SCAD GamingFest schedule
Thursday, April 4
11:30 a.m.
VR Edu-tainment
Presented by: Dana Dojnik, Managing Partner, Foundry 45
Scott Driscoll, senior producer and partner, Foundry 45
Camille Nettles (B.F.A., graphic design, 2015), designer, The Weather Company, an IBM business
Location: Mainstage
Foundry 45 demonstrates how VR technology is used by clients like The Weather Channel to educate employees and consumers using game XR.
1 p.m.
Feedback Loops in Game Development
Panelists: Micaela Hays-Brewer, community specialist, SMITE, Hi-Rez Studios
Molly Joseph, community specialist, Paladins, Hi-Rez Studios
Isiah Turner, senior community specialist, SMITE, Hi-Rez Studios
Location: SCADshow, Stage 2
To make a game, particularly one as a service over many years and dozens of updates, it is essential to get feedback from all angles: the team, your coworkers, others in the company, others in the industry, and players current, past and future. Join Hi-Rez Studios' Micaela Hays-Brewer, Molly Joseph and Isiah Turner from the SMITE and Paladins community teams as they talk about thriving at the juncture of feedback loops within the game development ecosystem.
2:30 p.m.
Characters, Emotions, and Games
Presented by: Harrison Pink, senior game designer, Blizzard Entertainment
Location: SCADshow, Mainstage
In a game, character development can be the difference between a passing fad and an explosive franchise. Learn the secret to creating narratives that will encourage emotional attachment among your audience. Join Harrison Pink (B.F.A., interactive design and game development, 2008) as he draws from experience working on Mafia 3, The Walking Dead seasons 1 and 2, and co-creating Tales from the Borderlands, to discuss building fully realized characters and compelling stories around them.
4 p.m.
Gaming Off the Grid
Presented by: Alex Lieu, chief creative officer, 42 Entertainment
Location: SCADshow, Mainstage
Today's virtual worlds are the daydreams of yesterday. Join chief creative officer Alex Lieu of 42 Entertainment on a wild trip that started at a 1980s video game arcade, hopped into 3-D virtual worlds and played out across the world's city streets. See how deep fictional narratives, distributed storytelling and the ultimate in fan engagement collide through one of the most elaborate immersive alternate reality games ever launched.
4 p.m.
SCADpro + GE Transportation
Panelists: Ryan Leveille, global design director, GE Transportation
Eric Allen, SCAD associate chair of interactive design and game development
Location: SCADshow, Stage 2
Learn how SCAD students drove an immersive experience for data management for GE Transportation through SCADpro. A GE Transportation rep discusses why the company turned to SCAD interactive design and game development students for an exploration of locomotive transportation’s future using AR/VR technology and how developing concepts for Magic Leap and HTC Vive Pro showed the potential of these technologies as problem-solving tools.
Operating in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, SCADpro solves creative and business challenges for Fortune 500 clients, launches alumni brands through SCAD+, and provides executive education at the world's preeminent site for the study of design and creative business thinking.
6 p.m.
Inside Out screening and discussion
Location: SCADshow, Mainstage
Celebrated with Golden Globe and Academy Award wins for Best Animated Feature, Inside Out (2016) takes place in the mind of 11-year-old Riley. There, five personified emotions help guide her through life, striking universal themes that resonate with audiences of all ages.
A discussion with Oscar-nominated screenwriter Meg LeFauve follows.
Friday, April 5
10 a.m.
Not Just Playing Games: Career Success After SCAD
Panelists: Eric Lorenz (B.F.A., sound design, 2014), sound designer, Wabi Sabi Sound
Kevin Bryant (B.F.A., film and television, 2016), producer, Antfood
Kat De Shields-Moon (M.F.A. writing), public relations and local partnerships manager, Skillshot Media
Harrison Pink (B.F.A. interactive design and game development, 2008), senior game designer, Blizzard Entertainment
Annick Huber (B.F.A., illustration, 2012), UX/UI designer, Brightwell
Molly Proffitt (B.F.A., interactive design and game development, 2012), CEO, co-founder and game designer, Ker-Chunk Games
Location: SCADshow, Stage 2
Join SCAD alumni working in all facets of the game and real-time entertainment industries for a candid discussion about their paths to success.
11:30 a.m.
The Wild World of Writing for Games
Panelists: Laura Jacqmin, writer and supervising producer, Minecraft, The Walking Dead, Batman, multiple Telltale titles, Get Shorty
Micah Wright, chair, Writers Guild of America Videogame Writers Caucus, Call of Duty, Looney Tunes franchise games, Transformers, Destroy All Humans, Ratchet and Clark; creator of Samsung’s The Blu VR
Pierre Shorette, co-founder and CCO, AdHoc Studio
Location: SCADshow, Mainstage
Whether it's a huge AAA game or an online interactive novel, good storytelling requires imaginative, strategic writing. Meet successful game writers as they talk about pitching and writing choice-based narratives, how the writers room in a game company differs from those at a television series or film and the many different ways writers are utilized in the game-development process.
1 p.m.
Giving Games Gusto: Audio Design for Interactive Media
Panelists: Chris Rickwood, composer, Rickwood Music
Ariel Gross, audio director, QC Games
Eric Lorenz (B.F.A., sound design, 2014), sound designer, Wabi Sabi Sound
Kevin Bryant (B.F.A., film and television, 2016; B.F.A., sound design, 2016), producer, Antfood
Location: SCADshow, Stage 2
From gunfire in outer space to beat-boxing robots to the music of tiny twinkling planets, audio designers give games gusto. This panel of audio-design professionals breaks down the keys to successfully creating the myriad sounds for games and interactive media.
2:30 p.m.
Producing Esports with Skillshot Media
Panelists: Kat De Shields-Moon (M.F.A. writing), public relations and local partnerships manager, Skillshot Media
Graham "Hinduman" Hadfield, eSports Manager, Skillshot Media
Brad Weir, broadcast designer, Skillshot Media
Location: SCADshow, Mainstage
The explosive popularity of esports requires tournaments and events to be covered live with many events streaming globally. This opens the door for production and design jobs in directing, shoutcasting, graphic design and more. Join Skillshot Media for a captivating and enlightening look at how they produce esports events around the globe.
4 p.m.
Motion Capture Performance for Interactive Design
Presented by: Hamid Thompson, motion capture performer
Location: SCADshow, Stage 2
As digital animation advances, big-time game developers are embracing the form of acting known as motion capture performance. Popularized by "King of Mo-Cap" Andy Serkis in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, motion capture is becoming an integral tool in the game developer and filmmaker arsenal, and an exciting new challenge for actors. Join an esteemed panel of performers for an in-depth look at the process and challenges involved in creating memorable and realistic performances.
5:30 p.m.
Trendwatch Panel
Panelists: Alex Lieu, chief creative officer, 42 Entertainment
Auverin Morrow, SMITE eSports community manager, Skillshot Media
Andrew Greenberg, president, Georgia Game Developers Association
Ronald Williams II, founder, Aurora Game Development Club; chair, International Game Developers Association Atlanta
Location: SCADshow, Mainstage
A look at the future of the fastest-growing industry in the entertainment business with industry leaders and luminaries.
7 p.m.
Sneak Preview of Little
Location: SCADshow, Mainstage
Regina Hall of Girls Trip and Marsai Martin of Black-ish both star as Jordan Sanders. Hall plays the adult Jordan, a ruthless tech mogul, and Martin wakes up in her penthouse apartment as a 13-year-old Jordan right before a do-or-die presentation. Issa Rae (Insecure) portrays Jordan's browbeaten assistant, the only person who knows her secret. Little is an irreverent comedy examining the price of success, the power of sisterhood and the gift of second chances.
Saturday, April 6
1 p.m.
SCAD vs. SCAD Super Smash Bros.
Location: SCADshow, Mainstage
It's SCAD vs. SCAD in a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate showdown.
Players TBD
1 p.m.
SCAD Game Program Q-and-A
Location: SCADshow, Stage 2
Learn more about the SCAD interactive design and game development program and related degree programs, and see demonstrations of student and faculty work.
SCAD GamingFest passes
Passes for SCAD GamingFest are now available for purchase online. Orders will not be taken over the phone. Passes may be purchased only at the SCADshow Box Office once the festival begins.
A school for every creative pursuit
SCAD offers more than 40 programs of study across 11 schools. Top ranked by The Hollywood Reporter, Art & Object, The Rookies, Red Dot Design, and more, The University for Creative Careers has more programs and specializations than any other art and design university in the U.S.
School of Animation and Motion
SCAD School of Animation and Motion students deliver captivating moments across multiple platforms. From illuminating fantastical realms and characters to expertly integrating motion media in virtual studio environments and public spaces, animation, motion media design, and visual effects students develop the acumen, creativity, and dexterity necessary to launch their creative careers.
School of Creative Technology
Combining technical mastery with artistic sensibility, students become architects of the imagination in the SCAD School of Creative Technology as they pioneer immersive realities and award-winning attractions, video games, and mobile apps. With a detailed curriculum that prepares students for a wide range of careers in different media, the School of Creative Technology offers degrees in applied AI, game development, immersive reality, interactive design and game development, and themed entertainment design.
School of Film and Acting
With resources that rival Hollywood studios, award-winning professors, stunning locations, professionally run casting offices, and stellar film and television festivals, the SCAD School of Film and Acting is the ideal place to launch into the film and television industry. The SCAD acting, cinematography, editing, film and television, production design, and sound design programs prepare students to command roles onstage, on screen, and behind the scenes in films, live performances, TV sitcoms, dramas, music videos, commercials, and more.
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