Vicon Standard 2020

VICON STANDARD 2020
VFX
USING MOTION
CAPTURE TO CREATE
PERFECT
COMMUNICATION
Drexel University is preparing students
for the VFX applications of the future
The Animation Capture & Effects Lab (ACE-Lab) at
Drexel University’s Westphal College of Media Arts
& Design looks, on the surface, like a training program
for VFX-led entertainment industries.
Drexel, however, prepares students, not only for visual effects
applications that exist right now, but also those that are coming up
five or even 10 years down the line.
ACE-Lab resides in Drexel’s Digital Media Department, founded by
Dr. Glenn Muschio, a doctor of anthropology. That anthropological
influence is part of the lab’s DNA. “From the very beginning, it was
all about communication,” says Nick Jushchyshyn, Program Director
for VR & Immersive Media. “It just happens to be that entertainment
is a really fun form of communication. But leveraging these
technologies in teaching venues, in training and other experiences,
has always been an integral component to our programs.”
The department’s news page is full of headlines about alumni
working on high-profile projects such as Star Wars and Frozen II, but
the ACE-Lab takes its students down less well-trodden paths too. In
fact, it’s had a wide-ranging mission from the outset.
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