GRAPHQUON 2026

McGill University, October 23-25, 2026

Location Burnside Hall 1B45 (use north entrance)
Registration Deadline October 7th, 2026

About

GRAPHQUON is the annual Quebec–Ontario pre-SIGGRAPH workshop, organized by and for computer graphics research labs across the region. The workshop provides students and researchers a friendly, constructively critical venue to present ongoing work and prospective submissions, receive valuable feedback prior to paper deadlines, and build lasting cross-institutional connections.

The date of the workshop is earlier than previous editions to permit more time for participants to improve their work before submission based on the feedback received. Social activities will be planned for those arriving in the afternoon or evening of Friday October 23. The workshop will likewise end early afternoon of Sunday, October 25, to accommodate travel plans.

Program

The schedule is possibly not yet final (please check again for changes). Note that titles and abstracts of student presentations will not be posted so as to preserve anonymity for works that are about to be submitted. This year's format follows tradition. Each session nominally consist of 4 talks, with each being a maximum of 10 minutes. Talks will be given back to back without any questions, with remainder of the session consisting of a structured discussion format that ensures that all presenters receive valuable feedback.

Friday, October 23

For those who arrive early Friday, you are welcome to attend the School of Computer Science Colloquium. The available extra seating is quite limited given the number of computer science students who will be attending, so an RSVP is requested from anyone who would like to attend.

15:30-16:30

School of Computer Science Colloquium - McConnell Engineering 11

Not Dead Yet? Is Physics-based Animation the Key to World Models?

David I. W. Levin, University of Toronto

RSVP (space is limited). The talk will be followed by a small reception in ENGMC 100N.

Friday Evening

Networking

Participants arriving early on Friday are encouraged to coordinate through the GRAPHQUON Slack channel. See your registration confirmation email for the link to join the Slack.

Saturday, October 24
8:30

Coffee, Registration - Burnside Hall 1B45 (use north entrance)

9:00-10:30

Opening Remarks - Paul Kry, McGill University

Geometry - Chaired by Wylliam Cantin Charawi, École de technologie supérieure

Jing Ren, Université de Montréal
Chenbo Jiang, McGill University
David Cha, University of Waterloo
Ashwath Shetty, Université de Montréal
Federico Ezequiel Barallobres, Université de Montréal

10:30-11:00

Break

11:00-12:30

Animation- Chaired by Yuanyuan Tao, McGill University

Yuze Fu, University of Toronto
Alex Tian Ye Xu, University of Toronto
William Dracopoulos, McGill University
Zhecheng Wang, University of Toronto - Honourable mention

12:30-13:30

Lunch - Provided

13:30-15:00

Rendering - Chaired by Sophie Rao, University of Waterloo

Matthew Georgy, Université de Montréal
Euan Hughes, École de technologie supérieure
Justin Benoist, École de technologie supérieure
Christophe Bolduc, Université Laval

15:00-15:30

Break

15:30-16:30

GRAPHQUON Keynote

Bridging the Entertainment-Research Gap

J.P. Lewis, Electronic Arts

16:30-18:00

Milton Coop Bar via Kondiaronk Belvedere - Map

Optional longer walk up mountain (150 m elevation gain) to the lookout for sunset and a view of the city, weather permitting.

18:00

Dinner, Drinks, and Networking - Milton Coop Bar

A casual social evening to continue talking with fellow researchers and industry professionals. There will be a networking activity, with details to be revealed at the venue.

Sunday, October 25
9:00-9:30

Coffee - Burnside Hall 1B45 (use north entrance)

9:30-10:30

GRAPHQUON Panel - Moderated by Eitan Grinspun, University of Toronto

If you were starting a graphics PhD today…

Yingying Wang, McMaster University
Damien Rioux-Lavoie, Ubisoft La Forge
Gemma Canet Tarrés, McGill University MILA
David I. W. Levin, University of Toronto

10:30-11:00

Break

11:00-12:30

Animation - Chaired by Yixin Lok, University of Toronto

Matheus M. Cavazotti, École de technologie supérieure - Honourable mention
Yanbo Cheng, McMaster University
Chang Yue and Mengfei Liu, University of Toronto - Best presentation
Tianshu Kuai, Université de Montréal
Kinjal Parikh, University of Toronto

Closing Remarks - Paul Kry

Best Presentation Recognition

12:30

Networking and Departures

Informal lunch plans to be made by anyone who does not have an early departure.

Keynote

In this keynote presentation, J.P. Lewis will describe research in the entertainment industry and examine the gap between research promise and industry adoption.

Lewis is principal research scientist at Electronic Arts and an unpaid adjunct professor in the deep learning group at Victoria University in New Zealand. Previously he worked at NVIDIA and Google research, and in visual effects, where he received credits on a few movies including Avatar and The Matrix sequels. He has published at SIGGRAPH and other leading conferences, and several of his algorithms have been widely adopted in commercial software.

Panel

If you were starting a graphics PhD today, how would you recognise a promising research direction, and what would you learn deeply? Researchers from academia and industry will discuss the characteristics of research programmes that remain fruitful as AI and other tools advance, how to assess new opportunities, and how to build lasting expertise. Examples across computer graphics will make these questions concrete, with room for audience discussion.

Registration

  • Interested in attending? Contact your thesis supervisor.
  • Space for presentations may be limited to maintain a focused workshop environment.

Please fill out this form to register. The deadline to register is October 7th. Registration is now closed, but late registrations may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Organization

General Chair Paul Kry
Communications Chair Melissa Katz
Networking Chair Avery Straumann
Logistics Chairs Matheus Cavazotti, Rikin Gurditta
Coffee Chairs Loïc Nassif, Yuanyuan Tao

Sponsors

Previous

Earlier editions of this workshop and related events can be found at the following links: