Day 2 of SIGGRAPH 2011 was chock full of networking, informational geek-outs, and presentations from successful 3D Animation & Visual Effects alumni.

Yesterday kicked off with a talk from 3D grad (and 2010 Student of the Year at the CGSAs) Maximilian-Gordon Vogt, who appeared at the Pixologic booth to show off his skills as a Character Modeler. Currently working at Framestore London, Maximilian illustrated a workflow using ZBrush to create a high-res digital double of an actor using Scan Data.

In the afternoon, 3D grad Jelmer Boskma (pictured above) also spoke at the Pixologic booth, where he commanded the attention of a huge crowd who watched as he explored ZBrush’s “centric facial pipeline”. Using a character he recently developed as part of a short film project, Jelmer gave us a look at the tools and tricks he’s been using as a CG Modeler/Texture Painter at Digital Domain.

“I try to look at myself to get certain expressions,” he said while manipulating his character’s face on the massive screen.

Over at the Pixar booth, Digital Design instructor Kai Pedersen gave a special talk on bridging the gap between Cinema 4D and Pixar’s Renderman software using CineMan – a RenderMan compliant RIB-exporter.

So far today, we’ve seen Digital Character Animation Senior Instructor Greg Berridge present on the evolution of an animator, from student to professional. Joining him were three grads at different points in their careers: Ryan “Connell” Garvy showcased his demo reel, calling Greg a “Maya god”. Henedy Macias spoke about her return to Mexico where she founded her own studio, Anemona, which is currently hiring and about to release its first iOs game. And Joey Brown reported from England, where he currently works at Aardman Animation, fulfilling the goal he shared with Greg at the beginning of his program.

There’s lots more to come, including an Animation & Visual Effects Alumni Mixer later today at VFS! Keep an eye on the VFS Flickr profile for exclusive photos from SIGGRAPH 2011.

If you’re a graduate of 3D Animation & Visual Effects, Classical Animation, Digital Character Animation, or previous VFS programs like Maya, Houdini, 2D Animation, Alias, or Digipen, visit this page for more info about the Alumni Mixer event.