Plenary Sessions

Wednesday, March 16, 1 p.m.

Kenyote Speaker – Andrew Glassner, Coyote Wind Studios - Interactive Storytelling

Storytelling and gaming are human pleasures enjoyed by people in every culture and era. Computers and the Internet are making fundamental changes to both activities, and this
is encouraging many people to pursue the long-held dream of merging them into one medium. Yet actually finding a way to create a mainstream hybrid of stories and games is proving to be very difficult.

Like early sailors setting out on the ocean in search of new lands and exotic foods, the waters of interactive fiction are dangerous and largely uncharted, and many sturdy ships have been lost. In this talk I'll point out where some of the more dangerous reefs are located, and where we might look instead to find favorable winds, calm seas, and unexplored lands with alluring new spices.

Andrew Glassner is a writer-director, and a consultant in story structure, interactive fiction, and computer graphics. He started working in 3D computer graphics in 1978, and has carried out research at the NYIT Computer Graphics Lab, Case Western Reserve University, the IBM TJ Watson Research Lab, the Delft University of Technology, Bell Communications Research, Xerox PARC, and Microsoft Research. The New York Times wrote, "Andrew Glassner [is one] of the most respected talents in the world of computer graphics research." (12/11/95).

Friday, March 18, 10:30 - NOON

Keynote: Developing Creative Leaders at EA: Bing Gordon, Chief Creative Officer – Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts has dedicated itself to re-engineering its hiring plans,to focus on recent university graduates and post-graduates. It has learned some surprising things about which programs best prepare new employees, which entry-level employees start fastest, and the kinds of young people who are emerging as new creative leaders in the fast-growing interactive entertainment business.

This talk will describe EA's direct-from-university hiring program, its award-winning “EA Academy” summer program and its continuing education activities for current employees. Gordon will talk about the kinds of skills that students should be learning in order to pursue careers in the rapidly growing video game industry.

Bing Gordon has served since 1993 as the chief creative officer and executive vice president of Electronic Arts. He is one of the senior members of the community of entertainment software marketing executives. His current role involves assuring that EA continues to produce highly innovative and creative products. Prior to 2003, Gordon served as senior vice president of Entertainment Production. Gordon received a B.A. from Yale University and an M.B.A. from Stanford University.