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Conference brings in industry
leaders
By Ann Dougherty
Staff
Writer
The Purdue International Center for Entertainment
Technology held its first conference at Purdue this October.
The conference, which will be held annually, brings
together students, faculty and leaders of the entertainment technology
industry in order to investigate new and exciting possibilities for
entertainment. The center's purpose is to further the research and cooperation
between art and technology in the use of entertainment, such as in film,
video, live performances and theme parks.
"(The goal) is basically to provide a mechanism
so the University and students can become more directly involved in
the industry," said Dennis Short, professor of technical graphics
and director of the center.
The center can help Purdue continue in its long
tradition of being involved in entertainment technology. Purdue alumni
have won academy, Grammy and Emmy awards and have also been employed
by Lukas Arts, Digital Domain and Disney.
Speakers from all over the country attended the
conference, including many who are leaders in the entertainment technology
industry. Some of them include Tom Kennedy, executive producer of VFX,
which did the visual effects for both "Mummy" movies and "The Matrix;"
Todd Williamson, vice president for research and development at Zaxel
Corp., which did the slow-motion video for the last Super Bowl; and
Ginger Ward, who is the leader in hardware design for graphics and media
at Sun and a Purdue graduate.
"It was a very dynamic conference," said
David Sigman, professor and head of visual and performing arts. "The
variety of speakers and the information they provided was very exciting
and dynamic."
The conference as a whole was successful, according
to Short. "It went better than I could have ever expected,"
he said.
In the future, the center hopes to get students
more involved.
"It’s something we’re looking for
down the road, looking into bringing industry to campus and the potential
of research areas they could be involved with here," Sigman said.
One direct result of the conference will be the
possible placement of students with the gaming division of Lukas Arts,
said Short.
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