Submission Resources

Where do I start?

Resources for Writing Submissions

Submitting a talk to a conference can be intimidating but we’re here to help! We’ve put together some tips and advice from seasoned reviewers, and a few links to other helpful resources.

Where Do I Start?

So you did some amazing work that you want to share with the DigiPro community. Yay! Now what? The process of submitting to DigiPro starts with the submission page. There you’ll find a description of the type of content DigiPro is looking for. Please read carefully and also take note of what we’re not looking for. If you have questions about whether your work falls under the DigiPro topic umbrella feel free to reach out to 2026@digiproconf.org.

On that page is a giant button that says “EASYCHAIR”. EasyChair is our platform for collecting and reviewing submissions. If you follow that link you’ll be taken to the DigiPro Login page. Once you’ve created an account and logged in you should see an Author section with “make a new submission” link. Feel free to click through to that form to see what you’ll need to fill in and upload for your submission.

You must have:

  • Name, email, and affiliation of all authors
  • Title and Abstract in plain text
  • Keywords
  • Details of previous presentations, if applicable
  • Paper submission in PDF format
  • One representative image for your work

Supplemental imagery and video are optional, but highly recommended.

Now that you know what you’ll need, it’s time to start gathering information and writing up your submission!

Submission Requirements

According to the Submission Page:

Submissions may take the form of a technical paper or an extended abstract with associated visual material.

Let’s dive a little deeper, walking through the submission requirements.

Submission Title

Keep your title short, concise, and informative. Don’t get too clever or have an obscurely-worded title.

Submission Keywords

Keep your keyword list simple but thorough. If you’re not sure what your keywords should be take a look for examples on other publications related to your work.

Submission Abstract

The Abstract section of the submission should be a short, concise summary stating the driving force behind your work (the ‘why’) and an overview of the work itself (the ‘what’ and ‘how’).

Submission Main Sections

This is where the good stuff goes! This generally includes more details on context, motivation, previous work, the approach/process,etc itself, results and future work. For inspiration check out the SIGGRAPH article How do I Structure a Paper.

What do Reviewers Look For

As you are preparing to write, consider the type of questions that reviewers will be asking as they read your paper:

  • Is this an interesting topic for this conference audience?
    • Do I want to see that talk?
    • Will the subject matter lead to further discussions?
  • Does the submission show potential for a quality presentation?
    • How easy is it to follow? Do I have to read it many times to understand?
    • Is it a well-structured submission? Does it tell a story?
    • Are there examples of use in production? Graphs? Supplemental Video?
  • How novel are the problems and/or solutions?

Advice from Reviewers

DO:

  • Discuss previous and related work.
    • What does your work contribute?
    • Include all references.
  • Consider how useful your idea is to others.
    • Are the challenges you faced specific to your workflow, and therefore irrelevant to others?
    • Can it be generalized?
  • Describe techniques in plain-language and avoid/explain obscure acronyms.
  • Include failures, false starts, and hindsight.
  • Discuss status of production adoption.
    • What was the impact of your work?
  • Diagrams are worth a thousand words! See resources below for creating diagrams.
  • Provide supplementary video and informative imagery.


DON’T:

  • Make a sales pitch or have a marketing presentation.
  • Use equations to explain a concept. Use your words and include equations as supporting content.
  • Submit work that is simply a reproduction of functionality in existing software. If you’ve rewritten a tool that Maya/Houdini/etc already provides then explain why.
  • Just provide pretty pictures. Make sure that supplemental imagery and video are informative and self-explanatory.
  • Does the image/video convey information without requiring an explanation?
  • Provide inconsistent, incomplete, and/or bloated reference entries.
  • Assume all reviewers and readers are experts in your field. Make sure your work is also accessible to audiences that might just have peripheral knowledge of your area of expertise.

Representative Image

At least one image is required for your submission, intended to be used for promotion purposes (e.g. as the primary image for the proceedings and the conference program). Verify that your Representative Image meets the following standards before you upload:

  • The recommended aspect ratio is 3x2 in landscape orientation.
  • At least 1500x1000 pixel resolution.
  • At least 300 dpi.
  • Must be in jpeg format.
  • 15MB max.

Supplemental Imagery/Video

As mentioned above, supplemental imagery and video are optional, but highly recommended. It’s difficult for reviewers to judge the content and quality level of a paper/talk from just text. Pictures really are worth a thousand words!


Non-English Speakers

We love getting submissions from all over the world, but admittedly it is sometimes difficult to review a paper that is written in English, but is not quite fluent English. If possible, please find a native English speaker to review your paper before submitting.


How to Get Your SIGGRAPH Paper rejected.

Creating diagrams: https://app.diagrams.net/

Consider including an ORCID: https://orcid.org/

ACM Info

DigiPro is sponsored by ACM SIGGRAPH and accepted papers are published as the DigiPro Proceedings in the ACM Digital Library. If your paper is accepted, ACM requires fairly strict formatting rules for the text and references. That said, the requirements for DigiPro submissions are not as stringent as SIGGRAPH. There is no restriction or requirement on the number of pages, and the format outlined above is recommended but not required. Reviewers care about the content, not about the exact formatting.

Keeping that in mind, here are a few links with information about ACM publication and author’s rights.

Guide to Writing Your First ACM SIGGRAPH/TOG Paper.

https://www.acm.org/publications/authors/information-for-authors

https://www.acm.org/publications/authors/submissions

https://authors.acm.org/author-resources/author-rights

DigiPro authors do fall under the umbrella of ACM authors with respect to rights and permissions. However, Author Rights as described above will apply only to the primary PDF. Anything else (videos, supplemental material) are covered by the Digital Artifact policy. If authors opt-in to having their presentations recorded for the ACM Digital Library, those will recordings will similarly be categorized as digital artifacts. Importantly, only the the primary PDF is behind the ACM Digital Library paywall unless the authors go the Open Access route. All other materials are always freely available.

LaTeX

LaTeX Editor: https://www.overleaf.com

ACM LaTeX Templates: https://www.overleaf.com/gallery/tagged/acm-official

MS Word

ACM MS Word Templates: https://homes.cs.washington.edu/~spencer/taps/article-word.html

DigiPro Formatting Example

We have prepared an example with advice on formatting a DigiPro paper or extended abstract using LaTeX. This document is specifically focused on the mechanics of formatting, and not so much on the structure of what makes a good paper, covered above.

Feel free to copy and modify the source of this document as a starting point for your own. And feel free to use this format for the paper or extended abstract component of your initial submission — it might save you time later if accepted.


Last Words

Remember that the reviewers are your peers, and we’re excited to see what you’re working on. Have fun, and good luck!