The events circuit is pretty full these days, with attendees knowing pretty much what to expect from any given conference. However, there is a handful of events that are breaking the traditional barriers of the stage, where a speaker will talk at a group, not with them.
View conference, in Torino, Italy is one of these; recognising that in our ever more engaged world, having an expert talk through a slideshow isn't enough.
With this in mind, Maria Elena Gutierrez, the organiser, has put a large emphasis on attendees getting up close and personal with the experts, speakers and tutors. You will find the event has a range of hands on workshops and mixers, where you can rub shoulders with your heroes, network to land your dream job, or simply to learn a few tips and tricks to improve your skills.
That doesn't mean there's a lack of cutting-edge content, though. You'll find all manner of discussions and talks on the latest developments in VFX, games and VR, the latter of which has a special focus this year.
There will be Paul Debevec's insights into how the future of VR and digital humans might work, Boabab Studio's Eric Darnell will be talking about narrative storytelling in VR, an area that still needs a lot of development, to define the syntax and help directors, as well as viewers, understand the best way to move the plot forward.
There will also be talks on the latest films, from Guardians of the Galaxy 2, War for Planet of the Apes and many more.
If you are looking to make a career change or move, then head to the job fair, for meetings, advice and to talk to the recruiters.
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All in all, the 18th annual View Conference is set to be the biggest and best yet.
Rob Redman is the editor of ImagineFX magazines and former editor of 3D World magazine. Rob has a background in animation, visual effects, and photography.
