Village Gamer

As the April 15th deadline approaches for the Canadian Digital Media Industry Survey, Pixel To Product is reaching out to the last few digital media agencies on their list. Whether you’re a web designer, information architect, social media marketer or mobile application developer, Pixel To Product is encouraging all digital media practitioners to fill out the survey. It only take 8 minutes to complete, and the final report will be made available free of charge to the community upon completion. Survey respondents get early access to the final report and will be entered into a draw to win prizes as a thank you for their participation.

The Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) applauds the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage for recognizing the importance of fair terms of trade agreements between independent producers and vertically integrated media companies.

In its recent report to the Government of Canada on the impact of private television ownership changes, the Standing Committee recommended that the Government consider the issue of fair terms of trade agreements between independent producers and vertically integrated media companies when reviewing the Canada Media Fund.

“The Committee is to be congratulated for its timely recognition of the need for minimum standards and safeguards for Canadian independent producers in today’s increasingly integrated broadcasting ecosystem,” says Norm Bolen, the Association’s President and CEO. “We interpret the report as a clear signal of support from all political parties for independent producers and the significant role they play both in the Canadian broadcasting system and in Canada’s digital economy,” says Bolen.

“While a terms of trade arrangement has not yet been finalized, we are encouraged that the private broadcasters have remained at the bargaining table in good faith,” says John Barrack, the CMPA’s Chief Negotiator.

Also contained in the Standing Committee’s report on the impact of private television ownership changes is the recommendation that the CRTC examine the growing emergence of non-Canadian broadcast players to determine whether and how such foreign players should support Canadian cultural programming. “We see the potential for these foreign players to erode Canadian broadcasters’ current business models and weaken their ability to contribute to the creation of quality Canadian programming. Accordingly, we agree that a review is both timely and necessary,” says Bolen.

For all of you network admin types, Sierra Wireless has unveiled its 4G LTE multi-purpose wireless gateway that leverages the power of the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network. The Sierra Wireless AirLink™ GX440 – the first 4G version of the recently announced AirLink GX400 – delivers the higher bandwidth required by applications including high-quality wireless video surveillance, multi-data-stream wireless connections to branch locations, or mobile office applications for public safety and field service activities. Sierra Wireless is showcasing the AirLink GX440 gateway in the Sierra Wireless stand (1670) at CTIA Wireless, which runs until March 24 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. The AirLink GX440 gateway is expected to be available in the second half of this year, and to help facilitate the 3G-to-4G transition, Sierra Wireless also announced a technology upgrade program that will reduce customer risk by allowing customers to purchase an AirLink GX400 3G gateway now and upgrade to the AirLink GX440 when it becomes available.

ViXS Systems Inc. will be collaborating with iPanel TV Inc., a technology provider focused on TV value-added business services with some of the most advanced technology and largest scale deployments in China. By integrating iPanel’s set-top box software, or middleware, into ViXS’ XCode® 4210 series of products, it enables next generation media processing capabilities in the leading Chinese set-top box middleware solution. The combination of iPanel software and ViXS also allows the deployment of streaming content to multiple devices as supported by the Chinese government’s “n-Screen” initiative. N-Screen refers to having the same content being capable of being displayed on a computer, a TV or a smart phone screen.

D-BOX Technologies Inc. is going to have global movie-goers shaking all over – the Quebec company has announced a new agreement with Germany-based FTT (the company’s first European distributor for its commercial theatre expansion) to equip a first theatre with Germany’s CinemaxX. The Mülheim theatre will feature two auditoriums with 18 and 32 D-BOX MFX Seats marking the first sale of D-BOX in Germany for commercial theatre use and will generate as well, licensing fees payable to D-BOX in accordance to the systems’ utilization.

“This agreement with FTT further advances our position in the European market with theatres now in Germany and the Netherlands,” said President and CEO of D-BOX Technologies, Claude Mc Master. “This is a great achievement for us as we look to maintain our steady growth in Europe and on a global scale. As confidence in our international distribution model continues to build, we anticipate continued expansion and similar agreements for multiple D-BOX screens.”

“We see the D-BOX experience as a new standard in cutting-edge movie entertainment,” said Thomas Ruettgers of Film Ton Technik. “This theatre will represent an outstanding showcase in Germany coupled with state-of-the-art sound and picture technologies, and high-end amenities. We foresee customers responding overwhelmingly positively to the D-BOX experience.”

Toronto’s Mood Media Corporation will be showcasing a suite of market leading in-store media products and services at the upcoming Global Shop 2011 show in Las Vegas beginning March 28, 2011. Mood Media will be debuting its latest visual solution for the North American market, which currently powers the in-store digital signage for several world brands including Nike, Foot Locker and Guess. This turnkey visual solution incorporates Moods talented creative team, a centralized content management system, and solid-state commercial grade hardware.

Mood Media will also be presenting its next generation in-store background music product known as the Trusonic MBOX 4, which is the latest version of the leading Internet-delivered audio solution for retailers today. In addition, Mood Media is debuting its “Now Playing” feature, which works with the MBOX 4’s real-time audio update capabilities, and allows store managers and customers to see song and artist data for each track currently being played via any mobile device such as an iPhone, Android or Blackberry.

Also making its debut is Mood Media’s in-store touch screen casual games kiosks for retailers, which features hit Windows & Mac games from leading publishers such as PopCap Games and Big Fish Games. These interactive kiosks use the successful sample before you purchase technology that has helped Mood Media sell millions of music albums in 2010 through major retailers.

Nova Scotia’s early stage technology companies are getting improved access to scientific and technology expertise thanks to Innovacorp’s new advisory council. The Science and Technology Advisory Council, which was announced on March 16, will be made up of researchers and industry experts in fields related to Innovacorp’s focus industries, including clean technology, life sciences and information technology.

“I’m delighted to have a group of this calibre as a resource for us and our clients,” said Clifford Gross, president and CEO of Innovacorp. “Their experience, knowledge of science and industry, and contacts in the global community will be invaluable.  The council will also be a great platform for assessing emerging science and technology issues important to Nova Scotia’s economic future.”

Members will provide Innovacorp’s clients with independent, strategic advice about relevance, quality of science, and commercialization potential. Providing Nova Scotia businesses with resources to help them compete globally is part of jobsHere, the province’s plan to grow the economy.

“I am pleased to join Innovacorp’s new advisory council, and I look forward to offering my expertise and perspective to the team,” said Richard Murphy, president of Richard Murphy and Associates Inc. “Innovacorp’s clients include some of the region’s most promising and innovative emerging technology companies. I’m eager to help that community succeed.”

The advisory council builds on Innovacorp’s approach of using a network of external experts to complement its in-house business expertise. The Nova Scotia Crown corporation’s High Performance Incubation business model has earned international recognition for helping entrepreneurs commercialize their technologies. The model incorporates incubation infrastructure, business mentoring, and seed and venture capital investment.

Joining Mr. Murphy on Innovacorp’s Science and Technology Advisory Council are:

— Richard Karsten, associate professor in the department of mathematics and statistics at Acadia University
— Ian Hill, associate professor in the department of physics and atmospheric science at Dalhousie University
— Diana Pliura, president of ALBRY Inc.

Corporate Renaissance Group (CRG), a global provider of innovative solutions that drive better business management and performance, is pleased to announce the availability of an upgrade to CRG emPerform™, its all-inclusive, web-based employee performance management solution.

Version 3.14 is the latest release available and includes administrative enhancements to several areas of emPerform’s functionality; including, eSurvey, Succession Manager, Compensation Manager, and Automated Appraisals. Some of the upgrades include enhanced availability of historical reviews, improved tagging and search functionality, and greater administrative control over succession manager templates and viewer assignment.

“This upgrade reinforces our commitment to providing customers with an easy-to use and flexible talent management suite” said John Smith, Director of Enterprise Business Solutions at CRG. “emPerform 3.14 includes many smaller features that were requested by customers and are aimed at making the software as user-friendly as possible”.

The Canada Media Fund (CMF) will sponsor 8 CMF-Merging Media Scholarships worth up to $800 each to the Merging Media Transmedia Seminar and Lab 2011 in Vancouver, BC on April 28-29, co-presenters Merging Media Productions Inc. and the Canadian Media Production Association – British Columbia (CMPA-BC), announced today.

Conducted by Anita Ondine, one of the world’s foremost transmedia educators and practitioners, the event will take place at the Vancity Theatre and BCIT Atrium, in the heart of downtown Vancouver. The CMF-Merging Media Scholarships will cover the registration fees for 8 selected participants and could include accommodation support for out of province attendees.

“We are very fortunate to have Anita tailor-make this event specifically for our rapidly converging industry,” says Liz Shorten, CMPA-BC’s Managing Vice-President. “Her workshops in Europe have been highly successful in energizing the transmedia community there, and we hope to do the same with the Merging Media Lab here for our over 85 members and the media industry”. The hands-on Lab will take a holistic approach, by upgrading the industry on multiple levels and involving professionals from various media disciplines.

“We are grateful to CMF for making this possible,” elaborates Christine Lim-Labossière, CEO of Merging Media Productions Inc. “We wish to provide a group of media professionals from mixed disciplines with a unique opportunity to upgrade their transmedia skills and understanding collectively, so that they can go on to become key practitioners and budding thought leaders in their various fields.” All applicants to Merging Media’s Lab will be considered for the Scholarships, but priority will be given to digital media practitioners (including game, mobile and user experience developers) and individuals involved in selecting projects for funding.

The half day Transmedia Seminar on April 28, 2011 is open to the public, while the Lab on April 28-29 will enable just 20 media professionals to develop projects in a intensive collaborative environment, while learning about transmedia creative and business practices from “Conception to Consumption”. The deadline for Lab applications has been extended to April 8, 2011 to enable all media sectors to take advantage of this opportunity. Results of the Scholarships will be announced in mid April.

IGDA Members: Today is the last day of voting for your Board Members. If you have not yet done so, please check your email for the Election Notification and voting link. We are very close to a quorum, please make sure you cast your vote before 11:59PM tonight. I’ve done my part and voted – now it’s your turn. Please pass along the word to other IGDA members, let’s get this election into the Tasks Successfully Done column. If you did not receive the email or are having problems please contact Ryan Arndt via email at ryan@igda.org right away.

SIGGRAPH 2011 Tickets Now Available For Purchase. Early Bird pricing is in effect until June 17th. Member, non-member and student prices are available for all categories: full conference, full conference single day, basic conference, basic conference single day, computer animation festival. Please see the ticket information page for full details on categories and pricing.

SIGGRAPH 2011 in Vancouver – Make It Home

Congratulations to onX Enterprise Solutions, who has received two Cisco Partner Summit regional awards for Canadian Managed Cloud Partner of the Year and Canadian Borderless Network Partner of the Year.

Don’t forget that nominations are open for the 2011 VIATeC Awards. A little saddened that VIATeC is using the current tide of attention being paid to that recently fired TV personality as part of their promotional efforts, but here are the categories open to Vancouver Island technology companies:

• Technology Company of the Year
• Emerging Technology Company of the Year
• Employer of the Year – can only be nominated by staff
• Online Strategy of the Year
• Environmental Excellence
• Executive of the Year
• Employee/Team of the Year
• Innovative Excellence
• Product of the Year
• Member’s Choice for Service Provider of the Year – can only be nominated by a technology company.

The Awards ceremony will take place in Carson Hall at the Victoria Conference Centre on June 2nd. Tickets are $150.00 for VIATeC members and $200.00 for non-members.

Here is the launch trailer for Hothead Games‘ latest entry into the digital download realm. Swarm is scheduled for release on PSN March 22nd (March 30th in Europe) and XBLA worldwide on March 23rd. This is definitely one game I’m looking forward to getting my hands on – I’ve been hoarding most of the MS Points I was given for Christmas just so I can see how many ways there are to squish and dismember these little blue guys.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YqFM_sADSA]

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you will already know that Swarm is an action-platformer that allows you take control of 50 utterly fearless Swarmites and drive them through an intense, entertaining and often suicidal battle of survival. Run, bash, huddle, boost, stack, jump, push and throw your way through gauntlets of death and destruction in an attempt to collect valuable DNA and ensure that at least one Swarmite survives.

Atari has released the second developer diary from its upcoming XBLA, PSN and PC download top-down arcade shooter Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime, which was developed at Behaviour Interactive. Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime is out on XBLA and PC download on March 23rd and will launch on PSN on March 30th (even though the dev diary says it’s available now).

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKHgUpeovjU]

Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime is a four player, ghost-busting adventure that will take players on a brand new paranormal experience. Players will suit up with their proton packs and assume the role of a rookie hired by the Ghostbusters to save New York City from a disaster of ghoulish proportions.

The action-packed gameplay progresses as players complete jobs as fearless rookies who explore a series of haunted environments that must be cleared of any ectoplasmic threats. The gripping adventure rages on as players encounter gigantic bosses that require a concentrated effort to defeat using a medley of highly destructive weapons including the Proton Stream, Plasma Inductor, and the Fermion Shock. Rookie Ghostbusters will face the dangers of the eerie world alone or with a ghostbusting team of friends both locally or online through the game’s multiplayer capability.

Big Blue Bubble’s Burn The Rope is bigger and better than ever with a version for the iPad launching today! Now is the time to join in the flame-lighting fun with bigger graphics, brighter fire, and Wickman as you’ve never seen him before! Burn the Rope HD also features an innovative new touch control scheme exclusive to the iPad that lets players rotate the puzzle onscreen.

Burn the Rope is a casual puzzle title that was originally released on the iPhone in December 2010. The goal of the game is to burn as much rope as possible on each level – which is not as easy as it may sound. The fire only burns upwards, so the player must rotate the rope to keep the flame going – once all the flames are out, it’s game over! With clever, hard to master puzzle designs for each level and some insects that add to the gameplay in unique and interesting ways, Burn the Rope been one of the hottest apps in the App Store for the past several months.

With 116 exciting levels (and more on the way), Burn the Rope is incredibly fun and addictive, and the new features in Burn the Rope HD for iPad let players experience the game in a whole new way

Additional HD Features Include:

• Apple Game Center support with 30 achievements and iTunes library support
• All-new Bug-Blasting Bonus Rounds!
• Lights Out! Mode – light the way as you burn!

BioWare will be releasing Mass Effect: Arrival, the thrilling final mission for Mass Effect 2 on March 29th. This conclusion to Mass Effect 2 and preamble to Mass Effect 3, Arrival will also include three new achievements (or trophies) for the Xbox 360®, PC and PlayStation®3. The PDLC pack will be available for 560 MS Points on Xbox 360, $6.99USD on PlayStation Network and also available for PC for 560 BioWare Points.

In Mass Effect: Arrival, Commander Shepard is sent to the edge of the galaxy to rescue an undercover operative who may have evidence of an imminent Reaper invasion that has been looming since the very beginning of the series. Returning and playing a prominent role in Mass Effect: Arrival is fan favorite Admiral Hackett, who is voiced by legendary science-fiction actor Lance Henriksen (Alien, Terminator).

“All year, we have been extremely honored and humbled by the reception we have received for Mass Effect 2 from players around the world, including our post release DLC”, said Casey Hudson, Executive Producer, Mass Effect series. “Mass Effect: Arrival is an exciting extension to Mass Effect 2 and will show players just how close the Reapers are to returning and completing their deadly harvest.”

Only two weeks after launching, TVO’s new applications for BlackBerry® smartphones for early learners and school aged-kids, have been downloaded from BlackBerry App World™ over 250,000 times.

Flower Frenzy and Polka Dot Shorts support learning objectives from the Ontario school curriculum and are teacher and classroom tested. Both are designed for BlackBerry smartphones running OS 5.0 and higher. Polka Dot Shorts is a sequence matching game for kids aged 2-5 that supports the early-learning and kindergarten math curriculum. Flower Frenzy is an entertaining and educational game with three levels of progressive difficulty that uses pictures of flowers to help kids ages 6-11 learn to create sequences.

Both apps teach kids pre-cursors to patterning skills which help build the foundational knowledge required for mathematics in later years.  Each app also has a safety feature to prevent young users from making phone calls or sending emails.

“We’re really excited that so many kids are embracing TVO’s latest digital media offerings,” says CEO Lisa de Wilde. “There is a real need for digital content that will engage kids in learning that complements what happens in the classroom environment. We’re happy to help fill the gap.”

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) today simplified the process for Canadians who want to change providers for their television, home telephone, wireless or Internet services. Consumers will now be able to switch service providers with only one phone call. Once it has obtained the proper consent, the new provider will make all the arrangements on behalf of consumers to have the services transferred over. The CRTC requires that customer transfers be completed within two business days, except for wireless service where transfers must be completed within 2.5 hours.

“In a competitive marketplace, consumers are always encouraged to explore different options for their broadcasting and telecommunications services,” said Konrad von Finckenstein, Q.C., Chairman of the CRTC. “The new rules will make the transfer process a seamless and convenient experience, while enabling Canadians to benefit from receiving retention offers from their current providers.”

If they prefer, consumers can also cancel their services by contacting their service provider directly, which can make them offers to retain their business. The CRTC reminds consumers that, when switching to a new service provider, they are still responsible for any termination penalties or other terms associated with their existing contract. Additionally, the CRTC has established safeguards to prevent service providers from sharing confidential customer information with their internal sales and marketing groups during the transfer process.

Following today’s decision, the CRTC has also launched a new proceeding seeking views on whether these safeguards are still in the best interests of consumers and whether they limit a consumer’s ability to receive offers from a service provider. Interested parties may submit their comments by April 18, 2011. They may do so by completing the online form, by writing to the Secretary General, CRTC, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0N2, or by fax at 819-994-0218.

Nominations are now open for the Sara Kirke Award for Woman Entrepreneurship, which is presented to the woman who has shown the most outstanding technological innovation and corporate leadership — leadership that has significantly expanded the frontiers of Canada’s advanced technology industry. The purpose of the Award is to celebrate innovation, entrepreneurship and create positive role models for women. The Sara Kirke Award for outstanding woman in technology innovation and corporate leadership for 2010 was awarded to Carol Leaman, CEO of PostRank Inc.

Sara Kirke is considered by many to be North America’s first entrepreneur. She arrived in Newfoundland in 1638 with her husband David Kirke, who was soon recalled to England. Sara, however, continued to reside in Avalon, and conducted business as usual from the Pool Plantation. Lady Kirke was a remarkable individual as she managed affairs at the Pool Plantation and became one of the most successful merchants on the English Shore — and was almost certainly North America’s first and foremost woman entrepreneur.

Submissions for the 2011 Sara Kirke Awards must be received at the CanWIT office by April 15, 2011, and all nominees must be a member of CanWIT, which is itself a Division of CATAAlliance. The 2011 winner will be announced at the 26th Annual Canadian Innovation and Leadership Awards Gala on May 18th, which are being held at the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa.

The BCIC-New Ventures Competition: 2011 is now open for applications until April 18 at midnight, with the first seminar in the new nine seminar series taking place on April 4th. The competition dates and seminar schedule have been officially set and now it’s up to the competitors to invest $200 in their technology business idea and learn how to develop it into a profitable company.

As one of North America’s largest technology business idea competitions, BCIC-New Ventures attracts applicants from a wide range of industries including cleantech, media, Internet, information technology and life sciences. BCIC and the New Ventures BC Society invite BC entrepreneurs to submit their ideas to the 11th annual BCIC-New Ventures Competition offering the chance to win a share of the more than $360,000 in prizes.

Added to the mix of prizes to be won this year are the $15,000 Vancity Social Venture Prize and two prizes for Agricultural technologies, valued at $30,000 and $20,000. The competition has also launched a separate stream for Agritech competitors, with events starting March 30.

The competition is open to any BC person, resident or business with a technology-focused idea that has not yet secured significant financing from external investors (i.e. investors other than friends, family and company founders).

The series of nine business education seminars, open to both the public and competition applicants, will take place in Vancouver at the SFU Beedie School of Business beginning April 4, 2011. Students with valid ID can register to attend these seminars at no cost.

Register today to:

• Learn from some of BC’s top business experts at our business-education seminars
• Network with top professionals in business, law, finance, government and academia
• Improve your business and strategies during each round of competition
• Receive advice and insight from mentors In Round 3
• Present your condensed business plan to a panel of ‘angel’ investors, venture capitalists and industry experts in Round 4

Now in its eleventh year, the main BCIC-New Ventures Competition attracts applicants from a wide range of industries. This year we’re launching a new stream of the competition focused on Agritech ventures in the categories of: primary production, food, and bioenergy/bioproducts (for or from agriculture).

This new program is funded through Growing Forward, a federal/provincial agreement between the BC Ministry of Agriculture and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, to support agri-food technology innovation and commercialization.

There will be two specific prizes – a $30,000 first prize and $20,000 second prize for Innovation in Agricultural Technology – plus specific events for Agritech competitors who proceed through the four rounds of the business competition. Applicants who register will also be placed into the larger competition with the chance to compete for more than $300,000 in additional prizes.

AOL Canada is proud to sponsor the Interactive Category of the 2011 National Advertising Awards (NAA) that celebrates and rewards outstanding Canadian advertising creativity, delivering fresh new ideas to Canada’s leading brands. In addition to the recognition they receive with the award, category winners will attend the 58th Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival June 19 to 25, 2011 in France.

“Sponsoring the interactive competition aligns with our commitment to high-value, premium quality and creativity online,” says Graham Moysey, AOL Canada General Manager, “At AOL, it’s all about creating a vastly improved online consumer experience – what better way than to get Canada’s best and brightest creatives engaged?”

AOL is also working with agencies that are submitting entries to consider using AOL’s award-winning HD content delivery platform, Pictela, now available in Canada. Pictela provides agencies with a broad and highly unique canvas for demonstrating their creativity.

In the Interactive Category, participants are challenged with a brief from Biotherm to recruit new users to their BioLab Skin Solutions. All category briefs were made available on March 2 and the deadline for creative submissions is March 31. Winners will be announced at the National Advertising Awards Gala on May 5 in Toronto.

“Participating in the National Advertising Awards Interactive Category is a fantastic opportunity to submit the challenge of taking our BioLab recruitment animation to the next level to the best Canadian creative minds,” said Bradley Smith, Biotherm Marketing Director. “I can’t wait to see how they’ll translate Biotherm’s biological expertise and its strong Canadian heritage into a complete interactive brand experience that will attract new consumers to the brand.”

“The National Advertising Awards are unique because they are North America’s only major brief-based competition,” says Cam Gardner, President, Adcam Media Group, Owner of The National Advertising Awards. “It’s always a thrill to see the results of unleashed creative thinking against the needs of major Canadian brands. We’re grateful for the support of sponsors like AOL Canada who help make the awards possible.”

Canadian tech powerhouse RIM along with other high-tech and recruiting companies will be looking for top talent when they participate in Communitech-sponsored recruiting events in Montreal on March 21st and Ottawa on March 22nd. Communitech represents more than 700 tech company members in Waterloo Region which currently has some 2,000 tech job openings. This is the first time Communitech has staged a recruiting event in Montreal, but the Communitech recruiting event staged in Ottawa last year was a major success, given Ottawa’s history in high-tech development.

“Tech companies involved in software and hardware development spanning everything from wireless technologies to all aspects of digital media have specialized talent requirements,” said Iain Klugman, CEO of Communitech. “We hold these recruiting events to help attract that crucial talent to Waterloo Region, which is a great place to work and live.”

Montreal: Monday, March 21, 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. at the Delta Hotel, 475 Avenue President Kennedy
Ottawa: Tuesday, March 22, 11:30 a.m. — 1:30 p.m. new grads-focused event at the MVP Lounge, 683 Bank Street (in The Glebe); and 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. at The Holiday Inn & Suites in Kanata, 101 Kanata Avenue, for all qualified applicants.

Companies recruiting for talent are targeting both recent graduates from various post-secondary institutions as well as experienced professionals. Participating companies in the Montreal event will include: RIM, Desire2Learn, PROCOM; Talent Technology. Those same organizations along with Sandvine and Nuvation will be recruiting in Ottawa. Please see the Waterloo Tech Jobs web site for full event information and to register.

“We find these events work well to connect key employers with prospects as an initial point of contact and to give job-seekers a sense of the overall innovation culture in the Waterloo Region,” said Klugman.

Digital Alberta has put the call out for people who would be interested in serving on the association’s Board of Directors or helping out as a volunteer. Elections will be held at the Digital Alberta AGM, which is next month on April 19th. So, if you live in Alberta, have lots of energy and ideas, can contribute some time to the community, are interested in building your network in the areas of film, TV, gaming, music or mobile, the Association is looking for you. Areas of opportunities: marketing, sponsorship, events, funding, partnerships, finance. Interested parties are invited to submit a nomination form to Digital Alberta ahead of the AGM.

Staying with Alberta, the Alberta Motion Picture Industry Association is presenting an exciting and informative workshop sponsored by Telefilm Canada in Edmonton on April 1st and Calgary on April 2nd. The session, titled How to Create Compelling Digital Extensions for Feature Films and Television will be lead by Productions Speaker Matt Toner from Zeroes to Heroes Media.

These sessions are designed to highlight the impact and opportunities offered by digital media, and is ideally suited for those filmmakers who have already had some experience (good or bad) in this area. Building on practical examples, highlights of this session will include:

• an analysis of new media approaches that have begun to truly enhance feature films and television productions
• tactics that will make new media relevant to your film production, regardless of the budget
• an overview of how you can identify, understand and pre-build an audience online
• the top five mistakes you might make when selecting a new media partner
• some tell-tale signs that your digital strategy is succeeding… or failing dismally

Edmonton Location: World Trade Centre,  6th Floor – 9990 Jasper Avenue, 2-4pm
Calgary Location: Delta Bow Valley Hotel, Salon A – 209  4 Avenue SE, 10am – noon

Tickets for the above event are $15.00 for AMPIA/Digital Alberta/FAVA/DOC AB members  or $20.00 for non-members.

The National Film Board of Canada will be presenting an interactive and linear information NFB Now session from 2-4pm on March 25th at Fort Calgary. At this information session, you’ll see how the NFB has broadened its definition of “creator” to also include people working outside of the film industry.  In addition to filmmakers, the NFB now collaborates with interactive directors and designers, photographers, writers, computer programmers, social media producers, and a new generation of visual artists exploring both film and digital formats.

Come and be inspired by the work that Canada’s public producer is involved in. Executive Producer David Christensen and Producer Bonnie Thompson will showcase some of the new documentary, animation, and digital projects happening at the NFB right now – ground-breaking work that will inspire you to think about your own ideas for film and interactive platforms. RSVP here to register.

INplay 2011 has announced its first four confirmed speakers for the May 17th – 18th conference.

Ewan McIntosh, Director, NoTosh Limited (Edinburgh)
* He was Scotland’s first National Advisor on Learning and Technology Futures and a member of the Channel 4 New Media Education Advisory Board.
* He is also the founder of 38minutes.co.uk, the creative industries platform for the North of the UK.

Dr. James M. Bower, Ph.D., Founder, Chairman & CEO, Numedeon Inc. (Texas)
* After a postdoctoral fellowship at NYU and the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Dr. Bower was a professor at the California Institute of Technology for 17 years.
* In addition to his technical and scientific achievements, Dr. Bower has also had a long-standing interest and involvement in science education at all levels and especially for children.

Nic Mitham, Founder & CEO, KZero Worldswide (Cambridge UK)
* KZero developed one of the first ever branded virtual goods campaigns inside a virtual world.

Josh Koppel, Founder & Chief Creative Officer, ScrollMotion (New York City)
* Architect Maya Lin hailed Josh as “the Woody Allen of cyberspace.”
* This company has more than 11,000 apps in the App Store, Scrollmotion has been at the forefront of mobile app creation and industry trend forecasting since 2008.

Early Bird pricing is available now through April 14th, and one lucky Early Bird will win a shiny new Nintendo 3DS. Being held at the Liberty Grand in Toronto, INplay 2011 will feature three major streams, each covering a different dimension of working with properties for kids aged 2-12:

*Inspiration – creativity and content stream
*Investment – business stream
*Insights – research and e-learning

Released: Homefront from THQ is in stores today. The PC version of this game was developed in Canada by Digital Extremes, a small detail glaringly overlooked in many of the press releases sent out by THQ, including today’s launch releases.

Meetup: Vancouver Social Games will be holding a Meetup on March 23rd at The Revel Room.

Released: Endloop Systems has launched their latest title on the iTunes App Store. Chicken Balls HD for the iPad is currently on sale, so take this opportunity to join the fray as the bravest chicken this side of New Mexico. It’s the summer of 1947, you’ve just come back from the Great War and had hoped to hang up your flight cap for good. When a UFO crash lands just outside the nearby town of Roswell you knew you’d have to take to the skies – one more time. Chicken Balls is a puzzle game that makes use of both slingshot and pachinko-styled physics to help you save the planet.

Updated: Shaw Media’s Video On Demand app for the iPhone and iPod Touch lets you search through new releases, coming soon, comedies, dramas, thrillers, classics, TV series and more. Read a short description of your selection, hit order and turn on your TV to enjoy the show. New features in this update include:

• Let your friends know what you’re watching through Facebook, Twitter or Email.
• See which movies are Coming Soon to Shaw Video On Demand.
• Choose to be notified when selected Coming Soon movies are released (IOS 4.0+).
• User interface improvements to make finding content easier and faster.
• Auto-suggest in Search.
• View your order History.
• Indication of TV episodes that you’ve already watched.
• Foreign language filtering.
• Auto-loading of more items in lists.

Now if they could just add an “OMG I forgot to set the PVR” feature to this app…

Today’s trailer feature is for Prototype 2, currently in development at Vancouver’s Radical Entertainment.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7304jLR3E6s]

Nothing like a bird’s eye view of the big city.

Apply Now: Could your Canadian tech company be one of the nation’s Fast 50? Here’s the application and here’s the categories:

• Technology Fast 50^TM ranking – Recognizing the 50 fastest growing tech companies with the highest percentage revenue growth over five years.
• Companies-to-Watch award – Honouring younger, promising Canadian tech companies that are in business for less than 5 years.
• Technology Green 15^TM award – recognizes Canada’s leading GreenTech companies, including any technology that promotes a more efficient use and re-use of the earth’s resources in industrial production and consumption.
• Technology Fast 50^TM Leadership award – Their ability to create a distinct competitive advantage in a high-growth market allows them to dominate their sector and quickly join the ranks of other Canadian global leaders.  Chosen by Deloitte and its sponsors from the applicants to the Technology Fast 50^TM ranking, these companies are the elite members of the Canadian technology industry

Apply Before May 20th: The CBC Prime Time Television Program is tailored to address the individual’s creative & craft needs as well as the industry’s ever changing marketplace & business practices. Our residents gain a solid understanding of the importance of collaborative work and how to successfully marry creative inspiration with industry savoir-faire.

The curriculum of the CBC Prime Time Television Program takes the following approaches:

* Training on an individual, discipline specific and story department level.
* Individual mentorship, constant self analysis and critical feedback are central to developing a writer’s creative & professional integrity
* Strong business/career management skills are critical to their success and our priority is to arm our writers with confidence in their skills, an expanded network of peers, strong TV spec scripts and a viable original series package to shop.

The Canadian eLearning Enterprise Alliance (CeLEA) has introduced the first survey in what the Alliance hopes will become a regular series of surveys of the elearning landscape in Canada. This initial survey is intended to gather general information from a broad cross section of industry participants. CeLEA is particularly interested in the commercial elearning sector and in future surveys we will address specific issues, challenges and opportunities within that part of the eLearning industry.

If you or your company falls within this demographic, the Alliance would greatly appreciate a few moments of your time to respond to the survey. Responses will be collected over the coming few weeks, after which the results will be analyzed and a summary presented through the CeLEA web site.

The 8th edition of the Montreal International Game Summit (MIGS) will be held at the Hilton Bonaventure of Montreal this November 1st and 2nd. The MIGS team is seeking local and international game industry experts interested in presenting at MIGS and therefore contributing to the quality of the event. All session proposals must fall within one of the following five tracks: Arts & VFX, Business, Design, Production and Technology. Interested professionals can apply via the MIGS website before April 4th.

“Montreal Shines” is the new slogan for the 8th edition of the event. “This theme is full of meaning. It reminds people that Canada, thanks in part to Montreal, is now the third worldwide game development cluster. It also reflects the bubbling created by this gathering of industry professionals at MIGS, as well as its radiance on the global scene”, says Marie Claude Bernard, director of the event.

Last year, the MIGS welcomed more than 80 speakers from all over the world. “The 2010 edition was truly successful, thanks in great part to its substantial schedule. We’re aiming at no less than surpassing that success by offering an even richer one this year!”, proudly announces Ms Bernard.

Entries for the .CA Impact Awards are approaching the 500 mark. The Canadian Internet Registry Authority (CIRA) encourages other impactful websites to enter and compete for the chance of winning $5,000 and national recognition.

“The overwhelming number of entries has surpassed all of our expectations here at CIRA,” says CIRA’s president and CEO, Byron Holland. “This is proof that Canadians truly live in a society that values the importance of .CA websites.”

The .CA Impact Awards are designed to recognize youth, educators, not-for-profit organizations, small businesses, technology developers and web designers for their innovation, the quality of their work, and the impact of their .CA websites and applications.

There are only two weeks remaining to enter your website and have a chance at winning $5,000 and the recognition of being the most impactful .CA website in your category.

There are four broad categories for entries:

• Small Business – celebrating a company whose website or application has helped a business contribute to its community, foster sales or create jobs.
• eLearning – recognizing youth and educators who use their .CA website to share knowledge and promote education.
• Not-for-Profit – distinguishing an NGO or association whose website or application is making a difference in the lives of members, donors, or the public.
• Web Technology and Design – recognizing individuals and organizations for innovation and impact in enhancing the speed, reliability, practicality and/or security of the Internet for all users.

Entries for the awards will be received until 11:59 p.m. (PT) March 25, 2011. Judging takes place in April 2011 and the inaugural awards will be presented at the mesh Conference in Toronto on May 24, 2011, all expenses paid for the four winners.

Mood Media Corporation has  entered the Chinese market as part of its long-term global growth strategy. China’s booming retail sector represents a major opportunity for Mood Media to further deploy its in-store media solutions in one of the world’s fastest growing economies.

Lorne Abony, CEO and Chairman for Mood Media Corporation stated that “China presents a fantastic opportunity for our global expansion plans. While in-store media is mature and well understood in most territories around the world, it is still considered a new segment in China. This is changing quickly as Chinese retailers are starting to understand the substantial sales uplift a managed media service generates. We also know the timing is perfect for Mood Media to activate its expansion growth plan as aggressive measures are being undertaken by the Chinese government to enforce copyright protection and to legalize how media is reproduced and broadcast.”

Mood Media currently provides music services in China to Western brands such as Polo, Puma, Coach, Costa coffee and Hilton hotel group. The company is currently in discussions with many potential new Chinese partners. A key element of the initiative is to deepen its network of industry and government relationships that are required for navigating China’s complex regulatory environment.

Mood Media plans to become a key player in China’s vast and growing retail sector. In the first two months of this year China’s retail sales rose 15.8 percent year on year to 2.9018 trillion yuan (441.67 billion U.S. dollars), according to China’s National Bureau of Statistics.

The US Court action between Vancouver’s Destiny Media Technologies, Inc. and Toronto’s Yangaroo has concluded. Yangaroo had filed a complaint for patent infringement against Destiny on May 5 2009, claiming that Destiny’s Play MPE® secure distribution system infringed on their US patent number 7,529,712, issued the same day.

On June 7, 2010, the Honorable William C. Griesbach ruled in Destiny’s favor, directing the Clerk to dismiss Yangaroo’s claim in its entirety. Yangaroo appealed this decision, and on March 10^th, 2011 three circuit judges heard oral arguments in Washington DC and on March 14^th, affirmed the original decision, dismissing the lawsuit in its entirety. Destiny Media noted that it will be filing a motion for costs.

Manitoba’s new media industry has received a huge development injection with an announcement yesterday by The Honourable Lynne Yelich, Minister of State for Western Economic Diversification, who revealed that the province will receive federal funding of $433,000 to help its new media industry grow and become more globally competitive.

“Our Government’s investment in New Media Manitoba will provide enormous benefits for Manitoba’s vibrant and growing digital economy, the economy of tomorrow,” said Minister Yelich. “This project will help our digital media sector to capitalize on global opportunities, while also meeting the evolving needs of local industries.”

Since 2006, Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) has invested close to $28 million in new media projects across the west to purchase and upgrade new media technology, improve its access for businesses, universities and Canadians, and to create more jobs for the industry.

New Media Manitoba (NMM) will use the funding from WD to help Manitoba’s digital media sector adapt its products, services and business processes to succeed in global markets, as this vibrant sector hits the world stage.

“We are thrilled with this announcement,” said Kevin Hnatiuk, Executive Director of New Media Manitoba. “The planned initiatives will support new media producers looking to grow their business, and create new prospects for graduates from digital media programs at the Universities and Colleges. Manitoba New Media Companies will now have new support and guidance to make a significant economic impact for themselves and their industry partners.”

The non-profit agency will work with its members to facilitate training opportunities, commercialize their products and services, improve business models and practices, identify new markets and become export-ready. NMM will also help to further the awareness and knowledge of the industry, while developing business relationships to support the growth of Manitoba’s digital media companies.

Canadian multimedia production and distribution company Distribution Access has launched their Business and Education Apps on the Apple iTunes Store. The apps are initially for the business and education markets with two pay-per-use apps, and one free app for the iPod, iPhone and iPad.

The apps enable delivery of a selected group of video content from the extensive Distribution Access library of over 15,000 educational and learning titles and provides significant value for both education and business training.

“We are pleased to provide yet another way to access our award-winning educational content. Creating new channels for teachers, business professionals and consumers to access our large library of content is key to our strategy for this year” said Doug Connolly, President of Distribution Access.

The new apps were developed in partnership with MoboVivo, a leading Canadian company that develops ‘Video and TV Everywhere solutions’ with adaptive streaming, ‘download guard’ and screen shifting for set-top boxes, Smart TVs, mobile, PC, and tablet delivery.

“The demand for video as a tool of education and business is large and growing,” said MoboVivo founder and CEO, Trevor Doerksen. “MoboVivo’s myScreens platform, which powers these apps, leverages video and social media to engage users in rich relationships.”

Since 1997, Distribution Access has been providing schools, libraries, businesses, community organizations and life-long learners with award-winning multi-platform productions on a wide variety of subjects. The company operates from offices in Toronto, Vancouver and Saint John, with over 50 agents and representatives worldwide.

Last Chance: Registration for the Great Canadian Appathon closes at 5pm tonight.

Last week during IUGO’s GDC Smartphone Summit Session, their VP of Biz Dev, Sarah Thomson, announced IUGO’s latest social game venture; Sunshine Cruise Lines. IUGO’s first social title, Lil’ Pirates (published by Capcom Mobile), launched in November 2010 and was a breakout success earning accolades from users, critics and fellow industry colleagues alike. Lil’ Pirates went on to win Pocketgamer’s best FREEmium title of 2011.

Having proved their chops as a solid social game developer, IUGO plans to launch several social titles during the course of 2011/2012. “Lil’ Pirates was a great experience for us,” enthuses Thomson. “We saw that we could build a unique experience that users loved. It was amazing to see how “into” the game players got. On top of that, the game was monetizing really well solely from virtual items, which was a testament to our design strengths as a studio,” Sarah adds.

“Now, with Sunshine Cruise Lines, the team is super excited to build a game around a theme that appeals to virtually everyone: Travel,” offers Thomson. Setting sail later this Spring/early Summer of 2011, Sunshine Cruise Lines is a FREEmium game in which players manage their own cruise ship while traveling the world. “There is so much we can do with this theme,” she explains. “This is an opportunity for us to play on users’ imaginations while having the world at their fingertips. Players will find the game familiar and easy to play as we’ve kept a foundation of tried and true mechanics. But the team has been really amped to try new things in Cruise,” alludes Sarah. “With Cruise players will enjoy a more dynamic environment that encourages experimentation. Players will have a number of different options for how to make their cruise ship unique, while offering deeper social interaction. The team is focused on making every facet of the Cruise experience special and fun from the art style, the UI, the audio to how they all tie in and enhance each other. We can’t wait for people to play our game!”

Don’t get caught dead in that island wear, it’s so last season! Quebec’s Frima Studio and SFO’s Bolt Creative have announced that the Pygmies of Pocket God on Facebook have arrived dressed to impress with Episode IV: Dressed to Kill. This latest addition to the Pocket God world introduces new items, including St. Patrick’s Day accessories, as well as a new dance taking the island by lightning storm.

Since its debut in December 2010, the Facebook version of Pocket God has grown exponentially and is attracting more players every month. More than 40 million loyal, unquestioning Pygmies have met their demise over that time, with two million of those being sacrificed by volcano alone (that’s approximately the same amount of people who visit Pompeii every year – coincidence?). Another two million sacrifices can be attributed to friends on Facebook sacrificing other friends in a host of brutal and irreverent ways, including electrocution, shark attack, venus fly traps, tornados, tar pits, and more! What good is a friend if you can’t sacrifice them every once in a while?

The new updates for Dressed to Kill include:

• All New Customizations: Fans have been waiting for the chance to dress up their Pygmies and the time has come! Pygmies can now be customized in a variety of ways, including wearing t-shirts, bow ties, life jackets (no worries, they won’t actually work), an oh-so-taboo censor bar, and more!
• All New YPDA (Youth Pygmy Devotee Association) Dance: It’s fun to hang with the Y-P-D-A! Even though the Pygmies constantly meet death, it doesn’t dampen their spirits, and they’re now prepared to show the world their latest dance craze. Go ahead and join in already, we swear no one is watching!
• St. Patrick’s Day-themed Items: For the Pygmy leprechaun in all of us, players can now customize their favorite faithful followers with holiday-themed items such as clover hair ties and fashionable green suspenders to hold that grass skirt up. Players can also do a little jig with the new St. Patrick’s Day dance. All holiday-themed content is available for a limited time.
• Brand New Quests: Of course, we have added more quests for all the deities out there looking to bring their sacrifice count to an all-time high.

The National Lacrosse League, which is comprised of teams from Edmonton, Calgary and Toronto (along with some American teams) has announced that NLL 11, the NLL’s officially licensed video game by Pittsburgh’s Crosse Studio in conjunction with Guelph’s Stir Fry Games, is in development for release this spring on Xbox 360’s Indie Game Channel.

The game will feature all ten NLL teams and the league’s 230 players, a completely new game engine, franchise mode, player statistics, celebrations and much more. For the first time, NLL 11 will include fighting in the video game. NLL Lacrosse 2011 will be available on the Xbox 360’s Indie Game Channel and will be priced at $5.00 USD.

While you’re waiting for NLL11 to debut, you could check out Stir Fry’s latest game, Office Brawlers, which is available on Xbox Live Indie Games. You can try it before you buy it, the price is 240 MS Points. Playing as your Avatar, you fight your way through Story Mode with 11 crazy weapons. You can play against your friends either on or off-line. Be the greatest Office Brawler of all time and achieve the highest score by playing in Survival Mode.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgxG-CHPlXE]

What started out as a very small Meetup group for independent developers in the Vancouver area has now become Full Indie. The new group was unveiled to a packed house of over 100 developers at Tuesday night’s monthly event for what is now the largest collective for independent game creators in Vancouver.

In May 2010, game developers Jake Birkett and Alex Vostrov founded the aforementioned Meetup group in order to connect with their peers. After only nine meetings with overwhelming event attendance and community input, Jake and Alex agreed that a formal brand, mission and web presence were the next logical steps. The group’s mandate will be to continue with its very successful monthly events which include presentations and networking as well as develop the Full Indie web site as a community-sourced endeavour, with centralized resources to assist indie developers not only in Vancouver, but around the world, with the development, publishing and publicizing of their work.

In keeping with the National Film Board’s commitment to digital production, and reflecting the evolution of audiences into dynamic participants, the eastern section of the NFB Mediatheque in Toronto is currently being transformed into an interactive hub that will provide new ways to connect with the NFB. Its redesign guided by the principle of engaging and communicating with Canadians, this area of the Mediatheque will soon offer access to , where visitors can check out recent web-based projects via the NFB Interactive portal, the Online Screening Room featuring more than 1,800 streaming films, and news and information about the NFB.

This flexible new space will also be outfitted with ceiling-mounted projectors, floor-to-ceiling screens and a state-of-the-art audio system, providing a venue for innovative new content such as participatory programming and immersive multimedia installations based on NFB online productions. The space will also host exhibits and screenings; its resources will be creatively incorporated into the Mediatheque’s many workshops and camps, and it can be tailored for private event rental. A webcam-enhanced touchscreen will allow the public to further connect with the NFB and record instant feedback on their experience such as film reviews, workshop recommendations and programming suggestions. Visitors will continue to enjoy over 5,500 NFB titles on free digital viewing stations, and services and events at the Mediatheque will not be affected. This new area will open to the public in early April, 2011.

This is a good start, but doesn’t go nearly far enough; I hope that MP Tony Clement will keep the pressure up in regards to telecom pricing in all areas:

In response to numerous requests, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) today clarified the form and scope of its proceeding to review wholesale residential high-speed Internet access services, which was launched on February 8, 2011.

Canadians will have an opportunity to share their views at a public hearing starting on July 11^th in Gatineau, Que. The CRTC will also hold an online consultation. Details of both the hearing and consultation will be announced shortly.

Although the scope of the proceeding will not be limited to reviewing usage-based billing proposals, the CRTC intends to focus on issues such as:

• usage-based charges, whether aggregated between the Small Internet service providers (Small ISPs) or applied to each Small ISP
• usage-based charges driven by peak traffic periods, and
• an examination of network capacity and congestion.

The CRTC will not be expanding the scope, as requested by several parties, to include the billing practices for retail Internet services. There is no evidence that market forces are not working properly in this unregulated market.

Finally, the CRTC will not review, as was also requested by several parties, the overall regulatory framework for wholesale high-speed Internet access services. The overall framework was not part of the decision that is being reviewed, and it would not be appropriate to initiate such a wide-ranging review within the current proceeding.

The building blocks for the next generation of stereoscopic three-dimensional (S-3D) gaming are being put in place thanks to a major funding announcement by the Ministry of Tourism and Culture through the Ontario Media Development Corporation’s (OMDC) Entertainment and Creative Cluster Partnerships Fund along with support from Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE).

Together, OMDC, OCE, industry and academic partners will provide more than $635,000 in funding to Interactive Gaming Ontario 3D (iGO3D), a new collaborative effort that brings together the expertise of five universities, one college and a wide range of gaming industry partners whose mission is to drive the growth of the province’s digital media content industry. iGO3D’s primary partner is the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT), where Dr. Andrew Hogue, assistant professor, Faculty of Business and Information Technology will serve as iGO3D project leader.

“We thank the Ontario Media Development Corporation and Ontario Centres of Excellence for their investments in this important and timely initiative,” said Dr. Michael Owen, associate provost, Research at UOIT. “The collaboration between universities, colleges and industry partners will create an advantage for Ontario’s gaming industry, enhance their competitiveness and provide learning opportunities for our students who will be the next generation of game developers and entrepreneurs.”

iGO3D’s research efforts will include investigative issues related to comfort, effectiveness, audio and how the stereoscopic viewing experience impacts gameplay from both the player’s and developer’s perspectives. Other aspects of iGO3D’s mandate include development of a game test facility, further S-3D vision and auditory research with a view to establishing game design parameters and disseminating this information to Ontario’s gaming industry through focused webinars and conferences.

In addition to UOIT, additional partnering institutions include York University, the University of Waterloo, University of Western Ontario, the Ontario College of Arts and Design University (OCADU) and George Brown College. Industry partners include The S-3D Gaming Alliance (S3DGA), Electronic Arts Canada, Bedlam Games, Big Blue Bubble, Digital Extremes, Interactive Ontario and Junction VFX.

“Modern 3D video games are designed according to research done on 3D movies and gamer opinion studies are telling us this isn’t the right way to go,” said Neil Schneider, executive director, S3DGA. “Ineffective stereoscopic 3D viewing negatively impacts hardware sales, game sales and ultimately customer satisfaction. iGO3D will provide us with the ability to change all that with repeatable research and direct industry involvement.”

While iGO3D was founded as a research platform for stereoscopic 3D games on desktop displays and 3D HDTVs, efforts are in place to add a specialized division for mobile 3D gaming markets on smart phones, mobile gaming devices and tablets. Interested game developers and technology enablers are encouraged to contact the S3DGA for available iGO3D partnership and sponsorship opportunities.

S3DGA is the official voice and standards body for stereoscopic 3D gaming, and as a non-profit organization, it provides for standards discussions, consumer promotion, education, and awareness. S3GDA’s membership is comprised of organizations and individuals with an interest in developing S-3D hardware and software solutions.

The 6th Annual Vancouver Women in Film Festival (VWIFF), presented by Women In Film & Television Vancouver (WIFTV), will be held from Friday, March 4 to Sunday March 6 at the VIFC Vancity Theatre on Seymour Street, with the Women In Film & Television International (WIFTI) short film screening on Tuesday, March 8th at Langara College to celebrate International Women’s Day.

Note: Advance online ticket sales close at midnight tonight, March 2nd.

“It’s been yet another tough year in the industry, yet women continue to thrive in front of and behind the cameras,” says Festival Director, Roslyn Muir. Telefilm Canada’s 2010 report on the state of women in the Canadian Feature Film Industry states that while women receive more training than men and attend film school in equal numbers, they work on lower budget films and have “less access” to public funds than their male counterparts.

Muir continues: “With the help of our volunteers, staff and sponsors, we’re very excited about this
year’s Vancouver Women in Film Festival. Submissions and audience numbers continue to grow every year and to me, that proves to me that there’s a need to have women’s stories seen, heard and celebrated in the public arena.” Five features and over 40 short films will be shown, made by both first-time and veteran filmmakers, and spanning all genres.

The festival opens on Friday, March 4 with the return of the Digital Media Forum panels during the
day, followed by Danishka Esterhazy’s Black Field, and the festival’s Opening Reception. The festival will also present the Spotlight Awards, the Legacy Awards, given to the top 3 BC filmmakers at the festival, and the Women in the Director’s Chair (WIDC) Feature Film Award, a $100,000 in-kind award administered by Creative Women Workshops Association. Other festival events include Pitching sessions, an Industry Showcase, the free WIDC Panel, Receptions, Film Screenings on Saturday and Sunday, as well as a Networking Lunch Presentation on “Making your first low budget feature.”

Other films of note include Canadian shorts in the Aboriginal Short Film Showcase, curated by Metis/Cree Director Barbara Hager:

• Wendy Ord & Glen Samuel’s short film TORA, set in the Japanese Internment Camps in World War II and starring David Suzuki in his first acting role
• Sisters in Arms, Beth Freeman’s feature documentary on three military women sent to fight in Afghanistan
• A Window Looking In, Tara Hungerford’s short documentary profiling 12 BC-based artists, including William Gibson and Sarah McLachlan
• John Zaritsky’s feature documentary Leave Them Laughing, on ALS-fated singer/comedienne Carla Zilbersmith
• Katrin Bowen’s Amazon Falls.

CTV WIDC CAM Panel: Thriving on the Curve of Change: Moderated by Carol Whiteman (CWWA / WIDC), industry insiders including Trish Williams (CTV), John Dippong (Telefilm Canada), and MaryAnne Waterhouse (Anagram Pictures) will discuss the current shifts in the marketplace and what it now takes for content creators to tell their stories and sustain healthy careers while navigating the relentless curve of change. This panel is presented by Creative Women Workshops Association through the support of the CTV-CHUM Tangible Benefits and in collaboration with the Vancouver Women In Film Festival and WIFTV.

The Digital Media Forum takes place from 9:30am – 5:30pm on Friday, March 4th and is presented by the BC Film Commission and Telefilm Canada.

9:30 am – 11:00 am – Focus on Innovation: A group of visionary digital media professionals discuss the next-gen applications of technology. From the implementation of new communication technologies to the gamification of everyday life, the discussion will touch on how digital media will affect the future. Moderated by Justine Bizzochi. Panelists: Jessica Leigh Clark-Bojin, Rochelle Grayson, Rae Hull.

11:15 am – 12:30 pm: New Trends in Social Media: Social media mavens, veterans and upstarts discuss the new trends in socializing and marketing. How can Twitter grow? Have Facebook members revolted against the marketing machine? What’s next?
Moderated by Sarah Muff. Panelists: Nadia Aly, Rebecca Coleman, Nimisha Mukerji.

1:30 pm – 2:45 pm: Start-Up Upstarts: Digital pioneers partnering in new technologies. Profiling women entrepreneurs in all areas of the digital realm: communication, gaming and social media marketing. Moderated by Danika Dinsmore. Panelists: Kirsten Forbes, Angel Pui, Moyra Rodger.

3:00 pm – 4:30 pm: Nice Work if You Can Get It: How do you turn your passion for digital media into a career? Where do you start and what skills do you need? Panelists include: an experienced game producer, a writer new to the gaming world, and a front-line social media marketer.
Moderated by Dina Grskovich. Panelists: Bryna Dabby, Bonnie Jean Mah, Melissa Wood.

4:30 pm – 5:30 pm: Networking Reception: Join panelists and industry professionals to continue the conversations in an informal atmosphere. Included with the purchase of a Digital Media Forum pass.

For the last three years we’ve spent the final weekend in January periodically checking in on a group of people who shut themselves in a big room full of computers and ideas for 48 hours. Each of those years has seen this event grow, and 2011 was Vancouver’s largest Global Game Jam event ever, with about 120 participants. One other note of importance – 20-25% of the 2011 Jam participants were female. Awesome.

Held in the Main Hall of BCIT’s main Burnaby campus, this year’s Global Game Jam opened with presentations from Scott Jones, co-host of Electric Playground, and Kelly Zmak, the former president of Vancouver’s Radical Entertainment. Unfortunately, due to the demonic nature of traffic in the Lower Mainland, especially for those of us who live out in the Fraser Valley, we completely missed Scott’s opening comments as well as the first few minutes of Kelly’s presentation. I freely admit that I never tire of hearing a talk given by Kelly – he doesn’t pull any punches, and he will tell you exactly the way things are in this fine industry. Even while he is forcing you to face the reality of how many titles actually become blockbusters, he is still encouraging developers new and veteran, to get out there and give it their best shot anyway. You don’t have to work in a creative studio to benefit from the advice Kelly shares, either. Many of his suggestions are applicable to any discipline, and I never fail to be anything but inspired whenever I’ve been to a Kelly Zmak presentation. Many of the participants in this past Global Game Jam obviously took Kelly’s words to heart as well, because there were some very good products that emerged from this 48 hour exercise in innovation and creativity.

Before I go too much further, I would like to note that the Global Game Jam is an initiative of the International Game Developers Association, and this year took place in 169 registered locations around the world. This total does not include the informal game jams that were also held over the same weekend, such as the one taking place at New Media Manitoba called So Many Rooms, which was a unique twist on the jam concept, but more about that in a different post. For more photos of the BCIT event, please see our GGJ Gallery. There are more photos on the Global Game Jam Vancouver web site as well.

The jams also would not happen without the support of venues, schools, corporate partners and of course, volunteers and industry mentors. A large part of the Vancouver Game Jam support comes from these post-secondary educational facilities: BCIT and UBC with the assistance of the Centre for Digital Media and SFU. Other supporting sponsors include the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, AirG, Microsoft, Wacom, Radical Entertainment and Electronic Arts Canada. Other supporters and friends of the local Global Game Jam are the Canadian Video Game Awards, the Vancouver Silverlight User Group, and ourselves. It was also very cool to see Electric Playground attending and interviewing participants, as well as giving the jam some airtime on its February 8th episode. You can watch the EP video here.

Global supporters and sponsors of Global Game Jam include Game Salad, Intel AppDeveloper Programme, Autodesk, GameSpy, gamesauce, triOS College and ACM. Once again, a huge thank you to the volunteers, the instructors and the corporations who all work together to make the Global Game Jam such an awesome weekend of inspiration.

This year’s Jam began with everyone gathering in groups based on their disciplines. Each person had a coloured “skill dot” on his or her name tag, which made it very easy for others to find artists, programmers, designers or the very elusive audio folk. Note to those of you with audio skills: come out to next year’s Game Jam, your skills are in high demand. You will be very popular. Once the skills groups were formed, attendees were put through some ice-breaking exercises, discussing their favourite games, super-powers and why their respective disciplines are the best. With the announcement of this year’s theme of Extinction, the jammers were encouraged to come up with some quick game concepts that would then be pitched to the entire room.

Needless to say, in a room full of creative people, there was a huge variety of game concepts that covered everything from dinosaurs to aliens and time travel. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly and reasonably clearly the ideas are formed and presented. After the presentations, it was time to start the team recruiting and previs work before settling in for the next several hours of coding, drawing, editing, testing and reiterating with maybe a bit of sleep mixed in.

When we returned to the Jam on Sunday afternoon, the BCIT Main Hall was still a hive of activity. At first glance you wouldn’t know that a good part of this group was heavily sleep-deprived and that for some, thought processes were by now running at something akin to dial-up mode. However, as we moved among the developers and asked for demonstrations or their thoughts on the weekend, as tired as they were, each team managed to talk about their projects with energy, enthusiasm and passion.

Without a doubt the team with the best game trailer was RawR Games, developers of, coincidentally, the game chosen as Top Pick for the Vancouver event. Dino Fling is a 2D game that asks the player to save dinosaurs from rising post-Ice Age waters by flinging them onto a rescue boat.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mk4jods47dY]

Naturally the game gets more challenging as the water rises, covering the beach and making the distance you need to fling each dinosaur wider and wider. The RawR Games team perhaps had a bit of hand-up as members of the squad had been to previous Jam events and also work in the game development industry, but it was still important to them to get a product completed within the 48 hour time limit, and that the game be fun to play.

Nick Waanders, co-founder of Slick Entertainment, said that one of the challenges for him personally was having each new iteration of Dino Fling better than the last, each one topping the features and fun factor of the previous. He said that it’s very important to get into the habit of taking notes throughout the development cycle, don’t count on your memory to keep all of the ideas straight. He feels that this is a very important part of development discipline that will help keep your work flow from getting all tangled up. Flash Punk creator Chevy Ray Johnston and Tatham Johnston, a Junior Gameplay Programmer at Klei Entertainment while Rachel Simpson is a Game Jam veteran, Daniel Ritchie is a UBC Computer Sciences student and Celeste Medina is a Layout Artist at Luximation (by the way, they’re hiring). One other cool footnote before moving on, Chevy’s Flash Punk engine was used by other teams at the Jam for their games.

Pod Panic was another title which was high on the list of favourite games, with the premise of this title to both learn about the Orca pods who inhabit our coastal waters and the dangers they face every day through pollution and over-fishing. Designed and built by James Karg, Douglas Richardson, Shane Morin, Jacob Kwitkoski, Spencer Daemore and Travis Hilliard, Pod Panic was developed on the XNA platform for Xbox and Windows. The premise of the game is to help your pod of Orca whales navigate several levels, each named for a coastal area and with increasing levels of difficulty. Pod Panic was inspired by the David Suzuki Foundation and the real-life plight of our whale populations and other endangered species.

Another friend of ours, indie developer Jake Birkett, was on the team which created the germ-ridden game Invasion of Giant Planet-Eating Bacteria From Outer Space, along with Alex Vostrov, Steven Pugh, Khadija Ghazi and Samppa Raski. Jake and Alex are the co-founders of Full Indie, a meetup and resource group for independent developers. The premise behind their flash-based game is to rocket about outer space jabbing the giant bacteria with your Inoculazer, thereby curing different diseases and saving the planets. Of course it’s not as easy as that sounds – each type of bug requires a certain type of cure, and every cure has a side effect. You must match the colour of the cure to the colour of the bacteria, and due to the aforementioned side effects, strategy and timing do play an important part in winning this game. Jake’s advice on game design is to not be afraid to think big and add loads of features to your list, but also don’t be afraid to wield a big axe when it comes time to pare down what parts make it into the game and which don’t. His main take-away from the Jam weekend was a reinforcing of his knowledge and the sharing of experience both as a giver and as a receiver.

Meanwhile another galactic planet-destroying game with yet another twist was being developed just a few tables away. MDP Earth Defender was built using the Unity platform and is for two players who are required to switch between Savior and Destroyer roles. The Destroyer literally tries to destroy Earth with nuclear bombs while the Savior sends up Claw Satellites which need to intercept the bombs before they blow the Earth into tiny little bits. The player with the most survivors at the end of the round wins. MDP Earth Defender was developed by Clayton Campbell, Don Lee, Eric Raue, James Xia, Jason Tseng, and Tiva Quinn.

Another game of galactic proportions (and name) was Super Hyper Mega Deluxe Earth Annihilation – it seems more than just a few people were trying to make Earth extinct, but then I guess it’s an easy target, what with being big and round and floating around in space on a pre-determined path. In this game, instead of defending Earth, the player must protect the mother ship death ray that is trying to destroy our fine planet. The Earthlings have the nerve to try and defend themselves by sending out waves of spacefighters, and it’s the player’s job to remove them from existence. This team took their development cycle practically to the wire, finishing up just one hour before the deadline. Developers Alex Mcgilvray and Ryan Sheffer said that one of the most important pieces of advice that they could pass along about participating in a game jam is to get as much coding done as possible early on in the event, because a lack of sleep means coding errors.

One of the most imaginative titles we took a look at over the weekend was Squishy Squid Sex, whereby the gamer must ensure that the squid population increases through recreation…or, re-creation – they both apply.  This team, which learned the importance of early iteration, prototyping and software compatibility, showed a great deal of creativity and imagination in their product. The development team for Squishy Squid Sex was Airlia Hansen, Ben Sheftel,  Nathaniel Kopjar, Jonathan Clark and Alice Tai.

Moving back to the germ theme was Containment, a top-down infestation elimination game. This browser-based game is kind of like a blind man’s bluff, because the player doesn’t know until a character is killed if it was one of the germ carriers or not, and a process of elimination must be used to search out the three germ bearers. The catch, and you know there’s always a catch, is that if you kill the entire population you lose. You win the game by saving the highest number of citizens as you possibly can. Oh, and of course there’s a timer, too. When this team was formed to come up with a product, they were all strangers, having never met each other prior to the jam weekend. Ben James is a computer programmer by day, but not in the digital media sector, and he said that he has realized how hard it is to make games (actually, we heard that a lot over the weekend), and that it’s important to focus the scope of your project early.  Other team members included Jen Kim, Arnold Ip, Colin Cove and “Got Quail”.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87RDRXFEeg8]

We did not have time to visit with every game team and participant, that’s something I’d like to be able to accomplish next year, but over-all, the consensus about Global Game Jam is that the event is a lot of fun and a fantastic learning experience. The sharing of knowledge between students, professionals and hobbyists is something that is not always easily obtainable, and there is a combined sense of collaboration and competition – because while there isn’t a prize for making the best game or finishing first, there is a sense of pride and accomplishment that goes along with the lack of sleep, the software glitches and the new friendships. Much of the success of any Game Jam event, whether it’s a part of the Global weekend or otherwise, falls on the shoulders of its organizers, volunteers and supporters. The willingness of both industry mentors and teachers to help and guide those who strive to be a part of this wonderful industry is sometimes a “thank you” that may not be said loudly or often enough.

If any of you reading this got the “wow this is cool” feeling, I hope you will carry that feeling forward and participate next year, in any capacity be it participant, volunteer, sponsor or leader. In 2011 there were at least a dozen Game Jam locations across the country (72 across North America), wouldn’t it be great if next year there were twice the number of locations, participants and sponsors?