Thanks to a partnership with the Susquehanna International Group (SIG), the home for Penn Computer
Graphics programs is the new SIG Center for Computer Graphics, a state-of-the-art facility housing an
academic motion capture studio and a laboratory for special effects, computer graphics and animation.
Susquehanna International Group (SIG), a company at the helm of the latest trends in trading, market-
making and research, currently employs five graduates of Penn’s Ph.D. program in Computer Graphics. The
company chose to demonstrate its appreciation of the contributions of our graduates by giving our
current and future students the chance to learn and work in a magnificent venue. This gift, combined
with other generous donations, has resulted in cutting-edge new facilities that support the academic
mission of the programs in CG@Penn. The new center contains the H. Stone Animation Studio, the largest
academic motion capture studio in the region. This center provides a state-of-the-art Vicon Motion
Capture system and laboratory for projects such as 3D motion picture special effects, computer graphics
and animation, simulation and modeling of large-scale human crowds, and research into the
interrelationships of human movement, language and communication.
CG@Penn has developed a comprehensive “full-service” academic mission, covering educational programs
from High School to the PhD level. Our programs include the PhD program in the Center for Human Modeling
and Simulation, the Masters’ in Science and Engineering in Computer Graphics and Game Technology, the
undergraduate Bachelors’ in Science and Engineering in Digital Media Design, and school-year and summer
High School programs in computer graphics. The SIG Center for Computer Graphics is unique in that it
serves as a collaboration zone for all of our students, regardless of age or degree program. Our
research projects cross traditional boundaries, and teams are frequently composed of student from all
three programs, brought together to take advantage of their differing educational backgrounds and
perspectives.
The open floor plan of the motion capture studio allows for easy access to collaborators. The lab offers
computers, a motion capture system, and technologies. We are located on the ground floor of the Moore
Building, right across from the ENIAC museum, at the corner of 33rd and Walnut Streets on the Penn
Campus.
The SIG Center for Computer Graphics exists to promote first quality research of international stature.
Our mission may be broadly defined as the study of multi-modal communication with computers. As such it
encompasses generation of and human interaction with visual images, video, sound, and touch. Dr. Badler,
the Center's Director, has been actively involved in the national and international computer graphics
community since 1975. The Center has produced over 70 Ph.D. students and numerous Masters' degrees. The
research of the Center is well represented in the mainstream computer graphics literature.