and six ensembles performing simultaneously from various parts of Europe. From 1990 on, Curran has occasionally collaborated on sound installations with artist Melissa Gould. He has also worked with dance companies and composed for avant-garde theater in Rome. Curran's instrumental works have been commissioned by Kronos Quartet, Aki Takahashi, Rova, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra and more. Some of his awards include those from Ars Acoustica International, NPR and the NEA. He taught briefly at the Academia Nazionale d'Arts, and starting in the mid-90s served as guest professor at California's Mills College. Recordings of Curran's works appear on several labels, including CRI, New Albion and Tzadik.

Alvin Curran Residency at UNM
October 19-21

October 19: Guest on Other Voices, Other Sounds, Christopher Shultis, host
KUNM 89.9 FM 9:00-11:00 PM
October 20: Lecture, Artslab Lecture Hall, 6:00 PM
Dinner following at Kelly's
October 21: Masterclass with UNM Composition Students
11:00-12:30 FAC 1108

Breaking Bad at the Kimo 10/25

Image via Wikipedia

Exciting news...

I'm glad to share info about the return of the SAG Conversations Series with several cast members from the Emmy Award-Winning "Breaking Bad" in Albuquerque's historic Kimo Theater. It's sure ot be a big crowd, so RSVP soon!

The SAG Foundation and Screen Actors Guild invite you to attend:

CONVERSATIONS WITH BREAKING BAD

This event is open to the public. RSVP required.

(323) 549-6668 or via email to Conversations@sag.org

SAG members may RSVP directly on the Foundation website, www.sagfoundation.org
Saturday, October 25th

1pm

KiMo Theatre
423 Central Ave NW
Albuquerque, NM 87102

Join us for an afternoon with the amazing cast of AMC's Breaking Bad as they share their experiences in the industry and talk about filming in New Mexico.

Panel includes:
Bryan Cranston
Anna Gunn
Aaron Paul
Dean Norris
Betsy Brandt
RJ Mitte
Steven Quezada

Mix and mingle with the cast immediately following the event at
(the) One Up (Club), 301 Central Ave NE (upstairs)

Event sponsored by the City of Albuquerque. “We are thrilled to be the host city for
Breaking Bad”, said Mayor Martin J. Chavez. “Congratulations to Bryan Cranston for
his recent Emmy win, and thanks for bringing this event to Albuquerque.”

DomeFest 2008 here in Albuquerque this Tuesday

DomeFest 2008
Taking a quick break from Motion 08 (which currently has healthy crowds here at ARTS Lab for Green Screen Production with Alex Lindsay  and Fulldome Production with our own Hue Walker) to mention that DomeFest returns to Albuquerque tomorrow night. The international juried show for fulldome work premiered to capacity crowds at Chicago's famed Adler Planetarium -- and has since been seen in cities around the world.

We're proud to share DomeFest with our friends at home, with the support of the City of Albuquerque and in association with Motion08. 
Public showings run at 6:30 PM and 8:30 PM; $10 suggested donation.
More info at: http://domefest.org/

What: DomeFest 2008
When: Tuesday, October 14th at 6:30 and 8:30 PM
Cost: $10 Suggested Donation
Where: NM Museum of Natural History and Science
1801 Mountain Road, NW
See Map Here

NM Media Tonight on KNME
Also in town this week, the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer is doing an overview on economic development, politics, and the issues affecting the state in this election year, in the Anglo, Hispanic, and Native American communities, including visits with the team at Albuquerque Studios and the Emmy-award winning production of Breaking Bad which shoots there.

In New Mexico The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer airs on KNME-TV, Channel 5 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Outside New Mexico please check local listings for air times in your area.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/

[Gfx-cafe] GFX Cafe Seminar Friday Oct 10, 2008

GFX Café Seminar Friday October 10, 2008
12noon - 1:15pm, ECE 237 **note change of room**

Food will be served

TITLE:
Improved Force-directed Graph Drawing in 3D for Large Graphs
by Takeshi Hakamata, UNM HPC

ABSTRACT:
Graph drawing is a way to layout a graph nicely in two or three
dimensions. Among many kinds of graph drawing techniques,
force-directed algorithms have drawn huge attention for research because
of its simplicity and quality of final layouts. The most popular model
of the force-directed algorithm is a spring-mass system supplemented by
global repulsive forces. However, the inherent O(n^2) pairwise
calculation to obtain global repulsive forces is the bottleneck and the
weakness of the algorithm, therefore many improvements have been
proposed.

This talk will present an improved force-directed drawing for large
undirected graphs in 3D using a potential-field-based approximation
algorithm to calculate global repulsive forces in linear time. Given a
graph G=(V,E) with a vertex set V and an edge set E, the repulsive force
calculation can be done in sub-linear time for |V|>10^4. This allows us
to develop a practical 3D force-directed drawing algorithm for large
graphs. Empirical results show that our implementation is faster than
other known 2D-based force-directed algorithms.

BIO:
Takeshi Hakamata is a PhD candidate in Visualization Laboratory at the
UNM Center for High Performance Computing. He received a B.S. in
Information Science from Tokyo Denki University and a M.S. in Computer
Science from the University of New Mexico. He also worked at SGI Japan
for four years.

LOCATION:
The ECE building is located on the campus of the University of
New Mexico (building 46 on the campus map). Directions can be found
here: http://www.ece.unm.edu/visitors/parking.htm

--
Pradeep Sen
Assistant Professor
Advanced Graphics Lab
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of New Mexico

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Faculty position open in UNM Electronic Arts

One of the more interesting and exciting areas of study and work here at UNM is our Electronic Arts program in the College of Fine Arts.  The faculty and staff there are already really cool -- and now they're expanding.  If you're interested -- or know of another cool person who might be -- please get in touch.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF AVAILABLE POSITION

 

The University of New Mexico

College of Fine Arts

Department of Art and Art History

Assistant Professor of Electronic Arts 

 

POSITION:  Assistant Professor of Electronic Arts.  Full time, probationary appointment leading to a tenure decision.  Service and committee work expected. 

SALARY:  $46,000

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:  M.F.A. degree.  University-level teaching experience beyond the terminal degree.  Significant digital/electronic time-based media art background.  Active professional creative practice.  Exhibition record beyond the local level.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:  Experience in one or more the following areas: programming for internet-based art, animation, motion capture, computational media, interactive performance, locative and wearable computing, or immersive media.  Fluency in conceptual and historical frameworks within contemporary new media practice.  Commitment to teaching both undergraduate and graduate courses and creating a critical and experimental teaching environment.  Experience in curricular development, mentoring students, and service on graduate committees.

APPLICATION DEADLINE:  All application materials must be received by December 5, 2008.

APPOINTMENT DATE:  August 17, 2009

APPLICATION:  Signed letter of application; artist statement; statement of teaching philosophy; CV.  Documentation of artwork; 3 sample syllabi for undergraduate/
graduate courses.  Names and complete addresses (mailing, telephone, fax, and e-mail) of three recommenders. SASE if you want materials returned.

Format for submitting artwork: Digital portfolio only to include either CDs/DVDs/URLs or a combination thereof. For CDs/DVDs, samples should total approximately 10 minutes.

Send to:  Chair, Electronic Arts Search Committee, Department of Art and Art History, MSC04 2560, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico  87131-0001.  Phone 505.277.5861.  Fax 505.277.5955.

For further information please visit:
http://finearts.unm.edu, 
http://www.unm.edu/~artdept2
http://electronicarts.unm.edu
http://artslab.unm.edu

The Department of Art and Art History is one of four departments in the College of Fine Arts, which also includes the Departments of Music, Theater and Dance, and Cinematic Arts.  Areas of concentration in the department include Arts and Ecology, Electronic Arts, Sculpture, Photography, Painting and Drawing, Printmaking, Ceramics, and Art History. The department offers the B.A.F.A., B.F.A., M.A., M.F.A., and Ph.D. degrees.

Electronic Arts is dedicated to the education of students, training them as electronic/digital media artists that employ new and emerging technologies and encourages experimentation with new ideas, forms, and models for realizing and presenting innovative artwork.  The curriculum combines history, theory, and practice in electronic arts/digital media and nurtures interdisciplinary investigation and learning.  Electronic Arts faculty and students are actively involved with the Arts, Research, Technology and Science Laboratory [ARTS Lab], a dynamic university-wide center for interdisciplinary research and education.

The University of New Mexico is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, a city of 600,000 on the Rio Grande at an altitude of 5,200 feet.  Albuquerque's many cultures give the city a fascinating mix of history, arts, cuisine, languages, and values.  The University of New Mexico is a large, diverse state university with a faculty of over 3,000 serving approximately 32,700 students.

UNM's confidentiality policy ("Recruitment and Hiring," Policy #3210), which includes information about public disclosure of documents submitted by applicants, is located at http://www.unm.edu/~ubppm.

 

THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY/AFFIRMATIVE ACTION EMPLOYER AND EDUCATOR.

--
NMITSA is now accepting nominations for the fourth annual Tech Excellence Awards.  More info at http://www.nmitsa.org/

Eric Renz-Whitmore, Program Coordinator
ARTS Lab
MSC04 2570
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131
505-277-2253
http://artslab.unm.edu

YDI Mi Voz Auditions for Fall 2008 Session

YDI Mi Voz Auditions for Fall 2008 Session

After-school program for Middle School kids teaches documentary filmmaking

On Wednesday, October 8th and Thursday, October 9th Youth Development Inc.'s (YDI) Mi Voz program, which teaches above-the-line filmmaking skills to middle school age kids, will hold auditions for its Fall 2008 session.  The auditions will be held in the YDI Mi Voz office at 100 Roma NW, Albuquerque, New Mexico from 3:30-5:30 each day.

This will be the 4th 16-week session for YDI Mi Voz.  Each session has a theme: previous themes were "Through Their Eyes," about the life of the middle schooler from their perspective, "interGenerations," where students documented stories of senior citizens, and "All-Stars," which was an advanced skills session that taught experimental filmmaking.  The Fall 2008 session's theme is "The Zia's Heart" and is about New Mexican art and artists.

"The Zia's Heart" is a series of short documentaries that will be produced, directed, shot, edited and delivered by a group of middle school age students in Albuquerque.  Each short documentary will spotlight a different art form produced by a local artist.  Students will shadow chosen artists in different fields and document their creativity, their craft, and how it ties in to identifying Albuquerque and New Mexico as unique in the arts scene.

New Mexico has the highest share of fine artists in the Nation - with it
s rich and diverse population, New Mexico is home to over 40,000 artists making over 11 different kinds of art, including cultural art.  In 2005, the number of minority (Hispanic, Native American, and Asian American) artists grew to 15%, according to the National Endowment of the Arts' Artists in the Workforce Study: 1990 – 2005. 

According to the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs report On Fertile Ground: New Mexico Counts on Culture, The Arts industry generates at least $2.5 billion per year, making 20% of total state tourism money per year.

New Mexico has a unique history of traditional arts and crafts, such as Native American jewelry & pottery, and "santeros" (who make wooden carvings of Catholic saints), "New arts" produced by New Mexico's youth, such as digital art, graffiti art, guerilla art, and music in newer genres, have gone largely unnoticed.  Albuquerque's deep artistic legacy has been overshadowed by arts movements in Santa Fe and Taos.

"The Zia's Heart" will be produced by a new selection of students under the YDI Mi Voz banner.  YDI Mi Voz is a safe and free after school program for middle school age young people where they learn all aspects of visual storytelling using digital video.  The purposes of the program are:

1.       It contributes to building a "native workforce" for New Mexico's blossoming film industry, givi
ng young people a head start in using industry standard tools and techniques. 

2.       The finished products will expose New Mexico's art and artists to a broader audience, letting its audience know the value of what has become such a large part of our city and state identities. 

3.       By providing Mi Voz classes under the YDI banner, students and their families have access to the wide range of social services YDI provides.

We are actively seeking out participants for this session.  During the 16-week after school course, students will be taught producing, directing, shooting, and editing using top of the line digital video equipment.  The course is free to participants, but interested students must audition first to gauge their interest and dedication.   14 students will be selected.  Classes are taught by Marcos Baca and Brian Beeler, working professionals in the area of digital art and filmmaking.  4 youth instructors who have participated previously will be at every class to mentor new students, as well as guest lectures by UNM Cinematic Arts Professors and other independent producers.

For more information contact YDI Media Relations Manager Marcos Baca at (505)212-7442 or mbaca@ydinm.org

[Gfx-cafe] GFX Cafe Seminar Friday Oct 3, 2008

GFX Café Seminar Friday October 3, 2008
12noon - 1:15pm, ECE 118

Food will be served

TITLE:
Restoration of Images Captured With Combined Conventional
and Plenoptic Camera
by Viktor Chekh, UNM Advanced Graphics Lab

ABSTRACT:
Plenoptic cameras can capture the 4-D light field in a
single image, but the spatial resolution of any 2-D
projection is much smaller comparing to ordinary
conventional cameras. The "ideal" camera should have all
features of plenoptic camera including digital refocusing,
and moving the observer, as well as high spatial resolution
in a wide range of focal depth. In addition, the camera
should be as light and handle as any standard camera. We
describe a conception of the novel combined camera, which
has features of both conventional and plenoptic cameras.
We formulate the restoration problem as the ill-posed
problem with matrix perturbation. We also provide
algorithms of the data processing and estimate the
resolution of synthetic photographs.

BIO:
Viktor Chekh is a graduate student in the Advanced
Graphics Lab with interests in new plenoptic camera
technologies and segmentation and registration algorithms.
He has a Masters Degree from the National Technical
University of Ukraine.

LOCATION:
The ECE building is located on the campus of the University of
New Mexico (building 46 on the campus map). Directions can be found
here: http://www.ece.unm.edu/visitors/parking.htm

--
Pradeep Sen
Assistant Professor
Advanced Graphics Lab
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of New Mexico

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DomeFest 2008 Comes Home: October 14th

The ARTS Lab produced juried show for fulldome work premiered to capacity crowds at Chicago's famed Adler Planetarium -- and has since been seen in cities around the world.

We're proud to share DomeFest with our friends at home, with the support of the City of Albuquerque and in association with Motion08 with public showings at 6:30 PM and 8:30 PM; $10 suggested donation.
More info at: http://domefest.org/

What: DomeFest 2008
When: Tuesday, October 14th at 6:30 and 8:30 PM
Cost: $10 Suggested Donation
Where: NM Museum of Natural History and Science
1801 Mountain Road, NW
See Map Here

NMITSA 10/7: The ROI of Leadership

NMITSA Membership October Luncheon Features Author Michael Shenkman
"The ROI of Leadership" Subject Of Talk

[Albuquerque, NM, SEP 30, 2008] ­ The New Mexico Information Technology anand Software Association (NMITSA), the state¹s largest advocacy group for IT &
software related business, announced today that author and mentorship
evangelist Michael Shenkman will be the featured speaker at the October
membership luncheon on Thursday October 9th, 11:30 am to 1:00 pm at the
Flying Star Café downtown on 723 Silver SW.


What are the qualities that distinguish a great company from a good one;
that lead to continued success, year after year?  Michael Shenkman, author
of "Leader Mentoring" and "The Arch and the Path: The Life of Leading
Greatly" encourages business to consider returns from the "immediate,
day-to-day, across-the-board impacts" of leadership when looking at their
bottom line:


"Every company today competes increasingly on its value proposition and the
ways it is able to differentiate from the competition and away from
commoditization. Value gets created in the development of products and
services, in the right hiring and development of talent, in strategic market
positioning to name a few of the big ones," Shenkman said.

"But the real value that feeds into all of these is what leaders bring to
the enterprise with their compelling visions, and their ability to integrate
disparate ideas and solutions into competitive advantages, and their energy
in driving cross-functional innovation," he said.

The event is free to NMITSA Members, $25.00 to other guests.

# # #

About Michael Shenkman:

Michael Shenkman, Ph.D., is founder and president of the Arch of Leadership,
a leader mentoring company. This article was adapted from his new book, The
Arch and The Path, the Life of Leading Greatly (Sandia Heights Media, 2004)
For more information, visit the Arch of Leadership Website.

About NMITSA:

The New Mexico Information Technology and Software Association (NMITSA) is
poised to become a nationally-recognized information technology and software
industry advocacy organization by providing focused, value-added services
and initiatives to both industry and associate members. While programming is
targeted to commercial enterprises that operate in the software, computer
hardware, internet-related and telecommunications sectors, New Mexico's
entire business community stands to significantly benefit from NMITSA's
organizational presence.

Through the delivery of focused programming to the business communities
operating within its purview, NMITSA is strengthening corporate
competitiveness and linkages, enhancing New Mexico's high-tech workforce,
and assisting in the development of core competencies among its members.

NMITSA firmly believes that only a full-time regional information technology
association (RITA) can raise the competitiveness and presence of New
Mexico's IT sector relative to other competitor regions throughout the
United States and the world.

New Mexico possesses unique information technology resources, and there is
an urgent need to leverage these assets for commercial success. As the
state's only regional information technology association, NMITSA is now
positioned to lead and unify the information technology sectors, and to
advance the agendas of private sector-oriented IT enterprises. In
collaboration with other generalist business organizations, NMITSA will
serve the IT business community and promote business-friendly public
policies for its members.

To achieve these goals, it is imperative that the association attracts
investment from both its industry and associate members. In so using these
funds to broaden its professional services and formalize its role in the
state, the association will enhance the national competitiveness of New
Mexico and stimulate sectors of our economy that are increasingly important.

NMITSA is the regional member in the Council of Regional Information
Technology Associations <http://www.crita.org/> . CRITA is the world's
largest IT and Tech-oriented association with more than 20,000 member
companies in more than 50 member associations.

NMITSA is also affiliated with the Information Technology Association of
America <http://www.itaa.org/> .

SCAD @ Motion08: Free Workshops for Students!

Motion 08/motionfest has some really exciting programming coming our way -- now including the folks from Savannah College of Art and Design. Here are a few details...

CHECK US OUT! 

Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) at motionfest 08 

We’re teaching 4 ‘real world’ classes so you can experience what it’s like to study at our college.

it’s free* 

Sunday: October 12 

Albuquerque Convention Center (Lower Level) 

12:00 PM until 6:00 PM 

motionfest is a full day of animation sessions and events for everyone - from the pros to elementary school kids and is free to the public. 

We are teaching 4 classes in animation, motion graphics, or a related digital media content area. Each class uses actual lessons from our curriculum. Sessions start at noon in our classroom in the lower level of the Albuquerque Convention Center. Make sure to arrive early to get the best seat. Seating is limited and you must have your ticket* to be admitted.

Be sure to catch one of the special screenings of the animated feature: Romeo and Juliet: Sealed With A Kiss. Director and animator, Phil Nibbelink will be on hand to answer questions, sign autographs and draw for the audience.

Bring your friends and family and make it a day.

*Tickets are required for all sessions and events. Get yours online at:
http://motionfest.eventbrite.com

[Gfx-cafe] GFX Cafe Seminar Friday Sept 26, 2008

GFX Café Seminar Friday September 26, 2008
12noon - 1:15pm, ECE 118

Food will be served

TITLE:
Forty Years of Graphics APIs
by Ed Angel, UNM ARTS Lab, Professor Emeritus of CS, ECE, and MA

ABSTRACT:
For the last fifteen years, OpenGL has been the standard application
programmer's interface (API) to access the capabilities of graphics
systems for students and researchers. The recent release of OpenGL 3.0
promises to lead to major changes in how we write graphics applications,
how we teach computer graphics, and in what we expect in future APIs.

In this talk, I will review how the standard APIs (OpenGL, DirectX,
Renderman) have evolved and examine many of the underlying issues
including:

- What makes a good API?
- Does the hardware drive the API or visa versa?
- What is the influence of the CS community on the API?
- Why is OpenGL 3.0 such a radical change?

BIO:
Edward Angel is Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at the University
of New Mexico and Director of the Art, Research, Technology and Science
Laboratory (ARTS Lab). Until July 2007, he was Professor of Computer
Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Media Arts at UNM and
Director of both the ARTS Lab and the Arts Technology Center in the
College of Fine Arts. Professor Angel is the first UNM Presidential
Teaching Fellow. He received B.S. from the California Institute of
Technology in 1964 and a Ph.D. from the University of Southern California
in 1968. He has held academic positions at the University of California at
Berkeley, the University of Southern California, and the University of
Rochester. Professor Angel came to UNM in 1978. He was Associate Chair
of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (1982-85) and
Chair of the Computer Science Department (1985-88). He has held visiting
positions at the Lund Institute of Technology (Sweden), the Indian
Institute of Science Bangalore India (Senior Fulbright Lecturer),
University College London and Imperial College (London). He has also held
a variety of joint appointments ranging from Biomathematics (USC) to
Obstetrics and Gynecology (Rochester) to Electrical and Computer
Engineering and Media Arts (UNM).

His present research interests are in computer graphics and scientific
visualization. He has supported graduate students working in volume
visualization, virtual reality, and masssively parallel computing.
His main teaching interests have been in Computer Graphics. The fifth
edition of his textbook Interactive Computer Graphics was published in
Spring, 2008. The third edition of his book, the OpenGL Primer, was
published in 2006.

Professor Angel was the Principal Investigator of the NSF funded Digital
Pueblo Project which combined Arts and Technology to promote economic
development among the communities in New Mexico through collaborative
graphics and animation projects. Recently, Professor Angel led a group
of UNM faculty who were awarded $3M from the State of New Mexico to build
the Art, Research, Technology, and Science Laboratory (ARTS Lab) at UNM.
The ARTS Lab is a unique interdiscplinary center with educational,
research, and economic development activities that span the range of
digital media. He also serves on the Governor's Council on Film and Media
Industries.

--
Pradeep Sen
Assistant Professor
Advanced Graphics Lab
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of New Mexico

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Ecotone Physical Theatre: Quarantine @ Q-Staff

From Kevin Paul at Ecotone...

Greetings.  This is just a reminder that Ecotone Physical Theatre will
perform "Quarantine" this Thursday and Friday, September 25-26 at
7:30pm at Q-Staff Theatre.  The theatre is located at 4819 Central Ave
SE.  Tickets are $10 general admission and $5 for students.  Seating
is limited, reservations are recommended, and can be made by calling
255-2182.

Quarantine is a work of fully improvised dance theatre and music.  All
performances are unique.  It's a work in Ecotone's signature style,
that is to say, full of slapstick dramedy, impish physicality, angular
sonority and no small bit of absurdity.

The company is comprised of dancers, musicans and actors, specifically
Donna Jewell, Kevin Paul, Rufus Cohen, Mary Margaret Moore, Lisa
Nevada, Jessica Searer, Susan Skeele and Bill Clark, as well as
costume designer Stacia Smith.  Lighting design is by Gabriel Paul.

Hope you can make it.  Thanks for your consideration.

--
Kevin

Poofy's Den of Lust (and stuff): Sept 27 @ Orpheum

The inimitable Poofy du Vey returns to the local stage with some of her closest friends.

WHEN: Saturday, September 27th @ 9:00 PM
WHERE: Orpheum Art Space, 500 2nd Street, SW
$$$: $8 Students; $10 Adults
INFO: write poofy@courtneycunningham.com for tix and more information

Pajama Men are back at STOVE: 10/4 - 11/22

Pajama Men set a blazing fire of jokes at Stove.

Albuquerque’s beloved comedy duo Mark Chavez and Shenoah Allen will hit the stage every Saturday night, raising the roof with an improvised tornado of ha-ha. Featuring different local bands each week and an army of visual artists, Improvviso is sure to be a hot ticket. Based on audience suggestions, the amazing Pajama Men will create and destroy strange worlds populated by even stranger characters and bring free association to electric Kool-Aid levels, all in the comfort of a beer-serving urban art gallery.

What: Pajama Men and Friend(s) in IMPROVVISO
Live Improv Comedy and Tunes

When: Every Saturday night – October 4 thru November 22
Doors open at 8:30, Shows start at 9:00

Where: STOVE
114 Morningside NE
1 blk north of Central, west of Washington
(505) 232-0640 for reservations

$$$ $15 general $12 Stu/Sen

“One of the most dazzling displays of comedy theatre I’ve ever seen. It’s weird. And it’s wonderful.” Five Stars
London Times

“Allen and Chavez’s comic high energy recalls the edgy, manic talent of Robin Williams, but with more heart and whimsy.”
Chicago Sun-Times

“Shenoah Allen and Mark Chavez virtually paralyze the audience with laughter. Folks could be dying out there, unable to breathe between sobs of hilarity, and they would just keep going.”
Globe and Mail

“Whip-smart and able to turn on the thinnest of dimes, Allen and Chavez are improvisers’ improvisers. Actors’ actors. Comedians’ comedians.”
Chicago Tribune

Local Indie Premieres Sunday 9/21 at the Kimo

"Hide" to screen at "Legal Hawks" premiere this Sunday, Sept. 21

The latest Trifecta+ short film, Hide, written and directed by Scott Milder and starring Sequoia Adams Price and Ross Kelly, will hit the screen this Sunday, Sept. 21, at the KiMo Theater in downtown Albuquerque as part of the premiere of Legal Hawks, a new comedy pilot produced by A+1 Productions. Trifecta+ cinematographer Corey Weintraub was behind the camera for both projects, which were produced with help and crews from the Central New Mexico Community College Film Technician Training Program.

The event, which is being sponsored by the city of Albuquerque, will begin at 7 p.m. and is free of charge. Donations will go to help a local firefighter.

Original press release from A+#1 Productions:Local Filmmakers to Preview Independent Television Pilot

On September 21st, local Production Company A+#1 Productions will be previewing their independent television pilot "LEGAL HAWKS" at the historic KIMO theatre in downtown Albuquerque at 7pm.

The year is 1986 and a new television network called Fox is desperate for content. They approach the biggest hair band of the era, Von Holland, to do a weekly concert show. Von Holland decides instead to do a legal drama, and "Legal Hawks" the series is born.

"Legal Hawks" was written and directed by Josh Klein, and stars local actors Isaac Kappy and Ross Kelly. Also appearing in the show are Bill Sterchi, newcomer April Fox, Reuben Finkelstein, Shenoah Allen, Mark Chavez, David Kappy, and Victor Izay. The pilot was shot by local cinematographer Corey Weintraub. "Legal Hawks" was produced by Isaac Kappy.

Students from CNM's film training program worked alongside industry professionals during the making of the pilot. Much of the talent in front of and behind the camera are responsible for the 2007 National Film Challenge winning short film "Time Cougars".

The screening will be held on September 21st at 7pm at the KIMO theatre is free of charge and open to the public. However, the filmmakers will be using the event as a fundraiser for a Farmington fireman whose family is grappling with financial duress after medical complications that led to the loss of their unborn child.

Also showing at the screening will be the premiere of "Hide," the latest short film from Trifecta+ Entertainment, directed by Scott Milder, and "Time Assassins," a short film directed by Reuben Finkelstein.

[Gfx-cafe] GFX Cafe Seminar Friday Sept 19, 2008

GFX Café Seminar Friday September 19, 2008
12noon, ECE 118

Food will be served

TITLE:
Computer Vision in Archaeology: Recent Case Studies
by Kevin Cain
Director, Institute for Study and Integration of Graphical
Heritage Techniques

ABSTRACT:

Computing for archaeology is a study in contrasts: graphics and vision
techniques are still somewhat exotic, but interesting (and difficult)
problems abound! In this talk, we'll present a snapshot of current
needs in archaeology, framing the discussion with results from the past
seven seasons of field work at the memorial temple of Ramses II in
Egypt. Topics include: 3d representations of ancient sites, large
scale orthomosaics of inscribed wall surfaces, lighting capture,
relighting, and site reconstructions. We'll also take a look at efforts
to present archaeological results in novel environments, including a new
NSF 'full dome' film project /Maya Skies/ and a large digital projection
installation in Egypt's Valley of the Kings.

BIO:
Aiming to cross-pollinate computer vision with traditional
archaeological techniques, Kevin Cain heads INSIGHT. Mr. Cain has
organized digital cultural heritage projects in collaboration with a
diverse group of organizations, including: the Louvre Museum (Paris),
the American Research Center in Egypt (Cairo), the Institute for
Nautical Archaeology (Alexandria), the Egyptian Antiquities Dept. of the
British Museum (London), the Metropolitan Museum's Egyptian Art Dept.
(New York), the American Museum of Natural History (New York), the
Egyptian Antiquities Information Service (Cairo), and the US National
Parks Service.

Kevin's current interests include computational imaging, stereo vision and
applications of computer graphics & computer vision in archaeology. As
director of INSIGHT, Kevin has initiated a strong partnership with the
non-profit CyArk digital cultural heritage network. Kevin has also
maintained affiliate status with the Electronic Cultural Atlas Initiative
(ECAI) at the University of California at Berkeley. When possible, Kevin
has worked on outside projects such as laser scanning for Star Wars
Episode II, realtime graphics programming for the startup Photon Factory,
and architectural visualization for unsprawl.net. Kevin served as
Director of Computer Arts at the Academy of Art University in San
Francisco in the late 1900s when the program grew into the largest visual
computing program in the United States, with more than 1500 students.
Mr. Cain was responsible for developing the curriculum for both
undergraduate and graduate students. Mr. Cain has also served as Chair
for yearly New Media Colloquia (1995 -- 2005) where lecturers have
included: Brenda Laurel, Joseph Lambert, Nick Philip, Chris Landreth,
Charles Ostman, Jon Tojek, and Paul Debevec.

--
Pradeep Sen
Assistant Professor
Advanced Graphics Lab
Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of New Mexico

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Double Vision @ ARTS Lab & CCA

Where: ARTS Lab, University of New Mexico 131 Pine St. NE, Albuquerque, NM
When: 09.18.08 - 09.19.08 [Thurs - Fri]
Cost: $8 students / $12 general
Info: http://artslab.unm.edu/

DOUBLE VISION, a San Francisco based intermedia performance group, will be performing at ARTS Lab at the University of New Mexico. The group will be showcasing a hybrid of contemporary dance, live video, and electronic music. Among the pieces to be shown is Big Timber, CHOP! CHOP! a performance that integrates live sound and animation to tell the tale of two characters, Conuton Valve and Coon Dog, who journey from New York to California in the quest for gold and the Plasma Cloud. The night will also include the dance work Thicket which features six dancers shifting through sonic electroacoustic landscapes, inspired by the perturbations of cockroaches traversing rough terrains. The total event will embrace the cutting edge in art, technology, and performance.

DOUBLE VISION's 4x60 Tour involves 10 performers, 5000 miles and 5 weeks of experimental and contemporary events that blend dance, video, sound, and installation. Nearly five years old, the company has performed in Bay Area venues such as the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, ODC Theater and the notorious Autonomous Mutant Festival.

ARTS Lab at the University of New Mexico is an interdisciplinary center for developing creative relationships connection Art, Science, and Technology in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

DOUBLE VISION Artists: Blaine Bookey, Sean Clute, Amanda Crawford, David Holton, Pauline Jennings, Wendy Marinaccio, Jennifer Mellor, Cecelia Peterson, Rebecca Wilson.

Following their shows here, Double Vision can also be seen in Santa Fe the next evening:

What: Oscillate/Osculate
Where: CCA, 1050 Old Pecos Trail, Santa Fe, NM
When: 09.20.08 [Saturday ongoing] 5PM
Cost: $7 [Members], $10 [Non-Members]
Info: http://www.ccasantafe.org/

DOUBLE VISION, a San Francisco based intermedia performance group, will be performing at Oscillate/Osculate, a monthly experimental art series at the Center for Contemporary Arts, Santa Fe. The group will be producing a night of ongoing performances including interactive dance, multiple live video projections, installations, and electronic music. Attendees can freely roam amongst the performers whose actions are at times subject to the rules of Conway’s cellular automata algorithm known as the “Game of Life.” The result is a high-energy, chaotic, and immersive multimedia happening. DOUBLE VISION will also be collaborating with local Santa Fe artists in a guerrilla media installation fun house.

DOUBLE VISION's 4x60 Tour involves 10 performers, 5000 miles and 5 weeks of experimental events that blend dance, video, sound, and installation. Nearly five years old, the company has performed in Bay Area venues such as the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, ODC Theater and the notorious Autonomous Mutant Festival.

Oscillate/Osculate is CCA’s monthly performance series committed to presenting thought provoking performances of music, performance art, new media, sound and video art, poetry, and categories of art which are yet to be described, by emerging and established artists living and working in the Southwest.

DOUBLE VISION Artists: Blaine Bookey, Sean Clute, Amanda Crawford, Jessica Gomula, David Holton, Pauline Jennings, Chris Kruzic, Wendy Marinaccio, Jennifer Mellor, Cecelia Peterson, Rebecca Wilson