Caecilia Charbonnier
Caecilia first obtained a MAS degree in 2006 in Computer Graphics from EPFL and a PhD degree in Computer Science in 2010 from MIRALab – University of Geneva. She is the Co-Founder and current President & Research Director of Artanim, a center specialized in motion capture technologies, Co-Founder & Chief Innovation Officer of Dreamscape Immersive, a leading VR company, and President of the National Thematic Network Virtual Switzerland. She is also Senior Lecturer at the Department of Radiology and Medical Informatics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, and Professor of Practice at the School of Arts, Media and Engineering, Herberger Institute, Arizona State University.
Her interdisciplinary work focus on the use of motion capture for 3D animation, VR/AR, live performances, movement science, orthopedics and sports medicine. The results of her research have been published in over 100 international scientific articles, and awarded several prizes and distinctions (2009 Eurographics Medical 1st Prize, 2011 ISAKOS Achilles Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Research Award, 2014 CAOS Best Technical Paper Award, 2014 EFORT Best Poster Discussion, 2015 SIGGRAPH Finalist of the Immersive Realities (VR/AR) Contest, 2016 Laval Virtual Award, 2017 Swiss ICT Award Finalist, 2022 Great Economy Special Jury Prize).
She is one of the two creators of the award-winning and breakthrough VR technology leveraged by Dreamscape and Hollywood studios and talents to create the ultimate immersive experience for location-based entertainment, education and enterprise solutions.
Besides research and technology development, she is also the creator and director of immersive experiences, including Real Virtuality: Immersive Explorers, VR_I, Geneva 1850, Abord the Mayflower and The Clockwork Forest. Her VR work has notably been showcased at renowned film festivals such as Sundance New Frontier (2016, 2018), Cannes Film Festival (2016) and the Biennale di Venezia (2018).
- Ph.D. Computer Science, University of Geneva, Switzerland, 2010
- MAS Computer Graphics, EPFL, Switzerland, 2006
- M.S. Information and Communication Systems, University of Geneva, Switzerland, 2005
Joint biomechanics, 3D modeling, motion analysis, 3D simulation, computer-assisted surgical planning, medical imaging, movement science, virtual reality rehabilitation, 3D body scanning, motion capture from different technologies (optical, inertial, markerless), VR/AR, real-time motion interaction, 3D character animation
In 2011, I co-founded Artanim Foundation, a research center specialized in motion capture technologies and virtual reality.
Full publications list available at https://artanim.ch/publications/
- Co-Founder, President & Research Director, Artanim Foundation, Switzerland
- Senior Lecturer, University of Geneva, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Radiology and Medical Informatics, Switzerland
- Recipient of the Special Jury Prize at the 2022 Great Economy Awards, Geneva, 2022.
- Selected as part of the 100 Digital Shapers (100 most important Swiss individuals in all things digital), 2018 edition.
- Finalist of the Swiss ICT Award 2017 for the VR platform "Real Virtuality", Swiss ICT Award, Lucerne, 2017.
- In collaboration with the Cie Gilles Jobin: Winner of the Innovation Award and of the Public Award for the virtual reality dance piece “VR_I”, Festival du nouveau cinéma, Montreal, 2017.
- Selected as part of the Forum des 100 (100 personalities who make the French-speaking part of Switzerland), 2017 edition.
- Winner of the 2016 Laval Virtual Award in the category 3D Game and Entertainment for the VR platform "Real Virtuality", Laval Virtual 2016, Laval, 2016.
- Finalist of the "Immersive Realities (VR/AR) contest" awarding the best augmented/virtual reality experiences possible using today’s technologies for the VR platform "Real Virtuality", SIGGRAPH 2015, Los Angeles, 2015.
- In collaboration with La Tour Hospital and the Rive Droite Radiology Center SA: Best Technical Paper Award for the paper entitled "A Patient-Specific Measurement Technique to Model the Kinematics of the Shoulder in Tennis Players", 14th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Computer Assisted Orthopaedic Surgery (CAOS), Milan, 2014.
- In collaboration with the University Hospitals of Geneva and Medacta International SA: Special distinction for the best discussion of the poster entitled "Sexual Activity after Total Hip Arthroplasty: A Motion Capture Study” ", 15th Annual Congress of the European Federation of National Associations of Orthopaedics and Traumatology (EFORT), London, 2014.
- In collaboration with the University Hospitals of Geneva: ISAKOS Achilles Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Research Award for the paper entitled "Clinical and MRI Findings in Professional Dancers' Hip: A New Femoro-acetabular Impingement? ", 8th Annual Congress of the International Society of Arthroplasty, Knee Surgery and Orthopaedic Sports Medicine (ISAKOS), Rio de Janeiro, 2011.
- In collaboration with the MIRALab-team and the University Hospitals of Geneva: Eurographics Medical 1st Prize for the paper entitled "Virtual Hip Joint: from Computer Graphics to Computer-Assisted Diagnosis", 30th Annual Conference of the European Association for Computer Graphics, Munich, 2009.
- 2009 Walthard Prize from the University of Geneva. This prize is given to a student conducting with success a sport career and academic studies.
- President, Artanim Foundation, Switzerland
- President, Virtual Switzerland Association, Switzerland
- Co-Founder & CIO, Dreamscape Immersive Inc., USA