Computer-generated hair has historically been a challenging element in the feature film and visual effects industry. Technology and workflow challenges in authoring, animation, simulation, shading,
lighting, and rendering have motivated studios and software companies to invest in tools and techniques to address the ever-growing creative appetite for hair to deliver captivating stylized and/or realistic characters.

To deliver on the creative demand, some feature-production studios have specialized hair production across multiple workflows – visual development, rigging, simulation, and lighting, for example. Has
this divided approach to solving a visually holistic challenge affected decisions about investment in toolsets?

This panel brings together engineers and artists representing various areas of expertise to provide a summary of their day to day relationship with hair. They describe some of the big challenges and their solutions, as well as issues still outstanding, then explore some of the commonalities and outliers to better understand how we have arrived at our current state and ultimately what the future is for CG hair.