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An original online event showcasing & supporting new work and talent emerging from game design programs

February 17th Conference

If your school is not a Horizons partner, individual tickets are available for students and faculty. Tickets are also available for industry members.

Individual and Group Tickets

Conference Program

All conference sessions are on Zoom.
(Zoom links are available on our Discord.)
Sessions are listed in Eastern Time.
  • 11:00 AM EST

    Welcome & Introduction

    A few words from our organizers and what to expect for the day.

    Speaker: Lindsay Grace

  • 11:10 AM EST
    Game Show

    Meet & Greet

    Breakout room icebreaker sessions to meet and greet the other attendees.

  • 11:30 AM EST
    Game Jam

    Announcing the Hidden Heroes Game Jam

    Learn about the jam, how to join, the prizes, and more…

    Speaker: Bob DeSchutter

  • 12:00 PM EST
    Keynote

    Industry Keynote

    Horizons Conference Industry Keynote.

    Speaker: Paul Bellezza – Riot Games

  • 12:30 PM EST
    Playtesting

    Preparing for the April Horizons Playtesting

    Learn how to join the playtest as a tester or for your game!

  • 12:45 PM EST
    Keynote

    Alumni Keynote – MSU

    Hear from a grad about their experiences after leaving school.

    Speaker: Brooke Johnson 

  • 1:00 PM EST
    Presentation

    Preparing Your Portfolio: Perspectives from a pro

    Polished portfolios can make or break an application. Learn from portfolio pros on how to best organize and present your work.

    Speaker: Tim Dean – Forza Franchise

  • 1:30 PM EST
    Presentation

    Preparing for Horizons Portfolio Review

    Info session for those participating in the peer-to-peer portfolio reviews.

    Speaker: Andy Phelps

  • 1:45 PM EST
    Keynote

    Alumni Keynote – Purdue University

    Hear from a grad about their experiences after leaving school.

    Speaker: Jeff Hanna 

  • 2:00 PM EST
    Presentation

    Fostering Diversity in the Game Industry

    Marginalized groups face additional challenges in the industry. In this panel, veterans will discuss how they have skillfully navigated difficult experiences, providing you with tools to foster diversity and growth for yourself and others.

    Speakers: Kat Andler, Aaron Trammel
    Moderator: Colleen Macklin

  • 2:30 PM EST
    Keynote

    Alumni Keynote – USC

    Hear from a grad about their experiences after leaving school.

    Speaker: Loan Verden
    Moderator: Jonathan Elmergreen

  • 2:45 PM EST
    Presentation

    Preparing for a Career in the Industry

    Learn best practices to prepare for and get hired in the industry.

    Fiona Cherbak, Dave Padilla, Cami Smith
    Moderator: Roger Altizer 

  • 3:30 PM EST
    Presentation

    Funding Your Game, Panel Perspectives

    There’s no cookie-cutter way to fund your game. Learn different avenues to get funding and the pros and cons of each.

    Speakers: Colm Seeley, Jessica Murrey
    Participating Moderator: Jason Della Rocca

  • 4:00 PM EST
    Keynote

    Alumni Keynote

    Hear from a grad about their experiences after leaving school.

    Speaker: Paulina Nicole Fiore
    Moderator: Jonathan Elmergreen

  • 4:15 PM EST
    Presentation

    Effective Networking in Games & Beyond

    Effective networking will advance your career path and create opportunities, both short and long-term. In this panel, veterans in the industry will help students learn skills for networking in the games industry, in-person and virtually.

    Speakers: Jennifer Javornik, Caitlin Krause 

    Moderator: Nika Nour

  • 4:45 PM EST
    Keynote

    Alumni Keynote – Northeastern

    Hear from a grad about their experiences after leaving school.

    Speaker: Cam Perry

  • 5:00 PM EST
    Presentation

    Alumni Keynote – Clark University

    Hear from a grad about their experiences after leaving school.

    Speaker: Nevin Flanagan

  • 5:15 PM EST
    Closing Address

    Social Networking & Gameplay

    Join us for fun!

Speakers

Lindsay Grace

University of Miami

Lindsay is Knight Chair in Interactive Media and Director of the MFA in Interactive Media at the University of Miami School of Communication. He is also Vice President of the Higher Education Video Game alliance and author of the best seller Black Game Studies, Doing Things with Games, and a design primer on love and affection in games.

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Lindsay Grace
University of Miami

Fiona Cherbak

Xbox Game Studios

As Lead Talent Program Manager at Xbox Game Studios, Fiona designs and drives inclusive hiring initiatives across all 1st-party studios, as well as employer branding and talent engagement efforts. Fiona was previously Talent Lead for Gaming Talent Acquisition at Xbox, and Talent Acquisition Lead, Worldwide Studios for Sony Interactive Entertainment.

FIND OUT MORE

Fiona Cherbak
Xbox Game Studios

Dave Padilla

Evening Star

As a veteran CEO and producer with over 20 years of experience in the games industry, Dave has played a critical role in shipping award-winning projects for major game studios.

FIND OUT MORE

Dave Padilla
Evening Star

Cami Smith

Diversity Collective, Seattle Indies

For the past two years, Cami has been a senior recruiter for ggLocators. She is directly recruiting for game studios across Canada. Previously, she worked at Full Sail University, building relationships with the entertainment industry and helping grads get their first jobs out of school.

FIND OUT MORE

Cami Smith
Diversity Collective, Seattle Indies

Cam Perry

Alumni

Cam Perry is a black, nonbinary designer and writer currently working as a designer for Schell Games. Outside of Schell, they are also working on a variety of projects part-time, most notably the dating-sim “Validate”.

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Cam Perry
Alumni

Terrasa Ulm

Clark University

Ulm is a professor of Interactive Media/Game Programming & Development and an emergent Media Artist specializing in XR, AI and HCI in fine art, and experimental games.

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Terrasa Ulm
Clark University

Jason Della Rocca

Execution Labs

Jason Della Rocca is a game business consultant, investor, funding advisor, and ecosystem strategist. He currently spends the bulk of his time advising game studio founders on funding and product strategy, and advising governments around the world how to better grow/support the success of their regional game development ecosystem.

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Jason Della Rocca
Execution Labs

Caitlin Krause

TRIPP, Inc.

Caitlin is a super-connector by nature of her curiosity, and she spoke at the Games for Change Summit in Abu Dhabi in October 2023. She is Chief Wellness Officer at TRIPP, Inc., Founder of MindWise, and author of the books “Mindful by Design” and “Designing Wonder.” She teaches the course “Digital Well-being by Design” at Stanford.

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Caitlin Krause
TRIPP, Inc.

Jennifer Javornik

Filament Games

Jennifer Javornik is a video game executive focused on game-based learning, esports, and immersive technologies.

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Jennifer Javornik
Filament Games

Colleen Macklin

Parsons School of Design

Colleen Macklin makes games and teaches at Parsons School of Design where she also co-directs the social justice and games research lab, PETLab. She’s a member of Local No. 12, creators of The Metagame and Dear Reader. She co-authored (with John Sharp) Games, Design and Play: A detailed look at iterative game design and Iterate: Ten Perspectives on Creativity and Failure.

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Colleen Macklin
Parsons School of Design

Bob De Schutter

Northeastern University

Bob De Schutter (MFA, PhD) is an award-winning game designer, researcher, educator, and advocate for meaningful play in later life. He is a Professor of Applied Game Design at Northeastern University, where he is jointly appointed between the College of Arts, Media and Design and the Khoury College of Computer Sciences. He is also the owner of award-winning game company Lifelong Games (LLC).

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Bob De Schutter
Northeastern University

Nika Nour

Genvid Entertainment

Nika joined Genvid Entertainment in 2021 and manages relationships with game developers, publishers, platforms, and IP holders, focused on producing and publishing massive interactive live events (MILEs). Genvid’s latest projects include Pacman, The Walking dead, and Silent Hill.

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Nika Nour
Genvid Entertainment

Kat Andler

Clark University Becker School of Design and Technology

Kat Andler is an Associate Teaching Professor in the Becker School of Design and Technology at Clark University. Kat specializes in UI/UX for game design and has experience in design, web development and motion graphics.

Kat Andler
Clark University Becker School of Design and Technology

Jessica Murrey

Wicked Saints Studios

Jess, an Emmy Award-winning storyteller, is an international peacebuilder turned game designer. CEO/Co-founder of Wicked Saints Studios, combining the power of movements with the pleasure of games.

FIND OUT MORE

Jessica Murrey
Wicked Saints Studios

Tim Dean

Turn 10, Xbox, Microsoft

With over 28 years’ experience working on many games and platforms; making games that push creative and technical boundaries with passionate teams is what drives Dean.

Tim Dean
Turn10, Xbox, Microsoft

Paul Bellezza

Riot Games

Paul Bellezza is a seasoned Director of Game Production who loves bringing ideas to life. He specializes in defining and championing vision for products, building collaborative teams and leading them to deliver value for players around the world. He currently works at the League Studio at Riot Games.

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Paul Bellezza
Riot Games

Casey O’Brien

University of Miami

MFA student in Interactive Media at the University of Miami, specializing in Game Design. Future Game Designer with Respawn Entertainment on Apex Legends.

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Casey O’Brien
University of Miami

Colm Seeley

Ukie

Colm was a volunteer, technical lead, metagame designer and community manager for IndieCade from 2010-2015 and is now Insight & Innovation Manager at Ukie, the trade body for video games in the UK.

FIND OUT MORE

Colm Seeley
Ukie

Aaron Trammell

UC Irvine

Aaron Trammell, Assistant Professor of Informatics and Core Faculty in Visual Studies, writes about how “Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering,” and board games inform the lived experiences of their players. Specifically, he’s interested in how these games further values of white privilege and hegemonic masculinity in geek culture.

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Aaron Trammell
UC Irvine

Jeff Hanna

Purdue University

Jeff Hanna started his 30-year career in games even before he graduated from Purdue University in 1995. He now works for NVIDIA Corporation.

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Jeff Hanna
Purdue University

Andy Phelps

American University and University of Canterbury

Andrew “Andy” Phelps is an artist, designer, and professor with over 25 years experience in the field at the University of Canterbury, American University, Uppsala University, RIT, and more. His latest games are Fragile Equilibrium (2019 XBOX, Steam) and The Witch’s Way (2021, itch.io). 

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Andy Phelps
American University and University of Canterbury

Brooke (Rhoam) Johnson

Riot Games

Johnson is a technical artist at Riot Games that specializes in character rigging. She works on cosmetics for the League of Legends champions.

Brooke (Rhoam) Johnson
Riot Games

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