News

Innovation has been a consistent theme throughout Tim McLaughlin’s career, both in higher education and the visual effects industry. The Longview native’s degrees at Texas A&M University helped to take him to Industrial Light & Magic, where he played a major role in how digital creatures look and move in films including “Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace,” “Mars Attacks!” and “Jumanji,” along with a prototype project for “Avatar.”

Dr. Mike Poblete, instructional assistant professor in Theatre, will discuss his new book about devised theatre education on April 3 from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Liberal Arts and Arts and Humanities Building, Room 255.

Three Visualization students created graphic designs that were featured at South By Southwest in Austin, as part of Texas A&M University’s presence at the Fast Company Grill March 8-10.

Texas A&M University has been named one of Fast Company magazine’s Most Innovative Companies for 2025, joining business icons including Nvidia, YouTube and EA Sports.

The Texas A&M University College of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts will host the World Shakuhachi Festival April 17-20. Dr. Martin Regan, a professor in the Music Performance program, organized the festival, which will be held in Texas for the first time. The quadrennial event debuted in Japan in 1994, and it was most recently held in London in 2018.

Artist Mark Chen will discuss his work on the closing day of his exhibition that explores landscapes and galaxies at Wright Gallery in the Langford Architecture Center, Building A. The artist talk is March 6 at 3:30 p.m., followed by a closing reception.

“The Heartbeat: A Cultural Revival” continues through Friday with an art exhibition at the Parker-Astin in Downtown Bryan and a performance at the Physical Education Activity Program Building.

The Institute for Applied Creativity in the College of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts held its first LASER Talk Jan. 29 at the J. Wayne Stark Galleries in the Memorial Student Center.

The “Afrofuturism Explored!” conference returns Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Liberal Arts and Arts and Humanities Building, Room 453. The second-annual event in honor of Black History Month features panel discussions with students and faculty, keynote speakers, poem recitations and a film screening. It was organized by Dr. Will Connor, lecturer in the Performance and Visual Studies program.

A doctorate in Visual Computing and Interactive Media will debut in the fall semester to complement the programs in Visualization. It is the first doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in the Texas A&M College of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts.