[SPEAKER] 10gen Solutions Architect, Blossom Coryat, on "Building Your First MongoDB Application"

Name: Blossom Coryat

Title: Solutions Architect

Organization: 10gen: Developer of MongoDB, 10gen offers production support, training, and consulting for the open source database. 10gen is led by seasoned executives and technologists with senior leadership experience at many of the worlds leading technology companies. Clients include Disney, Forbes, MTV, and Intuit.

 Bio: Blossom Coryat is a Solutions Architect at 10gen, who helps make customers successful with MongoDB.

Track: Web, Salon D, 10:45 am – 12:00 pm

Twitter: @booboojr

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/bcoryat

TOPIC:  Building your First MongoDB Application

Blossom will introduce the features of MongoDB by walking through how one can build a simple location-based application using MongoDB. The talk will cover the basics of MongoDB's document model, query language, aggregation framework and deployment architecture.

DIG IS LESS THAN 2 WEEKS AWAY! Register for the DIG conference to learn about building a MongoDB  app, among other workshops and seminars given by the industry's leading web and game development experts, at diglondon.ca.

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[GUEST POST] From the Perspective of Sagan Yee

 

Animator Sagan Yee is the moderator for DIG 2012's panel, "Press ‘A’ To Jump," co-presented by TAAFI, the Toronto Animation Arts Festival International. Sagan will guide the discussion as panel participants explore the importance of animation, design, and storytelling in game design and development. Below, Sagan shares her own perspective on the panel and on the industry:

   The panel we will be holding at DIG, "Press 'A' to Jump," is somewhat of an encore. It was first presented at TAAFI (Toronto Animation Arts Festival International), where it was one of two game-related events in the schedule. Our four panelists- Matt Hammill, Ryan Creighton, Cathy Feraday-Miller and Jay Edry- and I, myself, mostly got our start on the animation side before transitioning into interactive media. It is for this reason that I'm very excited that the panel will play out with a different audience.

 My adventures in indie gaming began when I first moved to Toronto in June of 2011. I had just graduated from Sheridan's Classical Animation program and had zero solid job prospect. For some reason, I decided to Google "video games toronto" on a whim. The first link that came up was an application for a game-making incubator aimed at women who had never made a game before, and who had very little industry experience. It was called the Difference Engine Initiative, and it was run by local organization Hand Eye Society as part of the TIFF Nexus series of creative jams. I signed up because I had a lot of free time and curiosity, but I had no idea the extent to which my participation would change my life. Since then, I've met so many amazing people and been offered so many cool opportunities (including the chance to moderate a panel at DIG 2012!) that it seems astounding that only a year ago, I thought I would be working at Subway.

The indie world is an incredibly diverse habitat for art and animation, which is all the more fascinating considering that games are a medium in which creativity is often heavily influenced by economy. In the process of making my first game for DEI, a somber adventure tale called "Icarus," I discovered many of the subtle, challenging ways that 2D animation for games can differ from film or television. Many of these differences were things I had casually observed as a player, but taken for granted. For one thing, two frames can go a lot farther in games than in traditional animation. Even in an old-school pixel-art title like Chrono Trigger, which was and still is considered a blockbuster in terms of production values, you can usually count the number of frames in any given character action on one hand. A walk cycle might be four frames, a punch, slightly more or less. As Douglas Adams might say: That's not the reduction of it, that's the beauty of it.

Nowadays, games can and do look like anything their creators might wish; but as our panelists will tell you, whether your art style is made of polygons or looks like it was hand-drawn with ink and watercolor paint, special consideration must be given to user input and how the onscreen visuals are interpreted as part of the "flow" of gameplay. Our panelists will be addressing these sorts of artistic and technical challenges, as well as their experiences moving from linear, traditional forms of animation to the interactive medium. We hope to see you there!

Sagan Yee is a recent graduate of Sheridan College's Classical Animation program, where she made a four-minute film in Flash about a malfunctioning particle accelerator that causes mini black holes to consume Toronto. Her first introduction to Toronto's indie game community was as a participant and later co-coordinator of the Difference Engine Initiative, a woman-focused game-making incubator run by TIFF.nexus and the Hand Eye Society. Currently, Sagan divides her working life between the TIFF Film Reference Library, freelancing on a variety of projects ranging from kid's flash games, t-shirt designs, and animating on Disney's Motorcity. She spends her free time dabbling, scheming, and ruminating.

 

Interested in this panel? Register for DIG here. 

FOLLOW us on Twitter @DIGLondon and LIKE our Facebook page for updates, announcements, and special offers.

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[OPEN CALL] Canada's Got Game Talent Portfolio Pitch

Canada’s Got Game Talent

Meet Your Favorite Game Company and Show Them What You Got!

Hurry and Register: Only 20 spots available for the Pitch Competition!

The DIGx Portfolio Pitch is an opportunity for aspiring game development students to have their portfolio or demo reviewed by industry professionals. Participants will be given 10 minutes to present their resume/portfolio/demo reel to game professionals from Antic Entertainment, Big Blue Bubble, Big Viking Games and Digital Extremes and will be given a critique on the next steps to further their careers.

Pick Your Company: (5 reviews per hour)

• Big Viking Games (mobile games)
• Digital Extremes (large scale console games)
• Big Blue Bubble (mobile games)
• Antic Entertainment (flash web games)

Your Pitch can highlight on areas including:

• Concept art
• 3D art
• Animation
• Game / Technical Demonstration
• Audio Work 

Pitch requirements:

• Artwork - JPGs or .PNGs in a resolution adequate for display over projector and/or HD TV, and should not exceed 1920 x 1080
• Animation Demo Reel – DVD submission
• Audio Reel – DVD or CD submission
• Game / Technical Demo – a working demo on your own equipment connected to an HD TV

Note:

• A maximum of 20 confirmed participants will be selected.
• All Pitches will take place between 10:30 am and 3:30 pm on Wednesday, November 14th at the DIG 2012 Conference.
• DIG and participating game professionals accept no responsibility for your content or ideas generated from that content.
• Do not disclose any content or ideas which you consider proprietary.
• DIG 2012 reserved the right to change the DIGx Portfolio Pitch as needed.
• Not eligible to High School Students
• You must be currently enrolled in a College / University
• You must register online to be eligible to participate. Keep handy your registration receipt, as you will need theOrder Number of your purchase. Go to Register
• Only one company per registration can be selected
• Confirmed Participants will be required to check-in 30 minutes prior to their scheduled time or risk losing their time slot to an onsite candidate.

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[PANEL] Is the Mobile / Web World for You?

Panel: Is the Mobile / Web World for You?

9:00am – 10:00am

Theatre

Web professionals meet together to share their wisdom and advice on how to best advance your abilities to secure a successful career in the world of web.

Students: Want to show off your gaming portfolio to the industry professionals from Antic Entertainment, Big Blue Bubble, Big Vioking Games and Digital Extremes at DIG 2012? Further your career and register for Canada's got Game Talent online at www.DigLondon.ca

1. Moderator Hanan Lutfiyya, Western

2. Panel: Jeremy Prevoe, rtraction

3. Panel: Michael Grant, Digital Echidna (photo: YES)

4. Panel: Jon Clark, Hall mc

5. Panel: Jim Cooper, Fanshawe College

1. Moderator: Hanan Lutfiyya

Organization: Western

Bio: Hanan Lutfiyya is a Professor and Chair in the Department of Computer Science at Western University. She has been recognized for her research, teaching and service with a Western Faculty Scholar Award. She has been on the University Students' Council Teaching Honour Roll.

2. Panellist: Jeremy Prevoe

Organization: rtraction

Bio: Jeremy Prevoe is a Code Monkey who works away in rTraction’s brightly-lit development mines. Having studied at the University of Waterloo, Jeremy moved to London to join its vibrant technology community. He loves to work on anything that faces users, and is always looking for something new to challenge him. Case in point: Jeremy got his start in game development before making his move to the digital agency world. He now spends his hours pumping out interactive websites like the one you're looking at right now.

3. Panellist: Michael Grant

Senior Consultant

Organization: Digital Echidna

Bio:Michael Grant at is the Senior Consultant at Digital Echidna, an industry leader in providing full service open-source digital marketing solutions. Michael combines pragmatism with over 15 years of interactive design, development and marketing experience to offer innovative solutions his clients.

Michael's rich experiences in both the entrepreneurial and agency worlds have given him the opportunity to work with both local and global clients that include RIM - Blackberry, Wyndham Hotel Group, CBC’s PlayOn!, Maple Leaf Foods, Symantec, Western Fair District, Roxul, Yamaha and many more.

4. Panelist:  Jon Clark

Developer

Organization: Hall MC

Bio: Jon is a web developer at Hall Marketing Communications, a digital and traditional advertising agency that's been doing business in London for almost 40 years. He has a broad interest in the web, from user interface design to the more technical aspects of application development. Jon is a graduate of the collaborative program between Western and Fanshawe called Media Theory and Production, and was employed at Western developing administrative tools before joining

.

5. Panelist:  Jim Cooper

Professor

 Organization: Fanshawe College

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[PANEL] So you want to make Games?

Panel:  So you want to make games?

900 am – 10:00 pm

Salon A/B

Game professionals meet together to share their wisdom and advice on how to best advance your abilities to secure a successful career in gaming.

Students: Want to show off your gaming portfolio to the industry professionals from Antic Entertainment, Big Blue Bubble, Big Vioking Games and Digital Extremes at DIG 2012? Further your career and register for Canada's got Game Talent online at www.DigLondon.ca

1. Moderator: Mike Katchebaw Associate Professor Western

2. Panel: Mat Tremblay Art Director Digital Extremes.

3. Panel: Robyn Bremner QA Tester Big Blue Bubble

4. Panel: Ryan Ferguson Programmer Big Blue bubble

5. Panel: Dan Rickard Professor Fanshawe College

1. Moderator: Mike Katchebaw

Department of Computer Science                   

Organization: The University of Western Ontario

Bio: Michael Katchabaw is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Western Ontario and a game development expert.

Session title: Tools of the Trade for Programming Video Games

2. Panelist: Mat Tremblay

Art Director

Organization: Digital Extremes

Bio:In the 14 years Mat Tremblay has been with Digital Extremes, he has mastered every aspect of the 3D art trade. From textures to models, he can create it all and has for the majority of the games the studio has developed over the years including all iterations of theUnreal® franchise, Dark Sector®, the multiplayer portion of BioShock®2 and most recently,The Darkness II. Entirely self-taught, his easy going yet driven spirit and eye for detail led him to his current role as Art Director where he’s busy fine-tuning the art style forStar Trek, the game planned for the upcoming movie sequel.

3. Panelist: Robyn Bremnar

QA Tester

Organization: Big Blue Bubble

Bio: Robyn got her start in games as a Quality Assurance Analyst. She has since held the positions of Technical Designer, QA Lead and is now an Assistant Producer at Big Blue Bubble. She has shipped a wide variety of titles including My Singing Monsters and Resident Evil. Robyn is graduate of York University with an interdisciplinary degree in Communication and Psychology.

4. Panelist: Ryan Ferguson

Programmer

Organization: Big Blue Bubble

Bio: Ryan is a graduate from the University of Western Ontario with a degree in Computer Science and Game Development. After graduating a year and a half ago, Ryan was immediately picked up by the team at Big Blue Bubble and has worked on multiple released titles for the iOS and Android platforms

5. Panelist: Dan Rickard

Professor

Organization: Fanshawe College

Bio: Accomplished 3d artist in animation and character design -has worked on close to 40 games -Batman Arkham City / Arkham Asylum, Borderlands, Battlefield series and more.

Web site http://www.fanshawec.ca/programs-courses/full-time-programs/anc1-intro

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[PANEL] The Evolution of Web Design

Panel: The Evolution of Web Design
4:00pm – 5:00pmTheatre


1. Moderator: Justin Ogglesby, Hall mc

2. Panel: David Billson, rtraction

3. Panel: Andrew McClenaghan, Digital Echnidna

4. Panel: Jonathan Kochis, Resolution Interactive Media




Moderator: Justin Ogglesby
Hall MC
Bio: Associate Director of Digital Media, Raconteur, Oldest Sibling, Wanna Be Athlete, Community Volunteer, Socialite, Human Being
http://www.hall-assoc.com/




Panelist: David Billson
rtraction
Bio: David Billson is husband to one, father to six and employer of 20 in the London region, through his role as President of rTraction Canada, Inc, a digital agency interested in positive change. As a local entrepreneur in the online marketing and web development space for over 15 years, David has worked with a wide spectrum of businesses from dot-com start-ups to Fortune 100 companies. He also serves as Vice President of the Pillar Nonprofit Network Board of Directors.




Panelist: Andrew McClenaghan
Digital Echidna
Bio: Owner and Lead Developer, Andrew McClenaghan, holds a Bachelor of Mathematics majoring in Computer Science from the University of Waterloo. He has worked full-time in small and large companies throughout his career, founding Echidna in 2001. McClenaghan has experience managing all aspects of software development from requirements analysis to software production to quality assurance and deployment. Andrew is a father of two young children and currently sits on the Fanshawe College Board of Governors.

Panelist: Jonathan Kochis
Resolution Interactive Media
Bio: Along with Brendan Farr-Gaynor, Jonathan is a founding partner of ResIM; a web and mobile development and marketing firm with offices in London and Toronto. Since launching ResIM full-time in 2006 Jonathan has helped grow the business from three to 13 employees with a client list that includes Samsonite Canada, 3M Canada, Staples, Seneca College, the Middlesex-London Health Unit and the London Health Sciences Centre. In his account management and strategy role Jonathan is responsible for sales and helping clients plan and execute project and campaign strategies. Finally, Jonathan is an accomplished bio writer and enjoys doing so on behalf of Andrew Procter and Geoff Villeneuve.

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[SPEAKER] Michael Feeney on An Hour in the Life of a Game Programming Student

See Michael Feeney speak on November 14, 2012 at the DIG Conference

Name: Michael Feeney Jr.

Organization: Fanshawe College

Title: Coordinator, Game Development - Advanced Programming

Bio: Michael is the coordinator of the “Game Development – Advanced Programming” graduate certificate program at Fanshawe College in London, Ontario.

Web site: http://fanshawec.ca/programs-courses/full-time-programs/gdp1-intro

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FanshaweCollege

Track: Student, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm

TOPIC: An Hour in the Life of a Game Programming Student
Many students with a desire to “get into the game industry” are often unclear about the specific role they are aspiring to fill. Modern game development teams are divided into fairly specific disciplines including: producers, artists, designers, programmers, etc. We will look at what a typical “game programming” student would experience, by walking through the development and modification of a small C++, DirectX 11 game.

Need more DIG in your life? LIKE our Facebook page for conference updates and interesting anecdotes and follow @DIGLondon on twitter.

Register now and save!
Early Bird Registrations are available until October 31, 2012.

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