OCAD U students gain hands-on experience in large-scale immersive art projections

Four large-scale immersive art projections being showcased at SILO NIGHTS, curated by OCAD University, at Public Pier on Toronto’s waterfront on September 26 and October 2 involved OCAD U students in their creation, providing them with hands-on experience in animation, visual storytelling and projection mapping – future skills they will need as contributors to Ontario’s creative economy.

The University’s students were also involved in creating a special animation for the institution’s 150th anniversary. This original 30-second animation will be projected on the Canada Malting Silos as a bonus video at the end of each credit roll and will be shown on each of the six nights. The students involved in creating this animated projection were Saman Mehrabi, Peter de Souza-Samanek and Nastia Rybnikova.

OCAD U students in Experimental Animation and Graphic Design participated in a workshop led by French projection mapping artist and editor Pablo Gracias, who is based in Lille, France. In this collaborative workshop, students explored animation, visual storytelling and projection mapping.

The resulting project, Living Waters, created specifically for the Canada Malting Silos, will transform the landmark waterfront structure through large-scale projected imagery, bringing together Gracias’s professional production expertise with the students’ creative perspectives. The premiere takes place on September 26, from 8 to 11 p.m.

OCAD U student Lucas Piperias says the workshop was a great experience.

“It was really beneficial to work on a team and to see everyone’s unique voice come through. This experience placed me both in and out of my creative comfort zone. Pablo was a good instructor – teaching us the mechanics of what we had to do and not intruding on our vision unless it was necessary,” says Piperias. “In terms of practice this gave me a lot more experience into the field of projection mapping and interactive art works, and I believe this will be a strong addition to my portfolio, especially if doing something similar in the future.”

OCAD U students from Experimental Animation and Graphic Design participating in this workshop project also included: Marshy Dubois, Shannon Halliday, Hain Kim, Lukas Kuznecov, Charlene Lam, Luka Lai, Angie Li, Venya Luthra, Nastia Rybnikova, Lisa Semenova, Ana Laura Silva, Menita Sriharsha, Subin Song, Isabelle Stewart and Sophia Tambong.

The project is presented in partnership with the Embassy of France in Canada and Institut français du Canada, in collaboration with the European Union (EU) through its Delegation to Canada with special thanks to Rencontres Audiovisuelles.

OCAD U students Menita Sriharsha and Lucas Piperias were also involved with the projection, The Shape of Memory, being presented by the Instituto Italiano di Cultura – Toronto, Consulate General of Italy, Cultural Section, in collaboration with the European Union through its Delegation to Canada.

The Shape of Memory treats a city's memory not as history to archive but as intelligence to activate, the raw material from which communities build their next version of themselves. Projected on the Canada Malting Silos on September 26, it returns Toronto's memory of land and water to its waterfront.

The concept was created by OOOPStudio, with photogrammetry, animation and editing by Alessandro Grisendi and 3D by Marco Noviello. Photography is set and location selection for photogrammetry was developed in collaboration with Piperias and Sriharsha.

“Collaborating with OOOPStudio was a great experience. They were communicative and gave me clear instructions. I felt the workload was fair and it introduced me to the concept of photogrammetry, which I had only dabbled with in the past. It was refreshing to take a back seat in the creative process, gathering the materials – in this case photosets – and letting their team make some incredible stuff,” says Piperias.

The Toronto premiere of Carnet de voyage d’une particule/Travel Diary of a Particle is a seven-minute animated journey following a photon from the sun to earth, through space and underwater environments.

Exploring light, nature and ecology, the project brings together students from OCAD University’s Experimental Animation program and students from two ARTS² programs in Mons, Belgium: Digital Arts within Visual Arts and Applied and Interactive Music within the Royal Conservatory of Music. 

Carnet du voyage d’une particule is presented with support from the Ontario Arts Council | Conseil des arts de l'Ontario, Ministère des affaires francophones de l'Ontario, Délégation Wallonie Bruxelles, Wallonie Bruxelles International, and Wallonie Bruxelles Enseignement.

The large-scale, videomapped animated projection had its world premiere at the international Mons en Lumières festival in January 2026. The projection was developed as part of the collaborative initiative, Translatlantic Connections in Experimetal Animation and Digital Arts.

This initiative provided students from OCAD University and ARTS2 with hands-on, professional international experience in creating an innovative artistic projection. Each student worked closely with their Belgian peers on different aspects of the project – all in French. 

“It was a very fun challenge to work on Carnet du voyage d’une particule. Over the past year, we’ve improved our French conversational skills and learned not only new animation pipeline and project-specific terms, but also conversational slang that our peers use in their day-to-day,” says student Jae Despi who was involved in the projection.

“As the project combines 2D and 3D animation, as well as projection mapping technology, we had to learn and adapt to new pipelines, processes, and interactions between these different technologies to bring this project to life. As a 2D animator, I got to become more familiar with 3D processes and see the behind-the-scenes of the audio mixing and projection work done in Mons, an experience that will allow me to be more adapt to a wider variety of projects in the future,” says Despi.

The initiative was supported by the Government of Ontario through an agreement between the Ministry of Francophone Affairs and the Wallonie-Bruxelles region in Belgium, with project management provided by the Ontario Arts Council.

The goal was to encourage and promote cultural, educational and economic exchanges between the two regions while providing OCAD University students with the opportunity to enhance their French-language speaking skills.

“Through the bilingual approach and remote collaboration, my practice has greatly benefitted from being able to share animation strategies, software knowledge and have professional conversations in French,” says Zahrah Khurram, another student involved in the projection.

Students: OCAD University: Leila Dindyal and Lucas Piperias joined the project in the summer to help adapt it for SILO NIGHTS at Public Pier showcase.

Students: OCAD University / 2D creation: Shannon Halliday, Sophia Poaps, Jae Despi, Laura Barbi, Aklesiya Yared, Zahrah Khurram.

Students: ARTS² / 3D creation: Mathias Serwy, Natasha Alves de Arujo, Noah Loute, Lalie Istasse, Julian Petit, Eugene Kamegneson Fotso, Clément Dandrimont, Adriano Spadafora.

Students: ARTS² / Sound creation: Oriane Quertenmont, Romain Soudon, William Escande, Guillaume Toussaint, Hugo Drouillon, Susy Magnien, Noé Werlen, Eliza Canivet

Faculty: Philippe Blanchard – OCAD University; Martin Waroux – ARTS², Matthieu Buytaers – ARTS², Cédric Sabato – ARTS², Florent Schirrer – ARTS².

SCHEDULE OF PROGRAMMING INVOLVING OCAD U STUDENTS

September 26, 8 to 11 p.m.
World premiere
Living Waters, Animation Collaboration Workshop Project
Public Pier, Marina Quay West, 539 Queens Quay West 

September 26, 8 to 11 p.m.
World premiere
The Shape of Memory by OOOPStudio
Public Pier, Marina Quay West, 539 Queens Quay West

Friday, October 2, 8 to 11 p.m.
Toronto premiere
Carnet de voyage d'une particule/Travel Diary of a Particle

ABOUT SILO NIGHTS AT PUBLIC PIER AND PUBLIC PIER

SILO NIGHTS, curated by OCAD University as part of Public Pier, is transforming the iconic Canada Malting Silos into a giant canvas for immersive art and storytelling – featuring international artists, student collaborations, and Canadian and world premieres. Public Pier is presented by The Bentway, Harbourfront Centre, OCAD University, and Waterfront BIA with the Toronto Port Authority as the lead sponsor.

Technology for SILO NIGHTS provided by Panasonic, the Official Projection Technology Partner, with special thanks to AVA Animation & Visual Arts and the City of Toronto.