SIGGRAPH Cancels In-Person Conference For Second Year In A Row, Shifting To Virtual Format

SIGGRAPH has cancelled the in-person version of its 2021 conference, which was originally scheduled to take place August 1-5 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

The computer graphics and interactive techniques conference released a statement saying it would not be possible to hold an event next year “given continued uncertainty surrounding the future of COVID-19 and worldwide travel precautions.” Instead SIGGRAPH will move forward as a virtual-only event. Updated dates for the conference next summer will be announced shortly.

SIGGRAPH also canceled its 2020 edition, which was to have been held in Washington, D.C. It marked the first time in the conference’s 47-year history that its in-person edition had been cancelled. The last time the conference held an in-person edition, in 2019, it attracted nearly 19,000 attendees.

SIGGRAPH joins a growing list of animation-related events in the United States that are opting to move virtual in 2021 as the pandemic shows no signs of abatement and continues to kill tens of thousands of Americans every month. Other events that have canceled in-person versions next year include Kidscreen Summit, the Annie Awards, and GLAS Animation Festival.

Photo credit: Jim Hagarty ©2018 ACM SIGGRAPH.