Inside Pixar’s RenderMan: XPU Technology and Storytelling on Toy Story 5

Calling all Pixar fans! Join us on Thursday, January 29th for an in-person only event with Dylan Sisson (Head of RenderMan Creative Engagement, Pixar Animation Studios), featuring a behind-the-scenes look at Pixar’s next generation of rendering.

This talk includes a behind-the-scenes look at how XPU is being rolled out on Toy Story 5. We’ll screen the first 72 seconds of the unreleased Toy Story 5, rendered in XPU!

RenderMan has been at the heart of Pixar’s filmmaking from the very beginning, helping artists bring stories like Toy Story, Finding Nemo, and The Incredibles to life. Over the years, it has evolved alongside the films themselves, and this year marks a major step forward with XPU, Pixar’s new modern CPU+GPU renderer.

Dylan will explore how XPU is being used in real production, and how it’s helping filmmakers work faster, explore farther, and deepen the craft of animation. He’ll discuss how rendering not just as technology, but as part of storytelling, from look dev and lighting to stylization and experimentation.

Dylan will also dive into Pixar’s RenderMan Art Challenge, a great opportunity for students and professionals to join the RenderMan community, expand their skills, and compete for software and hardware prizes worth over $100,000.

Giveaways at check-in: We’ll have a limited supply of RenderMan Walking Teapots available! Make sure to arrive early and pick one up.

Event Schedule:

• 6:00 PM — Campus Tours Available with Gnomon Reps

• 6:30 PM — Doors Open (Free Pizza, First Come, First Served)

• 7:00 PM — Presentation Begins

• 8:00 PM — Q&A

NOTE: This is an in-person only event and will not be livestreamed.

Gnomon events are sponsored by Dell and Dell Partners.

Dell Precision has over 25 years of innovations, driving the work of power-users, designers and creators. The Precision product team works directly with customers and strategic partners to deliver the most reliable and powerful PCs from Dell. The intelligent performance is driven by AI-based software, Dell Optimizer for Precision, and the professional-level components, such as Intel® Core™ and Xeon® processors, fast memory (including ECC memory options), scalable storage, and professional graphics from NVIDIA that drive many of the creative applications and workflows, as well as exclusive technologies such as Reliable Memory Technology Pro and, patented thermals and the Dell Optimizer.

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