Skip to main content

Representation and Identity in Video Games: Whose stories are told through gaming?


Date & time
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
7 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Cost

This event is free

Contact

Alex Megelas
514-848-2424 ext. 4893

Wheel chair accessible

Yes

Our University of the Streets Café public conversations are much like any you’d have with friends or family around a dinner table, except with more people, more points of view, and slightly more structure. Conversations are hosted by a volunteer moderator who is there to welcome everyone and keep things on track. To get things started, there’s a guest, or sometimes two, who get the ball rolling by sharing their ideas, experiences and questions. After that, it's all up to the participants.

Computer games allow for meaningful immersion in complex tales that shifts as a result of our actions. At their narrative best, games lead us to situate our sense of self in relation to virtual constructs and to reflect on questions of morality. Given current industry trends, however, we may be tempted to consider whose stories predominate in game culture. Whose stories are told through gaming - who are the protagonists of games? To what extent is the gaming industry committed to diversifying the tales which it tells? Ultimately, who is gaming for and what is its potential in fostering reflections grounded in community engagement?

Guest:
Lateef Martin is a graduate from the Illustration & Design program at Dawson College. He is a multi-disciplinary artist, from music production, cosplaying and graphic design. At the core of it, he is an illustrator with a taste for video games, comics, sci-fi and 80s Saturday morning cartoons. He founded  his company Miscellaneum Studios in 2013. Its goal is to deliver great entertainment while representing people of color, women the LGBTQ community and other marginalized communities in a positive light. The first project is called Z’Isle, a comic book series set in Montreal 7 years after a zombie apocalypse. Presently on issue #5, a video game and soundtrack is presently under development.

Tuuli Saarinen is a Finnish game designer living in Montreal. She specializes in UX design, flow design, and level design. Her firm belief is that UX design is the secret to making games the greatest narrative medium of all. In addition to practical design work, she has a background in game research, game journalism, and arts. Her research has focused on industry trends, game development processes, and emotion in video games.

Jana Sloan van Geest is a game writer working at Ubisoft Montreal. She is a graduate of Concordia University's Theatre program, and was a member of the city's English theatre community before moving into games. Previously, Jana worked at Gameloft and at Ludia, where she was Narrative Designer on the recently released Battlestar Galactica: Squadrons. She is also Mentorship Events Coordinator and founder of a game writing professional development program for Pixelles Montreal. Twitter: @janamakesgames.

Moderator: 
rémy paulin twahirwa studies, lives and creates in Montreal. He is currently working on his first “poetic fragments” compilation (Soleil noir) through which he explores themes of childhood, death, mental health, social struggle and his identity and condition as a Black man. To read his texts, visit his blog, les heures blues, at: remypaulintwahirwa.net


Accessibility info: TAG is on the 11th floor of the EV building at Concordia University. The building is wheelchair accessible via all of its entrances and the 11th floor is reachable by elevators located near the building entrances. The building is not wheelchair accessible via the Guy metro station. In proximity to the TAG space, there are washrooms which include wheelchair accessible stalls.

Note: Please make sure to arrive early in order to secure a seat.


Back to top

© Concordia University