Alex Ma

Wan-Chun Alex Ma (; born 1978) is a Taiwanese software engineer. He has a passion for computer graphics, computer vision, visual effects, and machine learning.

Early life and education Ma was born in 1978. He completed his bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees at National Taiwan University. With the help of the Graduate Student Study Abroad Program of Taiwan's National Science Council. Ma went to the University of Southern California in 2005, completing his studies under Paul Debevec at the Institute for Creative Technologies. After completing his work at University of Southern California and his doctoral degree at National Taiwan University in September, 2008 Ma began his mandatory military service for Taiwans Ministry of Defense. He served as a Private E-2 Trombone Player in the elite Ministry of National Defense Symphony Orchestra (MNDSO) until July, 2009. His team from the University of California and him are the creators of the Facial Appearance Capture Method.

Debevec's research team, including Ma, developed the Polarized Spherical Gradient Illumination, a facial appearance capture and modeling technology. This technology has been used in several films, including Avatar, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Iron Man 3, and Furious 7. In 2019, the 91st Academy Awards awarded Ma and his team the Scientific and Technical Achievement Award to recognize their contributions. He is the second Taiwanese to ever win an Oscar, the first being director Ang Lee.

Awards and honors

(2019). Academy Award for Technical Achievement (2000). IEEE Computer Society International Design Competition 2nd Place: Family Health Guard