SCAD’s Game Developers eXchange is just two weeks away and I’m getting excited. Even though there’s not any audio specific panels this year, it’s definitely going to be a great opportunity for networking. Register online at the official SCAD GDX site. After the jump you can read my edit of the Georgia Gamerz recent post about the expo.

The Savannah College of Art and Design-Atlanta will host the fourth annual Game Developers eXchange April 10-11, at 1600 Peachtree St. This year’s conference will spotlight alternative gaming and emerging modes of design, production and distribution. Matthew Maloney, animation professor and academic director of the animation program at SCAD-Atlanta, said, “We’re breaking away from the constricted classification of gaming simply as ‘digital first-person shooters for teenage males.’ We are proud to have representatives from virtually every aspect of the games community involved in this two-day event.”

Eric Zimmerman, game designer, educator, entrepreneur and co-founder of Gamelab, will be the keynote speaker at GDX 2008. Gamelab creates and self-publishes innovative single-player and multiplayer games that are distributed online, on mobile phones and through retail, including the hit downloadable games “Diner Dash” and “Miss Management.” Zimmerman’s keynote address, “Going Indie: An Independent Game Developer’s Survival Guide,” draws from 14 years of experience to share the highs and lows of being an “indie” in the game industry. From cash flow to company culture, he will cover the tangibles and intangibles of what it takes to survive. Along the way, he’ll address bigger questions, such as what’s wrong with the game industry today, why other forms of pop culture seem to have more independent creators, and what might be in store for the future of independent games. More than 20 industry experts will be on hand to share their expertise and behind-the-scenes knowledge.

This year’s list of distinguished guests include:

• Brenda Brathwaite - A 26-year veteran of the video game industry, Brathwaite is an award-winning game designer and professor of interactive design and game development at SCAD. In 2006, Brathwaite was named one of the “100 most influential women in the game industry” by Next Generation magazine and her peers.

• Greg Costikyan - Costikyan is CEO of Manifesto Games, a start-up devoted to creating available paths to market for independently developed games. At the most recent Game Developers’ Conference, he received the Maverick Award for his tireless promotion of independent games.
• Chris Crawford - Crawford has written five published books including “The Art of Computer Game Design” and “Balance of Power.” He founded and served as chairman of the Computer Game Developers’ Conference, now known as the Game Developers’ Conference.
• Matt Dominianni - Dominianni is the lead machinima director for The Electric Sheep Company, the top virtual worlds developer, and founder of ILL Clan Inc.As a founder of ILL Clan, an award-winning 3-D movie-making team, he created his first machinima short in 1998. He recently directed machinima scenes in Second Life that appeared on “CSI: NY” on CBS, andwere seen by 11 million viewers.
• Tracy Fullerton - Fullerton is a game designer, author and co-director of USC’s Electronic Arts Game Innovation Lab. Prior to joining the USC faculty, Fullerton was president and founder of the interactive television game developer, Spiderdance Inc., whose games included NBC’s “Weakest Link,” MTV’s “webRIOT,” the WB’s “No Boundaries,” History Channel’s “HistoryIQ,” Sony Game Show Network’s “Inquizition” and TBS’s “Cyber Bond.”

GDX is a two-day event full of activities. Attendees can expect roundtable discussions, interactive gaming workshops, a reception and “Entelechy 2008” — SCAD’s annual student exhibition of interactive and game design artwork. Head to the official site for more info on GDX and on SCAD.

posted by Juan Baez III on 03.27.08 @ 10:09 am

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