Preliminary Keynote for NSF Workshop, March 16th, 2011

Background

Funding in CanadaTri-council + Arts CouncilThe NCE program: How does it work?The “five pillars” of NCE evaluation:

• Research• HQP• Networking & partnerships• Knowledge & Technology - Exchange & Exploitation• Management of the Network

GRAND

Graphisme, animation et nouveaux médiasGraphics, Animation and New Media

*really “Games, Animation, and New Media” ( but jeux doesn’t start with “g”!)

Funding of $4.65M per year for five years was announced on December 1, 2009

GRAND began operations on January 1, 2010

Innovation + Social Impact

We combine high-level understanding of enabling technologies

With research on creation, design, and usability of multimedia experiences

Arts, humanities, science, technology, and design are all needed for significant, adoptable innovation

Digital media is much more than entertainmentNew policies are needed to engage and protect

citizens and businesses in all sectors - health, education, law, environment, and government

It Isn’t Just Technology

We don’t want to build “the best systems that no one wants to use,” we want to build systems that meet society’s needs

“All technology, all the time” isn’t the answerTelidon was Canadian technology that failed not

because of technology problems… it failed because of social, legal, economic, and

cultural/artistic problems

SSHRC + NSERCGRAND researchers include experts in media

studies, content producers, HCI specialists, computer scientists, engineers, animators, game designers, and experts in new media business and policy

Directors for SS/H and STEM research disciplines and for Art/Design Practice

Media convergence is rapidly accelerating and affecting all aspects of life

This requires deep understanding of social, experiential, and design contexts and constraints

Governance Structure

Participants

63 network investigators86 collaborating researchers100+ postdocs and students23 universities40+ industry, government, and NGO partners7+/- staff

Agile Matrix Organization

Structured to provide powerful, multidisciplinary collaboration

Networking is “built in” to the structure to encourage ourresearchersgraduate students, andpartners and other receptor groups

to work together from the outset

5x30x50 Project Matrix

5 themes provide critical focus30+ projects cross themes for synergy50+ network investigators add diversity40+ collaborating domain expertsThemes provide top-down visionProjects provide bottom-up innovation

How do we manage this?

Network investigators are the key building blockProjects are fluid collaborationsProject champions represent partners in the receptor

communityCollaborating researchers are identified for specific

expertiseFunding is allocated to network investigators based

on their contributions and partnerships

Accountability

• Annual progress reports from NIs, projects, & themes

• Project champions

• External reviewers

• Bi-annual external project reviews

• Quarterly “new opportunities” for projects

• Annual International Scientific Advisory Committee full review

• Annual report to NCE Program by Board

Special Internal Projects

Two special projects focus inward & keep us on our toes:

MEOW Media Enabled Organizational Workflow

NAVEL Network Assessment and Validation for Effective Leadership

HQP Training

• Over 150 students including:

12 postdocs

55 PhD, 75 master’s,

10 undergrad interns

5 research technicians• Multidisciplinary mix• Graduate Student Advisory Committee

Opportunities

MITACS ACCELERATE internshipsWorkshops and Design KeystonesAccess to 18 CFI-funded labsExchange visitsCollaboration across institutionsGRAND Challenge Competition

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Networking & Partnerships

Accelerating the exploitation of new knowledge and technology, GRAND will encourage, enable and support the rapid exchange of ideas between academic researchers and receptor communities.

Networking and Partnerships are the tools for this rapid exchange. They account for 20% of the NCE criteria

R&D Linkage with Network Partners 9 federal/provincial agencies

2 specialize in commercialization 22 private sector partners performing R&D in Canada

15 Canadian 7 multinational

Companies in relevant receptor sectors Games Design, simulation, visualization Simulation for training Wireless services Filmmaking and postproduction Interactive digital media Computer platforms for digital media and innovative display

environments

Public Sector Network Partners

R&D Links with Federal and Provincial Agencies: BC Hydro Power Smart Canadian Film Centre Communications Research Centre (Industry Canada) Defence Research Development Canada National Film Board Ontario Privacy Commissioner Science World

Innovation, Commercialization, Exploitation Partners: BC Innovation Council Canadian Digital Media Network (Centre of Excellence for Commercialization and

Research)

Private Sector Network Partners

Autodesk Bardel Entertainment BioWare CAE CM Labs Vortex Coole Immersive Deluxe Postproduction Electronic Arts Gsmprjct Immersion Intel Metranome Pixar

Precision Conference Solutions Ramius RapidMind (now Intel Waterloo) Rogers SAP Saskatchewan in motion Science World Side Effects Software Toronto Rehabilitation Institute Vancouver ACM SIGGRAPH

Academic N&P: the “easy” part

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The structure:

GRAND’s 32+ projects: multi-researcher, multi-university

External Project Champions in each project

GRAND’s Network Investigators: multiple projects each

How do we know when we are “winning”?

Better topics.

Shared perspectives.

Co-authored work and papers.

Receptor N&P: the “hard” part

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Lightly built into the GRAND structure

except for Project Champions

Occurs project-by-project and GRAND-wide.

GRAND Peaks

How do we know we are winning?

Partners voting with their feet.

Knowledge & Technology Exchange & Exploitation

Typically every project has a Champion:- network partner company, or- representative of a user sector

Dissemination of results:• through peer-reviewed public-domain literature• through exhibitions and performances• Workshops, AGM, KeystonesIP Policies of individual universities are respected.

Main Impact is Knowledge Exchange

Partner companies that are broadly interested in GRAND topics, with potential interest in several projects

Companies and User Groups involved with a team of researchers

Estimate and “capture” their support- financial contributions to the research- in-kind services and experts’ time

Events to Accelerate KE

ACM SIGGRAPH chaptersVancouver, Montreal, Toronto and more as part of

monthly local chapter meetings AGM collocated with:

2010 AI/GI/CRV conference (Ottawa)2011 ACM CHI conference (Vancouver)

Keystone Series involve partners, art and design practitioners, and

business to get cross-disciplinary, fast-track outcomesFirst four Keystones will focus on: Design, Simulation,

Play and Mobility.

Our challenges

• What is research? • Discovery - Creation - Practice

• Multidisciplinary research requires collaboration• Each discipline has its own customs, canon,

standards, and language• It takes effort to appreciate each other’s

strengths• Enforced structure vs. organic structure• What is excellent - and who determines this?

Thank-you!

For more information:

http://www.grand-nce.ca/