LABoral will host a Gamelab Academy conference which focuses on the secrets of creating video games
Five renowned experts will explain some of the secrets in design, marketing, music, development and video game business
Image of 'Homo Ludens Ludens', one of the videogames exhibition trilogy, produced by the Art Centre. Photo: LABoral
On Friday 26 October LABoral will host a conference by Gamelab Academy in which five experts from the sector explain to the participants some of the secrets of an industry that has successfully combined all the creative disciplines known so far. Subject areas including design, marketing, music, development and the strategy and business of video games will be dealt with by the speakers. The session has been organised by Gamelab and the Academia de las Artes y las Ciencias Interactivas [Spanish Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences] with the support of LABoral Centro de Arte y Creación Industrial, Gijón, the European Business and Innovation Centre Network for Asturias (CEEI Asturias), the University of Oviedo, the Colegio Oficial de Ingenieros en Informática del Principado de Asturias [Official Association of Computer Science Engineers of Asturias], the Colegio Oficial de Ingenieros Técnicos en Informática del Principado de Asturias [Official Association of Technical Computer Engineers of Asturias] and Autodesk.
Video games have for some time been the form of digital leisure with the most followers worldwide. The inexorable growth of this industry opens up a labour market which is as appealing as it is unexplored for the vast majority of students and undergraduates. Spain is the fourth European market and the sixth globally in terms of its video game consumption, with a turnover of approximately €2,000 million in 2011. Out of a total population of 47 million, it is estimated that there are more than 15 million Spanish players, who spend around 21 million hours a day connected to video games.
Gamelab Academy is a dissemination project founded by Gamelab in collaboration with the Academia Española de las Artes y las Ciencias Interactivas [Spanish Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences] which aims to bring young people closer to all the creative and career opportunities in the world of video game creation. It’s a place to learn about its key characteristics and find guidance with the help of the most important professionals and companies in the industry.
Gamelab Academy’s activities deal with issues of a technical, artistic and business nature such as design and gameplay balance, character and setting creation, modelling and animation, console and mobile device programming, music and sound composition and game marketing.
For its part, LABoral has played a pioneering role in Spain by its incorporation of the video game in an art centre, with the trilogy of exhibitions Gameworld, Playware and Homo Ludens Ludens as the best example. The Centro de Arte y Creación Industrial in Gijón has this year taken up again this programme area, creating a work group to develop a project by Miriam Ruiz. The group has been meeting weekly since last March and will continue until this coming December. During these sessions, young people from between 14 and 18 years old explore aspects such as the creation, technical development and socio-educational role of video games with the overall aim of encouraging creativity and fostering a space for knowledge exchange and analysing the language of video games.
Registration to attend the Gamelab Academy conference can be made on the Gamelab website (http://www.gamelabacademy.com). Places are limited and will be allocated on a first come first served basis.
The Programme
The Gamelab Academy programme will take place according to the following schedule:
09.15-9.30 am. Presentation of the Conference, Iván Fernández Lobo, founder and director of Gamelab-
09.30-10.30 am. [Game design] Diseñando cuesta arriba [Designing Uphill], Roberto Álvarez de Lara, founder and director of Over the Top Games.
10.30-11.30 am. [Marketing and operation] El día después de un juego [The Day After a Game], Fernando Piquer, CEO of Bitoon Games.
11.30-12.30 am. [Music and sound] Este juego me suena [This Game Sounds Familiar], Óscar Araujo, composer and musician.
12.30-1.30 pm. [Production and development] Cómo coordinar eficientemente múltiples artes y talentos [How to Efficiently Coordinate Multiple Arts and Talents], Raúl Herrero, Production Director of Digital Legends.
1.30-2.30 pm. [Strategy and Business] Nuevos modelos de juego y negocio [New Game and Business Models], Gonzo Suárez, video games creator.
More information:
http://www.gamelabacademy.com
