Game Career Seminar
October 3rd, 2008
Los Angeles Convention Center
Los Angeles, CA
Speakers:
Andy Schatz
CEO & Founder (Pocketwatch Games)
Andy Schatz, CEO and founder of Pocketwatch Games, was the sole programmer, designer, and producer of
Wildlife Tycoon: Venture Africa and
Venture Arctic, the first two titles released by the company. Schatz is also a defender of the indie game-maker's lifestyle and hosted the 2007 and 2008 Independent Games Festival awards ceremonies. In addition to his work at Pocketwatch Games, Schatz recently served as executive producer on Green.com, an online virtual world, and as a game designer, programmer, and development director for game developers TKO Software and Presto Studios. He graduated from Amherst College with a degree in computer science and fine arts.
Dan Paladin
Artist (The Behemoth)
Dan Paladin is The Behemoth’s only artist and one of the company's three co-founders. The Behemoth's first title was
Alien Hominid, released in 2004, which won more than 15 awards on the PlayStation 2, GameCube, and Game Boy Advance. The title was later reinvented in 2007 as
Alien Hominid HD for Xbox Live Arcade.
Castle Crashers, The Behemoth's second award winning title, was released on Xbox Live Arcade in late August of this year. Before helping build The Behemoth, Paladin worked for both Presto Studios and Gratuitous Games as an animator and designer.
Fiona Cherbak
Chair (IGDA’s Women in Games Special Interest Group)
Fiona Cherbak is an accomplished recruiting executive in the game industry, expertly placing professionals in key positions at leading game, mobile, and internet companies around the world. Currently, she is chair of the IGDA’s Women in Games Special Interest Group, as well as an advisory board member for Women in Games International, SXSW Screenburn 2009, and America’s Video Game Expo. Cherbak has participated as a game career speaker at numerous industry and college events. She is an editorialist on hiring practices and diversity issues in the game industry, and is often interviewed by mainstream media on game career-related topics.
Carey Chico
Executive Art Director (Pandemic Studios)
Carey has been working in the game industry since 1996, after graduating from UCLA with a bachelor's in design. His foray into the game industry began when he started at Activision Studios as an animator on Planetfall. From there, he rose through the ranks as lead artist on Battlezone and then as a founding member of Pandemic Studios where he completed Battlezone 2 as art director. After working again as art director on Star Wars: The Clone Wars, he stepped up as studio art director to oversee more global and long term art interests. Some of the most recent titles under his supervision are Full Spectrum Warrior, Battlefront, Mercenaries, and Destroy All Humans.
Tim Lang
Lead Game Designer
(Spin Master Studio)
Tim Lang is a game designer currently at Spin Master Studios in southern California. Previously, he was a game designer at Electronic Arts, where we worked on the Medal of Honor series. He started his professional careers in video game development as a level designer on several Might and Magic titles.
Mark Mencher
CEO (Game Recruiter)
Marc Mencher is a recognized game industry career specialist and CEO of GameRecruiter.He has been responsible for helping innumerable job seekers secure jobs with leading game companies for nearly 20 years. Mencher is a regular speaker at game industry conferences, college campuses, and job fairs around the country.His career development articles are published on a monthly basis in various online publications, and he is the author of the widely-acclaimed career primer, Get in the Game: Careers in the Game Industry. He is currently on the national advisory boards for Westwood College and The Art Institutes.
Jim Rivers
Hiring Manager (Obsidian Entertainment)
Jim Rivers is the hiring manager at Obsidian Entertainment, a game studio (
Neverwinter Nights 2,
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2) in Orange County, Calif.
Rivers previously worked as a career advisor at The Art Institute California-Orange County, assisting animation and game development students. He’s also an Art Institute alum.
Dr. Gerri Sinclair
Executive Director (Centre for Digital Media,
Great Northern Way Campus)
Dr. Gerri Sinclair is the executive director of the Masters of Digital Media Program at Vancouver's Centre for Digital Media, Great Northern Way Campus. She has more than 20 years' experience spanning the fields of internet and new media technology, entrepreneurial business, academic research, and government policy. She holds a Ph.D. in Renaissance drama as well as an honorary Doctor of Science in Computing Science from the University of British Columbia.
Scott Steinberg
Founder (Embassy Multimedia Consultants) and Author (Get Rich Playing Games and Videogame Marketing and PR)
Scott Steinberg is an author, entrepreneur, and TV and radio host covering the video game industry. A frequent guest on ABC, CBS, and CNN, he’s also founder of game industry advisory Embassy Multimedia Consultants, and has covered technology for more than 300 outlets, including The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, Playboy, Rolling Stone, and TV Guide. A self-publisher and industry talent scout, he’s also creator of DigitalTrends.com’s documentary series Players Only.His recent books include Get Rich Playing Games and The Videogame Style Guide co-author.
