Village Gamer

Last year’s Merging Media Conference+Masterclass marked the first time that the $10,000 BC Film Development Award was awarded to the best cross-media project presented at the annual event. Merging Media will once again offer this wonderful opportunity to cross-platform content creators at its Merging Media Pitch 360 sessions during the upcoming 2011 event on October 27th and 28th.

Andrew Williamson of Off Island Films and Audrey Mehler of Paperny Films each won $5,000 last year to develop their projects. Andrew came to Merging Media with the Spiral, a web based interactive drama series that went on to become a part of another local media initiative called Melting Silos. Audrey pitched Eat St. Tweet, an innovative way to bring a Food Network show about food carts to life online as well as in a mobile app. The series and app launched earlier this year and more goodies are in store with their fall season that premiered on September 2nd. Audrey’s team offers viewers an unparalleled culinary experience by revealing new culinary carts around cities in North America, with access to information across three media platforms.

Now here’s your chance to take your project to the stage and win this year’s award! If you have an innovative transmedia or cross-media project in the works, apply before September 30 to be one of 8 participants to present at Merging Media’s Masterclass and Pitch 360 sessions and you could be the next one to win that $10,000 award! For more information, contact: coordinator@mergingmedia.ca. If you haven’t registered yet, it’s not too late to take advantage of Early Bird rates.

The Toronto International Microfinance Summit announced today The MasterCard Foundation is providing 100 college and university students with financial assistance to attend its conference at Toronto’s Allstream Centre September 17, 2011. In its third year, the Summit is comprised of two events, a fundraising Gala on September 16th and the micro way Conference with a new MicroMarketplace September 17th. This year the theme is From Microfinance to Financial Inclusion: Making a Difference in our World. Topics include:

• Financial Literacy, Youth Programs and First Nations
• Mobile Banking, Technology and Investment Funds with impact
• How microfinance enables global health initiatives
• Rating Microfinance Institutions and Risk Management
• Microfinance in conflict zones

“The Toronto International Microfinance Summit brings together thought leaders in the sector with both international and domestic expertise,” says Reeta Roy, President and CEO of the MasterCard Foundation.  “The Summit is an important platform for knowledge-sharing and The MasterCard Foundation is proud to support students’ attendance.”

“Microfinance is the place where business and international development objectives intersect and social impact is achieved,” adds Jim Louttit, Vice President of Toronto International Microfinance Summit and Rotarian Action Group for Microcredit Secretary.  “For the second year, The MasterCard Foundation is partnering with us so more students can learn about this powerful poverty reduction tool, interact with experts and get involved.

The Honourable David C. Onley, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, will attend the Gala and offer official greetings. Forty Summit speakers from thirty organizations on five continents are scheduled to make presentations,  including:

• Bob Annibale – Citi Microfinance
• Vidar Jorgensen – Grameen America
• Kadita (A.T.) Tshibaka – Opportunity International
• Philip Smith – philanthropist and author
• Joyce Lehman – Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• Michael Bowles – Aga Khan Foundation
• Damien von Stauffenberg – MicroRate
• Jeff Rayman – Secutor Capital
• Dr. Tanjina Mirza – Plan Canada
• Howard Weinstein – Solar Ear
• Charles Belanger – FINCA
• Francois Montour – CIDA
• Tess Bayombong – CARE Canada
• Deborah Lindholm – Foundation for Women

Montreal’s Amaya Gaming Group Inc., an entertainment solutions provider for the regulated gaming industry has been awarded an exclusive, 20-year contract with the National Lottery of Moldova to provide a full range of gaming solutions. Amaya will leverage its innovative technology platform to implement and support national gaming programs including: lottery, video lottery terminals, sports betting, and digital gaming.

The agreement represents a significant milestone as Amaya’s first comprehensive government mandate spanning the complete range of gaming programs and activities. The contract has the potential to generate recurring revenues in excess of $20 million annually.  Implementation is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2011.

“We are very pleased to begin a long-term relationship with the National Lottery of Moldova that promises to be fruitful for both parties,” said David Baazov, President and Chief Executive Officer of Amaya Gaming Group.  “Our technology is designed to offer a full range of gaming solutions from a single platform, and we believe our breadth of capabilities was a key reason we were selected, along with our ability to ensure the integrity of the system.  While Moldova is the first customer to formally select us for this wide range of gaming activities, our strategy is to expand our relationships over time with new and existing customers by offering more gaming technologies in their jurisdictions.”

The partnership will provide the National Lottery of Moldova with new sources of revenue, including funds that are currently leaving the country for off-shore gaming activities. One of the features of Amaya’s technology is designed to ensure the authenticity and accuracy of data collected from devices across the gaming network.  The system will enable government authorities to receive real-time, accurate accounting reports that are free of human error, manipulation and/or fraud, while providing the framework for implementing responsible gaming features, including the strict prohibition of underage gaming.

Computer Using Educators of BC will be holding their annual fall conference at Terry Fox Secondary in Port Coquitlam on October 21st. This conference, which focuses on technology in the classroom, is open to both educators and non-educators.

The conference’s keynote will be presented by North Carolina writer, speaker and instructor David Warlick, and this year’s conference theme is Embracing Emerging Technologies. As of this writing, there are 40 speaker sessions being offered at the conference, including presentations on how to use Blender 3D, Twitter for the Classroom, Supporting Online Learners, Digital Game Development, Digital Storytelling and there are also several sessions on ways to use the internet and technology tools to inspire learning and creativity in today’s students.

The organizers of Web-In, presented by the Canada Media Fund, are proud to announce the first series of speakers who will present their vision of the Web of tomorrw, on October 31^st at the Hilton Montréal Bonaventure hotel, as part of MTL DGTL.

Web-In is a one-day event, featuring micro-conferences that aim to drive industry professionals to break new ground and create the Web of the future by encouraging them to be a step ahead of common observation, leave their comfort zone and question their certainties. Take advantage of the Early Bird 30% discount on the regular price by registering online before September 16.

Brief and Inspiring Speakers!

• Jonathan Bélisle: Ux, Drugs & Rock N’ Roll: From Divergence to Exploration to Convergence
• Olivier Bruel: La viralité gratuite
• Alexandre Ekerli: Le Web comme rituel
• Geoffroi Garon: Le phénomène du «Selftracking» et le concept de «Quantified Self»
• Luc Gauvreau: Le «Montréalscope»: histoires données au futur
• Alex Lauzon: L’obsolescence (non planifiée) des logiciels de courriels
• Laurent Maisonnave: Comment le buzz des médias sociaux rendra enfin sexy votre TV connectée
• Véronique Marino: Création transmédia: la compréhension de l’autisme est-elle la clef de la réussite?
• Sébastien Paquet: Le futur est collaboratif et ouvert
• Patrick Tanguay: Post-numérique et l’Internet des machins

“Web-In will be the perfect opportunity for Web enthusiasts to find inspiration for their next projects,” says François Légaré, Coordinator of the event. “We are proud to welcome close to 20 speakers who are willing to share their vision and passion, in order to push Quebec’s Internet community to excel, and move forward creatively.”

The BC Chapter of Wired Woman will be holding a 15th Anniversary party on September 22nd at the Jewel Ballroom on West 8th in Vancouver. The doors open at 6pm for an evening of networking, door prizes, hors d’oeurves and drink tickets.

The Early Bird ticket price of $20.00 per person is in effect until September 8th. After September 8th, tickets are $25.00 for members and $30.00 for non-members. Membership in Wired Woman is free, so sign up today and save money on tickets for all future Wired Woman events, including the Anniversary Party.

Vancouver Film School has announced the dates for the 2012 version of its annual Game Design Expo. Day One of the expo, known as Industry Day, will be held at the Vancouver International Film Centre on Seymour on January 21st. Industry Day is filled with speaker and panel presentations in the theatre, with displays and networking opportunities held in the lobby area.

Day Two of the Expo will be hosted at the new VFS Game Design Campus at 88 East Pender on January 22nd, where those interested in attending VFS as a student can speak with instructors and admissions counselors as well as participate in hands-on workshops or try out some student-developed games.

The Games Design Expo has also put out a Call For Speakers and Panels. Deadline for submissions is October 16, 2011. If you or your company are interested in becoming an event sponsor, please see the information on the Expo’s Sponsor page.

The Directors Guild of Canada is delighted to join TIFF 2011 in celebrating Canadian cinema. The over 30 feature films and close to 50 short films selected for screenings at TIFF 2011 represent 16 DGC director members nationally.

Among the hundreds of international films selected for screenings at TIFF 2011 are several outstanding Canadian films created by guild members from across the country. The work of DGC members appears in multiple TIFF programmes including:

• Contemporary World Cinema
• Special Presentation
• Canada First
• Galas

“It fills me with a great sense of pride and optimism about this country’s film, television and digital media industry when I see the quality of work and the commitment of its creators,” said Gerry Barr, National Executive Director & CEO, “TIFF is a great way for the DGC to highlight its mission to advance member interests as a creative and labour force and as an advocate on behalf of our industry.”

DGC president Sturla Gunnarsson has been invited to sit on TIFF’s prestigious Canadian feature film jury this year, “I look forward to the opportunity to screen the best of this year’s Canadian cinema.  As a filmmaker, I understand the challenges and think of every film that gets made as a kind of miracle, and will approach the process with the respect it demands.”

In anticipation of the myriad of exciting screenings at TIFF, DGC’s publication, Montage hits the stands today, featuring in-depth interviews with Canadian directors whose films will premiere at TIFF, including Sarah Polley (dir. Take this Waltz); Leonard Farlinger (dir. I’m Yours) and Ingrid Veninger (dir. i am a good person/i am a bad person).  This issue of Montage also presents interviews, editorials and in depth reports on a variety of timely topics of interest to Members, the industry as well as those interested in learning more about this country’s cultural landscape.

Enderby Entertainment has just completed principal photography in British Columbia on its new paranormal thriller titled, “No Tell Motel.” The film, produced by Enderby’s Rick Dugdale and directed by Brett Donowho, is slated under Enderby’s horror division, Tony-Seven Films, and continues the company’s ongoing schedule of film projects. Soon to follow will be “Stranded” and “Heartbreak Hill,” among others. The producer-director duo most recently worked together on “Silver Falls,” now in post-production.

“It’s been quite the homecoming for us to bring a film back to the Okanagan Valley,” said Dugdale, who hails from the area. “We’ve attempted to shoot here before with no success, but in this case we found the locations we needed. We were able to test the waters for production infrastructure with our horror division Tony-Seven Films and I would say the answer is, yes, we can make a film here.”

Enderby’s busy slate will continue through the end of the year with “Stranded,” shooting this fall in the Los Angeles area with Daniel Petrie, Jr. directing and Dugdale producing. Petrie just completed filming on ABC’s “Combat Hospital” and Dugdale is fresh off “No Tell Motel” and “Cherry,” which features James Franco, Heather Graham and Dev Patel.

The screenplay for “No Tell Motel” was written by T.J. Cimfel and tells the story of five friends abandoned at a motel who find they share the same dark secrets as the tortured souls who died there. The film stars Angel McCord (“Sacred,” “Chemistry“), newcomers Chalie Howes, Johnny Hawkes, Andrew MacFarlane and Chelsey Reist.

The script won “Best of Horror” in the 2010 Chicago Screenwriters Network Contest, and was a winner in the Script Savvy Contest, 2010. The screenplay for “Stranded” was written by Rachel Long and Brian Pittman, who also wrote Enderby’s “Silver Falls” with Cam Cannon, as well as the upcoming Rob Cohen-helmed film “1950.”

Just in time for the Labor Day Weekend developers JoshOClock and ArtWitz Design (working under the SkyModo label) have released a brand new version of their critically acclaimed and highly praised “Dog Pile” title, updating the game on its entire range of platforms for the Apple iPhone®, Apple iPod touch®, Apple iPad® and Android. In celebration of the extended holiday weekend, the game is currently available as a free download, but only for a limited period of time.

This new and improved version of “Dog Pile” features 12 brand new levels in a unique Pirates Theme called “Pirates Challenge”, much harder than previous stages, and primarily aimed at more experienced players. The update also includes two new objects, Cannons and Breakable Crates with the dogs uttering things like “Walk the plank you scurvy Dog”!

“Dog Pile” is a hilarious and cute match-3 spinoff, featuring the best gameplay components from all genres. Throughout a series of ingenious and brilliantly designed levels, your fat puppy falls from the top of the screen into what can best be described as a pinball-style environment! Incorporating realistic physics you must “touch, swipe and tilt” to aid your furry little friend match up with his buddies at the bottom of the screen before time runs out. The sound effects and music add so much to the game you just feel like cranking up the volume full blast, and the cutesy and adorable graphics begs you for just “one-more-go” like a dog begging for a bone. As you become better at the game, and you rank up points and dog bone biscuits, you have the option to go shopping, upgrading your dog pack to feature awesome accessories such as cool eye wear and hats!

“Dog Pile” is ideal to anyone, regardless of age, and its multiple stages with plenty of levels will keep you snapping at anyone trying to stop you from completing the game!