ECGC 2020 Speakers
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ECGC 2020 keynote
Wim Stocks, CEO WorldGaming & Collegiate StarLeague
Wim Stocks has been a progressive leader in the online gaming and esports businesses since 1990. From 2001 to 2006, Wim was Executive Vice President of the “new” Atari Inc. (a roll-up and amalgam of Hasbro Interactive, Infogrames, and GT Interactive), leading and managing one of the broadest-reaching interactive entertainment publishing networks in the world. In 2006, Wim started an entrepreneurial online gaming publishing business named Elephant Entertainment, assuming the role of President and COO. In March 2008, the leading games publisher THQ purchased Elephant and Wim assumed the role of EVP and leader of the Online Gaming division and related digital gaming initiatives. In 2010, Wim was recruited to join the executive management team of Virgin Gaming (now WorldGaming) as Executive Vice President. In this role, Wim helped launch the company and platform in 2010, as well as developed strategic investor, technology, game publisher, retailer, and other brand partnerships. In April 2016, Wim was named CEO of WorldGaming & Collegiate StarLeague, which was acquired by Cineplex in the Fall of 2015 (a leading movie theater operator with diversification into gaming, location based entertainment, and other aligned entertainment and digital media businesses), and is presently leading the esports business, strategy, programming initiatives, sponsorship/partnership sales, and investor relations for the Company.
Wim currently serves as an Advisor to the Special Olympics International; an Advisor to Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) and Ryerson University’s ‘Future of Sports Lab’; Board member of Wombo Sports, a sports/gaming influencer agency; Advisor and part of the ownership group of Andbox, parent company of the New York Excelsior (NYXL), the professional NYC-based franchise in the Overwatch League and the NY Subliners, professional NYC-based franchise in the Call of Duty League; is a Board Member of National Public Radio’s ‘Marketplace’ programming; and is also a Trustee and on the Board of Directors of the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. Wim is also Chairman of the Board of HPPS Ltd (a restaurant and real-estate holding company based in Minneapolis), and has also served on the boards of Allina/Abbott Northwestern Hospital, the Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute, and the Minneapolis Institute of Arts.

ECGC 2020 keynote
Tom Abernathy, Studio Narrative Director ArenaNet
2020 ECGC Speakers
ECGC 2020 Speaker selection is in progress. New speakers are being added daily.
Alexandra Lucas
Game Writer & Narrative Designer, Freelance
Representation, Rewards, & Playersexuality: The Evolution of Relationship Mechanics in Dragon Age
We Have the Technology: Normalizing Remote Work
Presenting At Conferences: It’s Networking, Too!
Ashley Ruhl
Cinematic Designer, BioWare Austin
Evolution of the Cutscene: Innovating Narrative Delivery in Games
We Have the Technology: Normalizing Remote Work
Bartlomiej Waszak
Senior Software Engineer, Respawn Entertainment
Math for Game Programmers Summit
Bill Slavicsek
Lead Writer, Zenimax Online Studios
Improving Writing and Storytelling in Persistent RPGs
Bob Ladrach
VR Consultant, Campaign VR
Virtual Reality in Education - Enabling kids easily create immersive content.
Brad Swearingen
Associate Professor - Simulation and Game Development, WTCC
Simulation and Game Development Educational Summit
Brandon Burns
Director of Instructional Technology, Clinton County R3
Hackathons - Gamify game development!
Brandon Crews
Professor - Simulation and Game Development, WTCC
Career Lounge Portfolio Critiques
Brian Heagney
Instructor of Game & Interactive Media Design, High Point University
Designing games for wildlife and other non-humans
Carlos Iván López Sandoval
Lead Programmer, Cosmogonia
Things you may be doing wrong in Unity
Carmen Askerneese
Lead Designer, Electronic Arts
Narrative on the go! Writing for Mobile Games
Christian Erali
Game Designer
Rock Climbing, the Vertical Hallway - Creating More Immersive and Compelling Gameplay in Adventure Titles
Cindy Foster
Program Director - Simulation and Game Development, WTCC
A Grant Writer and a Professor Walked into a Bar: A Journey to Program Improvement Told Though GIFs and Memes
D. Patrick Roeder
Lead Instructor of Simulations and Game Development, BRCC
Switching Things Up In the Classroom
Dan Figueroa
Senior Lead Artist, Ubisoft – Red Storm Entertainment
Career Lounge Portfolio Critiques
David Reid
Chief Marketing Officer, Behaviour Interactive
The Rise of Canadian Game Developers
David Schultz
Expert Environment Artist, Ubisoft – Red Storm Entertainment
Career Lounge Portfolio Critiques
Dr. Charles O’Brien
Adjunct Professor, University of Alabama - Huntsville
Encouraging Users Through Gamification: A Case Study of the mPACT App
Dr. J. Timothy Balint
Assistant Professor, Stonehill College
Generating Procedural Worlds
Dr. Seth Hudson
Assistant Professor - Game Writing, George Mason University
Before the Monomyth: Motifs and Why They Matter
Elize Morgan
Senior Writer, WB Games Montreal
Breaking Story: How to Run A Writing Room for Games
Elsa Sjunneson
Disability Consultant and Freelance Author
Blindness in a Visual Medium: Disability & Narrative Design in Video Games
Enrique Pacheco San Martin
Senior - Digital Media, East Tennessee State University
So you thought AR was easy
Ethan Levy
Executive Producer, N3TWORK
Building the Esport for Everyone: Lessons from Tetris Primetime
Evan Winters
Student, Dakota State University
Pac-Man's Razor: An Ontological Analysis of Pac-Man
Gabriel Pappalardo
Founder/Creative Director, Six Wing Studios
Video Games and Mental Well-being: A Rallying Cry
Grant Shonkwiler
Commander & Shonk, Shonkventures
Elevating your career to the next level: Lessons from a Career
Heather Albano
Writer/Storyteller, Freelance
Game Narrative Tutorial: Portfolios and Writing Tests Summit
Heidi McDonald
Contract Writer, Disruptor Beam
My Epiphany: Designing Character Compatibility for Romance
We Have the Technology: Normalizing Remote Work
HollyAnn Nye Rogers
Director of Grants Development, WTCC
A Grant Writer and a Professor Walked into a Bar: A Journey to Program Improvement Told Though GIFs and Memes
Jedidjah Julia Noomen
Writer/Narrative designer, Freelance
Listening vs reading: The differences between writing for voiced and written dialogue
Joe Fielder
Game Writer & Narrative Designer, Freelance
Beyond Bandersnatch: Applying Game Narrative Lessons to Writing Interactive Media
Joe Maltese
Global Gaming Director, Chetu
Build Your Own Online Game: What You Need To Know To Make It Happen
Jonathan Munoz
Business Development Manager, Genvid Technologies
Breaking down the barriers between Player and Viewer: The history, evolution, and future of Viewer Participation
Jorge Rodriguez
Game Designer, Amazon Game Studios Seattle
Hot Takes on Game Development
Julie Demyanovich
Undergraduate Researcher, George Mason University
Calculating Confidence – Investigating Confidence of Game Developers During and After Higher Education
Justin Johnson
Senior Software Engineer, Respawn Entertainment
Landscape Design and Games
Jyoti Bishnoi
CEO, Not A Bot Studio
Rethinking game controllers in Augmented Reality - No Touching!
Katie Cole
Senior VFX Artist, Deep Silver Volition
Career Lounge Roundtable - Breaking Into the Industry as a VFX Artist
Ken Turner
Professor - Simulation and Game Development, WTCC
Career Lounge Portfolio Critiques
Mandy Bradbury
PhD Candidate - NCSU
How Does Virtual Reality Compare? The Effects of Avatar Appearance and Medium on Connection and Social Presence
Marc Tucker
Faculty member - Simulation and Game Development, CPCC
Simulation and Game Development Educational Summit
Marty Henly
Adjunct Instructor - Digital Media, East Tennessee State University
So you thought AR was easy
Maxim Litvinov
Gameplay Engineer, Ubisoft - Red Storm Entertainment
GREAT EXPECTATIONS - Breaking into the Modern Day Game Industry
Michelle Clough
Writer/Editor/Narrative Designer, Talespinners
Skin, Seduction, and Story: Writing Sex Scenes for Video Games
Presenting At Conferences: It’s Networking, Too!
Nicholas Allen
Co-founder, Cerulean Cat Studio, LLC
Retro Game Tech for Modern Environments
Nick Georgopoulos
Art Director, Ubisoft – Red Storm Entertainment
Career Lounge Portfolio Critiques
Patrick Tharpe
Motion Graphics Designer, Lynxnet, LLC
Creativity is Freedom: From Traveling the World to Creating Them
Paxton Galvanek
General Manager & Board Member, Funcom Inc.
Breaking into the Video Game Industry & Getting Hired
Rachael Presser
Principal, Sonic Toad Media LLC
How to Address Communications Challenges in Small Indie Teams
Presenting At Conferences: It’s Networking, Too!
Randall McNeil
Creative Director, Ashes Rise Entertainment
Databases, Unity, and You Summit
Rebecca Harwick
Head of Writing, Wooga
Writing the Never-ending Story (Without Burning Out)
Toiya Kristen Finley
Game Designer, Narrative Designer, Game Writer, and Editor
Game Narrative Tutorial: Portfolios and Writing Tests Summit
The ECGC “Come One, Come All” Narrative Hootenanny
Presenting At Conferences: It’s Networking, Too!
Tom Rassweiler
VP of Product: Interactive Content, Arkadium
Web Based Games: The Next Big Thing?