Michael Scroggins

Most Recent Affiliation(s):

• California Institute of the Arts, School of Film and Video

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Bio:

• SIGGRAPH 2003

  Michael Scroggins, Director, Computer Animation Labs, CalArts, School of Film/Video, is a pioneer in the field of performance animation. The utilization of realtime visual instruments in the creation of visual compositions of absolute color, shape, and texture has been at the heart of his work for over 25 years. His absolute animation works have been widely exhibited internationally including screenings at the Centre George Pompidou, Paris; Union of Filmmakers, Moscow; Seibu Ginza, Tokyo; and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles. His most recent work investigates the potential of gesture capture in creating realtime absolute animation in immersive VR.

  “As an educator I work with students who develop and produce individual 3D CG animation projects. These projects may be intended to meet the requirements of an MFA thesis in the Program in Experimental Animation or the annual project requirements of the Program in Character Animation. Since these are individual artist-based and not team-based projects the need for the development of good communication skills arises in working with faculty advisors and other students in ongoing critique sessions. These skills become very valuable to those students who enter the animation industry where collaboration and working within a hierarchical structure of creative responsibility is the dominant process of production. Students need to be prepared to take –and later to give– direction with clear communication and understanding of their respective roles and responsibilities.”