Two days of streaming conversations and panels led by industry leaders and SCAD alumni include ‘Industry Insights: The ABCs of NFTs,’ ‘Building the Metaverse,’ ‘Alumni Voices,’ and ‘In Conversation: Inclusive Character Design in Gaming.’
The Savannah College of Art and Design’s SCAD GamingFest is returning online April 28-29. The event features two days of streaming programs with special guests and sessions dedicated to emerging technology and trends in game development, digital media, interactive design, visual effects, and animation.
“SCAD Bees develop industry-defining, genre-shaping, award-winning games like Home Is Where the Hearth Is from the moment they step on campus, which is why Bees get hired by the biggest gaming companies in the world,” commented SCAD president and founder Paula Wallace. “Sony, Nintendo, and Activision Blizzard seek out SCAD grads to build and transform the future of the industry. SCAD’s investment in our Bees and next-level technology such as SCAD’s XR stage are unparalleled and rival every major studio globally. SCAD is where gaming giants hire and where innovators take flight.”
Sessions will cover topics such as NFTs in gaming, the gaming metaverse, state-of-the-art advances in virtual production and immersive reality, and creating celestial drone installations for gaming and entertainment. Featured guests will include industry leaders from 42 Entertainment, Epic Games, and Riot Games. SCAD alumni working in interactive design will share insight into their career paths.
SCAD student work will be presented with a look inside the award-winning game Home Is Where the Hearth Is and an on-demand animation showcase featuring a range of styles and techniques in student produced films.
The SCAD GamingFest Icon Award will be presented to actor and producer Keith David, in recognition of his storied career and extensive voice work in gaming. Actor, screenwriter, director, and producer David Hayter will also be honored with the SCAD GamingFest Outstanding Achievement in Entertainment Award in recognition of his notable career.
Panels and conversations streaming live include:
- Industry Insights: The ABCs of NFTs
- Games for Good: Schell Games’ Lost Recipes
- Building the Metaverse
- Behind the Magic: Virtual Production with Industrial Light & Magic’s StageCraft
- Special screening of Uncharted (available on digital Tuesday, April 26 and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-Ray, and DVD Tuesday, May 10)
SCAD student- and alumni-dedicated sessions include:
- Alumni Voices
- The Making of SCAD Student Game Home Is Where the Hearth Is
- Brief to Sky: Creative Problem Solving for Drone Shows
- In Conversation: Inclusive Character Design in Gaming
- Crafting Immersive Realities with 42 Entertainment/Animal Repair Shop
- Player Dynamics: Shared Experience Storytelling
- SCAD Animation Showcase, available on-demand through the entirety of the festival
Source: The Savannah College of Art and Design
Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.
