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Game Career SeminarProgrammed by: The Game Developers Conference
Saturday & Sunday Intro to the Videogame Industry Coray Seifert, Associate Producer, Kaos Studios/THQ Overview: The world of videogames is a more diverse one than you might think – it's not just made of programmers and artists. There are also writers, marketing departments, animators, background artists, producers, and more. All these roles have to knit together to create a videogame. Educate yourself and figure out where you might fit in the structure. Tighten Up the Controls on Level 2 Panelists: Coray Seifert, Associate Producer, THQ Brad MacDonald, Art Director, Large Animal Games Ben Serviss, Game Designer, Saber Interactive Anton Krupkin, CTO, Saber Interactive Overview: What's it really like to work in the game industry, anyway? Listen to the tales of real industry professionals working in a variety of disciplines in companies that range from the big corporation to the small independent firm. Specialization in the Visual Arts Brad MacDonald, Art Director, Large Animal Games Overview: This session introduces students to the various fields that fall under the heading of "videogame art". Learn what programs and tools are most often used in each one. Learn the difference between character modeling, rigging, and animating, etc. The session will demonstrate step-by-step how the visual look of a project all came together. Programming for Non-Programmers Nick Smolney, Producer, nFusion Overview: You don't have to have a degree in CS to understand the basics of what code is. How does code translate into a game? Why is it important for non-programmers to understand it? Knowing what programmers do will benefit artists, producers, and game designers. Get a crash course in what's important to know about code from a programmer-turned-producer. Intro to Game Design Wade Tinney, Partner, Co-Founder, Game Designer, Large Animal Games Overview: What exactly falls under the label "game design"? What skills are beneficial to being a good game designer? And how does a game go from an idea to a finished product? Learn basic game design principles and methodologies. Pitch your Game Idea - Student Edition Panelists: Coray Seifert, Associate Producer, THQ Brad MacDonald, Art Director, Large Animal Games Ben Serviss, Game Designer, Saber Interactive Wade Tinney, Partner, Co-Founder, Game Designer, Large Animal Games Overview: Here's your chance to pitch your game idea in one fast minute and get feedback from a panel of industry experts. Which ideas will excite your employers or professors, which will put them to sleep? DAY 2 - SUNDAY, OCTOBER 29 Is There an Academic Program For You? Moderated by: Jill Duffy, Editor, Game Developer Magazine Panelists: Rob Catto, Full Sail Ralph Vittuccio, ETC Carnegie Mellon Aaron Thibault, The Guildhall Genevieve Okupniak, Art Institute of Philadelphia Overview: This panel explores the variety of programs available for students interested in interactive media. The panelists will each present a brief overview of the programs they are most familiar with, and will address the specializations of each. The discussion will explore how a student might match up his or her skill set and aspirations with the right program. Networking 101 Darius Kazemi, Data Analyst, Turbine, Inc. Overview: Get out of your seats for an interactive networking live game! It's more than just shmoozing, it's a valuable way to open up new opportunities. Tips from an HR Insider Fiona Cherbak, Director of Business Development - Mary-Margaret.com Overview: What do companies look for in candidates? Learn how to increase your chances of getting a foot in the door, and what you can expect from interview processes. Just as importantly, gain insight into what you should be looking for in a company to make sure it's the right move for you. Growth within the Industry Catherine Herdlick, Director of Game Production, GameLab Overview: Base skills are not enough if you want to grow vertically in your company. People skills, communication skills, and management training will all help you plan your future. Explore the possible career paths available to you in the videogame industry and start planning now. Portfolio/Resume Review Genevieve Okupniak, Art Institute of Philadelphia Jill Duffy, Editor, Game Developer Magazine Catherine Herdlick, Director of Game Production, GameLab Darius Kazemi, Data Analyst, Turbine, Inc. Overview: Bring in your portfolios, your demo reels, your work in progress, even your resumes, to get feedback from academics and professionals. What should you include? How should you present your skills? *NOTE: Please bring your materials on a disk or a key drive; we will not have internet access so we cannot accept online submissions. SPEAKER BIOS: Robert C. Catto, Program Director, Full Sail. For more than fifteen years, Robert C. Catto has served as an innovative leader in the fields of education and technology. Currently, Robert holds the position of Program Director for the Game Development Bachelor Degree Program at Full Sail Real World Education. Robert is responsible for managing and creating procedures in regard to the design, structure, quality, consistence, and continuity of the Program Curriculum, while ensuring student satisfaction. From 2001 to 2003, Robert served as the Program Director of the Game Design & Development and Digital Media Associate Degree Programs at Full Sail, and effectively created the original course curriculum designed to bring new programmers into the industry. Robert has also served as President of Region III of the Florida Technology Association, and is a member of the National Science Teachers Association and the International Game Developers Association. ___________________________________________ Darius Kazemi. Data Analyst, Turbine Inc. Darius Kazemi spent his college years networking in the game industry, getting various small internships and making lots of small games. His first industry job out of college was as a QA tester at Turbine Inc. He worked his butt off, played it smart, and is now a Data Analyst, which is way more fun than it sounds. He dispenses networking advice on his blog, and can be found at the Boston Postmortem every month. ______________________________________________ Catherine Herdlick. Director of Game Production, Gamelab. Catherine has managed the production of over 20 projects at Gamelab, including commercial titles like Subway Scramble (2004), Egg vs. Chicken (2005) and Shopmania (2006). Catherine also manages Gamelab’s overall development process and establishes internal “best practices.” Prior to working at Gamelab, Catherine worked in design and media management with the Boston Children’s Museum, the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, MaMaMedia, and Supercosm. She has lectured at Parsons School of Design, New York University, and the Serious Games Summit in Washington, D.C. Her independent work includes The Great All-Nighter puzzle hunt, the Come Out & Play Festival (www.comeoutandplay.org), community circus (www.cirquethis.com), and playspace exhibitions at the Parsons Gallery and The Kitchen, NYC. Catherine holds a BA in General Humanities and Spanish Literature from Wesleyan University and an MFA in Digital Design from Parsons School of Design. __________________________________________ Brad MacDonald, Art Director, Large Animal Games Brad got his start as a political cartoonist and over the years he has designed talking seats, a giant Macy’s Day balloon, Nascar pit crew uniforms, video games and just about anything else you can think of. For the past five years Brad has called game development his home because there’s almost no other medium that folds together the challenge of designing characters, interactivity and small to large experiences that resonate on a personal level for the consumer and the developer. As the art director of Large Animal Games in New York City he has contributed to the design of roughly 50 games. ________________________________________ Genevieve Okupniak, Assistant Director of Visual Effects and Motion Graphics, the Art Institute of Philadelphia Genevieve Okupniak has an MFA in Film Directing from California Institute of the Arts and a BFA in Film and Animation from University of the Arts. Her professional background touches all stages of production at several post production facilities including Digital Domain. While working as a full time educator, she also continues to freelance as a Visual Effects Artist at Innomations LTD. _______________________________________ Coray Seifert, Associate Producer, Kaos Studios Coray Seifert is an associate producer at Kaos Studios, a THQ development house nestled in the heart of midtown Manhattan. In the past, Coray has developed games as a writer, designer, and producer for companies such as Large Animal Games, Creo Ludus Entertainment, and the US Department of Defense. He is a coordinator of the New Jersey chapter of the International Game Developers Association and serves as a committee member for the IGDA's Game Writers Special Interest Group. Coray also teaches game design at the Bloomfield College and has appeared on gamasutra.com, Xbox Exclusive, in Game Developer Magazine, and at numerous game industry events as an editor, panelist, lecturer, or host. Coray lives in Hoboken, NJ, with his amazing fiancée Katie, and two insane cats. _________________________________________ Ben Serviss, Associate Producer/Designer, Saber Interactive. Ben has been a part of the game industry under many guises, most recently as Associate Producer/Designer at Saber Interactive. In previous lives he's served as Lead Writer at an independent studio, designed and written for serious games for the US Military, and covered the industry as a game journalist/reviewer. When he's not working on Saber Interactive's upcoming TimeShift, he's active in the IGDA as a coordinator of the New Jersey chapter, a committee member of the Game Writers Special Interest Group, and co-founder/editor of the IGDA Game Writers Quarterly. _________________________________________ Ralph Vituccio, Director of Media Development in Communications Design, ETC Ralph Vituccio is the Director of Media Development in Communications Design and an Instructor in the Entertainment Technology Center at Carnegie Mellon. He has developed, written, and produced numerous films, videos, CD-ROMs, DVD-ROMs, web sites, and multimedia. He is also an adjunct faculty at Pittsburgh Filmmakers where he teaches film and video production. As an independent artist, Vituccio has received numerous grants in support of his work form the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, the Mid-Atlantic Region Media Arts Fellowship Program and the National Endowment for the Arts. In addition, he has been the recipient of three Media Fellowship Awards. His latest documentary, "When The Video Came", slated for release summer of 2003, considers the early formation of video as an art form and profiles many of the original pioneers in the field. ________________________________________ Fiona Cherbak, Director of Business Development - Mary-Margaret.com Chair, Public Relations Committee – Women In Games International Fiona Cherbak has enjoyed a career in recruiting, marketing, public relations and strategic planning for clients in digital entertainment and technology, such as Origin Systems, Kinesoft Development, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and Intelligent Transportation Systems Council. In her dual roles of head of business development and senior account manager for leading game recruiting firm Mary-Margaret.com, Fiona draws on her expertise as a recruitment specialist for Walt Disney Feature Animation, where she was responsible for recruiting over 300 animation artists and programmers for seven feature films. Fiona is a steering committee member and Chairperson of the PR Committee for Women in Games International, recently penning an article for game industry news site Next Generation News entitled “The 100 Most Influential Women in Games.” She is member of IGDA and has served on the advisory board of the Women’s Game Conference. |
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