Centre for Immersive Technology and Creative | UTAR R&D Annual Report 2017

Centre for Immersive Technology and Creative (CITC)

Activities Report

Cultivating research skills: On-site research and visual data collection
Date: 20th Feb 2017 Venue: Sak Dato Temple, Broga, Negeri Sembilan The on-site research team Eight Game Design, Game Development and Digital Animation students were brought on a field trip on 20 February 2017 to conduct on-site research and visual data collection at the Sak Dato Temple located in Broga, Negeri Sembilan. “It is important that students experience and practise research and data collection during the pre-production process for their game and animation projects. Without them, concepts and ideas will never be turned into great products,” said Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI) Deputy Dean for Student Development and Industrial Training and Centre for Immersive Technology and Creativity (CITC) Chairperson Aloysius Yapp. The team was divided into two groups led by Yapp and FCI Department of Game Studies Lecturer Ang Kok Yew. They were tasked with taking photos and video logs of the temple and its surroundings. On-site lecturing and practical training Visual data collection in progress “During the trip, I realised how far field studies and research go towards making our work convincing and sincere,” said Game Development student Lim Houng Vern. He also said the temple and its surroundings gave him inspiration for his modelling work. Game Development student Law Huey Juan said the trip helped her to be more observant. “From the design of the temple to the roads and bridges, these details are very important in building my own model.” As a result, Law said she’ll always remember to conduct research before all her future projects. Some of the temple’s features The natural surroundings of the temple Forty-foot tall statue of the Monkey King The idea of the trip was conceived by a group of lecturers from CITC and the Department Game Studies and organised with assistance from Digital Animation and Web Based Solutions lecturers.“Besides learning about research, they also learned the importance of teamwork in completing their given tasks. The organising committee hopes that this effort will kick-start more on-site research and data collection trips so that more students can gain real practical experience,” said Yapp.

Cultivating research skills: On-site research and visual data collection

Date: 20th Feb 2017
Venue: Sak Dato Temple, Broga, Negeri Sembilan

The on-site research team

Eight Game Design, Game Development and Digital Animation students were brought on a field trip on 20 February 2017 to conduct on-site research and visual data collection at the Sak Dato Temple located in Broga, Negeri Sembilan.
“It is important that students experience and practise research and data collection during the pre-production process for their game and animation projects. Without them, concepts and ideas will never be turned into great products,” said Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI) Deputy Dean for Student Development and Industrial Training and Centre for Immersive Technology and Creativity (CITC) Chairperson Aloysius Yapp.
The team was divided into two groups led by Yapp and FCI Department of Game Studies Lecturer Ang Kok Yew. They were tasked with taking photos and video logs of the temple and its surroundings.

On-site lecturing and practical training

Visual data collection in progress

“During the trip, I realised how far field studies and research go towards making our work convincing and sincere,” said Game Development student Lim Houng Vern. He also said the temple and its surroundings gave him inspiration for his modelling work.
Game Development student Law Huey Juan said the trip helped her to be more observant. “From the design of the temple to the roads and bridges, these details are very important in building my own model.” As a result, Law said she’ll always remember to conduct research before all her future projects.

Some of the temple’s features

The natural surroundings of the temple

Forty-foot tall statue of the Monkey King

The idea of the trip was conceived by a group of lecturers from CITC and the Department Game Studies and organised with assistance from Digital Animation and Web Based Solutions lecturers.“Besides learning about research, they also learned the importance of teamwork in completing their given tasks. The organising committee hopes that this effort will kick-start more on-site research and data collection trips so that more students can gain real practical experience,” said Yapp.

Little Spotlight Animation Showcase
Collaboration with: Taiwan Information Design, Art, Technology, Education Association (Info DATE), and The Ministry of Culture, and Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) Date: 25th – 27th August 2017 Venue: UTAR Sungai Long Campus To provide a hands-on experience in animation for students, Little Spotlight animation showcase was organised at Sungai Long Campus from 25 August 2017 to 27 August 2017, with the collaboration of Taiwan Information Design, Art, Technology, Education Association (Info DATE), The Ministry of Culture, and Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Malaysia. The Little Spotlight was a first-of-its-kind event in Malaysia. It aimed to offer students who are passionate about animation a golden opportunity to discover more about this field and career opportunity in this industry. From left: Dr David, Jane, Prof Cheng, James, and Peggy at the opening ceremony Present at the opening ceremony were TECO Representative James Chang Chi-Ping, Culture Division Director Peggy Chou, Info DATE Board member Jane Yu Chuan Tseng, UTAR Institute of Management and Leadership Development Director cum Division of Community and International Networking Director Prof Dr Cheng Ming Yu, and Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI) DeanDr David Tneh Cheng Eng. Prof Cheng (left) and James delivering their speech “I am grateful to see that such international exchange enables UTAR to boost the university’s international collaboration, besides providing our students with a greater and richer learning experience. I believe our students and staff will be able to gain more exposure, in addition to learning from experts and peers in the field of animation. I look forward to more similar events in the future to provide a platform for the students to learn and unleash their talents, at the same time promoting international networking and collaborations with the industry,” said Prof Cheng in her opening speech. “It is an honour to have UTAR as our partner this year. The Republic of China, Taiwan is now actively promoting the New Southbound Policy and President Tsai Ing-Wen has targeted Malaysia as one of the key countries in the Southeast Asia. Taiwan’s relations with Malaysia have extended to the area of technology, tourism, education, culture and others, and Taiwan intends to strengthen a long and developed tie with this southeast country,” said James, with his belief that this event will enhance the bonding between Taiwan and Malaysia. Chang (left) and Ken sharing their views to the audience Also attended the event were National Taiwan Normal University’s Department of Graphic Art and Communication Assistant Professor Chang Yen-Jung and Lemon Sky Studios Founder and Co-director Ken Lai. They shared their experiences in the creation of animated productions and gave a far insight about the field of animation to the audience. “As a teacher, I concern about the animation industry and situation. I would like to share my observation about animation development in Taiwan with you all and talk about the history of Taiwan, as it used to be a major animation production-based in the world,” said Chang, after briefly introducing himself to the audience. He explained the different areas of animation, the trend and struggles that may incur in the animation world with some appropriate examples and suggestions. He also explained the applications of animation other than just for movies and games. “The development of animation in Malaysia grew very fast. Artists switch around from studio to studio. They learn something in the studio A and then bring what they’ve learnt from studio A to studio B. That’s how an industry work,” said Ken in his speech. He shared the story of how he started his career in Malaysia, and also described the working environment, culture and daily life of the Lemon Sky Studio to the audience. Top from left: Hsueh, Hassan, and Wang Bottom from left: Usamah, Huang, and Andrew Besides the exhibition, two-day workshops and a series of seminar session took place with the participation of prominent guests and with some interesting activities such as card game design, animatic storyboard design, the making of dough craft, animation character design and creative concept drawings. The prominent guests, from both Malaysia and Taiwan, included Independent Digital Animator Hsueh Yu-Ting, Pioneer Animation Maker, Film Historian and Critic Hassan Abd Muthalib, Engine Studios Director Wang Shih-Wei, Wau Animation Chief Agent Usamah Zaid, TurnRhino Original Design Studio Director Huang Yun-Sian, and Inspidea Sdn Bhd Managing Director Andrew Ooi. When asked, Diploma in Graphic and Multimedia students Aisyah Binti Abd Munir and Anis Anati Binti Mohd Faizal said, “We came here because we want to learn more about animation. At the same time, we want to get more exposure rather than just studying from the syllabus.” Prof Cheng (left) presenting a token of appreciation to James James (left) with Aloysius Yapp during the exhibition tour An exhibition by FCI Participants during the workshops

Little Spotlight Animation Showcase

Collaboration with: Taiwan Information Design, Art, Technology, Education Association (Info DATE), and The Ministry of Culture, and Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO)
Date: 25th – 27th August 2017
Venue: UTAR Sungai Long Campus

To provide a hands-on experience in animation for students, Little Spotlight animation showcase was organised at Sungai Long Campus from 25 August 2017 to 27 August 2017, with the collaboration of Taiwan Information Design, Art, Technology, Education Association (Info DATE), The Ministry of Culture, and Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Malaysia.
The Little Spotlight was a first-of-its-kind event in Malaysia. It aimed to offer students who are passionate about animation a golden opportunity to discover more about this field and career opportunity in this industry.

From left: Dr David, Jane, Prof Cheng, James, and Peggy at the opening ceremony

Present at the opening ceremony were TECO Representative James Chang Chi-Ping, Culture Division Director Peggy Chou, Info DATE Board member Jane Yu Chuan Tseng, UTAR Institute of Management and Leadership Development Director cum Division of Community and International Networking Director Prof Dr Cheng Ming Yu, and Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI) DeanDr David Tneh Cheng Eng.

Prof Cheng (left) and James delivering their speech
“I am grateful to see that such international exchange enables UTAR to boost the university’s international collaboration, besides providing our students with a greater and richer learning experience. I believe our students and staff will be able to gain more exposure, in addition to learning from experts and peers in the field of animation. I look forward to more similar events in the future to provide a platform for the students to learn and unleash their talents, at the same time promoting international networking and collaborations with the industry,” said Prof Cheng in her opening speech.
“It is an honour to have UTAR as our partner this year. The Republic of China, Taiwan is now actively promoting the New Southbound Policy and President Tsai Ing-Wen has targeted Malaysia as one of the key countries in the Southeast Asia. Taiwan’s relations with Malaysia have extended to the area of technology, tourism, education, culture and others, and Taiwan intends to strengthen a long and developed tie with this southeast country,” said James, with his belief that this event will enhance the bonding between Taiwan and Malaysia.

Chang (left) and Ken sharing their views to the audience
Also attended the event were National Taiwan Normal University’s Department of Graphic Art and Communication Assistant Professor Chang Yen-Jung and Lemon Sky Studios Founder and Co-director Ken Lai. They shared their experiences in the creation of animated productions and gave a far insight about the field of animation to the audience.
“As a teacher, I concern about the animation industry and situation. I would like to share my observation about animation development in Taiwan with you all and talk about the history of Taiwan, as it used to be a major animation production-based in the world,” said Chang, after briefly introducing himself to the audience. He explained the different areas of animation, the trend and struggles that may incur in the animation world with some appropriate examples and suggestions. He also explained the applications of animation other than just for movies and games.
“The development of animation in Malaysia grew very fast. Artists switch around from studio to studio. They learn something in the studio A and then bring what they’ve learnt from studio A to studio B. That’s how an industry work,” said Ken in his speech. He shared the story of how he started his career in Malaysia, and also described the working environment, culture and daily life of the Lemon Sky Studio to the audience.

Top from left: Hsueh, Hassan, and Wang
Bottom from left: Usamah, Huang, and Andrew
Besides the exhibition, two-day workshops and a series of seminar session took place with the participation of prominent guests and with some interesting activities such as card game design, animatic storyboard design, the making of dough craft, animation character design and creative concept drawings. The prominent guests, from both Malaysia and Taiwan, included Independent Digital Animator Hsueh Yu-Ting, Pioneer Animation Maker, Film Historian and Critic Hassan Abd Muthalib, Engine Studios Director Wang Shih-Wei, Wau Animation Chief Agent Usamah Zaid, TurnRhino Original Design Studio Director Huang Yun-Sian, and Inspidea Sdn Bhd Managing Director Andrew Ooi.
When asked, Diploma in Graphic and Multimedia students Aisyah Binti Abd Munir and Anis Anati Binti Mohd Faizal said, “We came here because we want to learn more about animation. At the same time, we want to get more exposure rather than just studying from the syllabus.”

Prof Cheng (left) presenting a token of appreciation to James

James (left) with Aloysius Yapp during the exhibition tour

An exhibition by FCI

Participants during the workshops

eGHI/ ICON workshop
Collaboration with: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and Digital Content Alliance Sdn Bhd (DCASB). 26th – 29th December 2017 Venue: UTAR, Sg Long Campus. Fourth from left: Dr Yapp with MDEC trainers and the participants UTAR Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI) conducted a workshop called “eRezeki Global High Income High Learning Institution (eGHI)/ (Intensive Courses)/ ICON” from 26 to 29 December 2017 at Sungai Long Campus. It collaborated with the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and Digital Content Alliance Sdn Bhd (DCASB). A group of FCI students from Game Design, Game Development, Digital Animation as well as Graphic Design and Multimedia was selected to join this workshop. It was led by Centre for Immersive Technology and Creativity Chairperson Dr Aloysius Yapp. Among the key tracks delivered during the training were “e-Portfolio Management”, “Online Payment Setups”, “Freelancer Onboarding 1, 2 & 3” and “Managing Scammers in Freelancer.com”. As for video and images, Glymt and 123RF were used respectively. Each session began with an introductory session, which entailed briefings on the digital platforms that were available for the participants, applied teachings on how to register and use the platforms as well as how to create an e-portfolio to participate in the digital platform. Also, some interesting activities were organised at the workshop such as LIVE Bidding and Contest. During the four-day workshop, the participants were trained theoretically and they gained hands-on experiences. The training provided the participants with a digital platform to incorporate what they have learnt into real life, generate income and add-on value to their talent and knowledge. The training was conducted by Master trainers from MDEC which was led by their Region Manager Mohamad Lamie bin Rosli. Dr Yapp said, “This workshop was very beneficial as it exposed the participants to the latest online secured platform and portal for eRezeki. We have learnt how to browse through these new platforms and have a better understanding of the workflow and the need of the market, digitally. The training also provided us with practical knowledge with many references to the digital and design industries. The trainers were also sincere and knowledgeable.” “I am delighted to see that the students are interested in the workshop. I also hope that this workshop had been an eye-opener for the students to explore this new way of generating income digitally. Hopefully, this collaboration will be continued next year,” said Senior Master Trainer Amierul Syafiq bin Md Azhar. According to the participants, Eugene Ch’ng Po Liang, Catherine Chua Khay Ting, Lau Yi Xin and Chin Pik Li, the workshop provided them with a good exploration to various digital work platforms that helped to earn supplementary income by applying skills such as logo and poster design. eGHI Programme/ ICON is a joint effort by the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia and MDEC to generate digital revenue consistently through eRezeki, with crowdsourcing methods—a method that enables works to be offered and delivered digitally. Facilitators introducing various digital platforms to participants

eGHI/ ICON workshop

Collaboration with: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and
Digital Content Alliance Sdn Bhd (DCASB).
26th – 29th December 2017
Venue: UTAR, Sg Long Campus.

Fourth from left: Dr Yapp with MDEC trainers and the participants

UTAR Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI) conducted a workshop called “eRezeki Global High Income High Learning Institution (eGHI)/ (Intensive Courses)/ ICON” from 26 to 29 December 2017 at Sungai Long Campus. It collaborated with the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and Digital Content Alliance Sdn Bhd (DCASB).

A group of FCI students from Game Design, Game Development, Digital Animation as well as Graphic Design and Multimedia was selected to join this workshop. It was led by Centre for Immersive Technology and Creativity Chairperson Dr Aloysius Yapp.

Among the key tracks delivered during the training were “e-Portfolio Management”, “Online Payment Setups”, “Freelancer Onboarding 1, 2 & 3” and “Managing Scammers in Freelancer.com”. As for video and images, Glymt and 123RF were used respectively. Each session began with an introductory session, which entailed briefings on the digital platforms that were available for the participants, applied teachings on how to register and use the platforms as well as how to create an e-portfolio to participate in the digital platform. Also, some interesting activities were organised at the workshop such as LIVE Bidding and Contest.
During the four-day workshop, the participants were trained theoretically and they gained hands-on experiences. The training provided the participants with a digital platform to incorporate what they have learnt into real life, generate income and add-on value to their talent and knowledge. The training was conducted by Master trainers from MDEC which was led by their Region Manager Mohamad Lamie bin Rosli.
Dr Yapp said, “This workshop was very beneficial as it exposed the participants to the latest online secured platform and portal for eRezeki. We have learnt how to browse through these new platforms and have a better understanding of the workflow and the need of the market, digitally. The training also provided us with practical knowledge with many references to the digital and design industries. The trainers were also sincere and knowledgeable.”

“I am delighted to see that the students are interested in the workshop. I also hope that this workshop had been an eye-opener for the students to explore this new way of generating income digitally. Hopefully, this collaboration will be continued next year,” said Senior Master Trainer Amierul Syafiq bin Md Azhar.
According to the participants, Eugene Ch’ng Po Liang, Catherine Chua Khay Ting, Lau Yi Xin and Chin Pik Li, the workshop provided them with a good exploration to various digital work platforms that helped to earn supplementary income by applying skills such as logo and poster design. eGHI Programme/ ICON is a joint effort by the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia and MDEC to generate digital revenue consistently through eRezeki, with crowdsourcing methods—a method that enables works to be offered and delivered digitally.

Facilitators introducing various digital platforms to participants