SPEAKERS | X-Summit

Jesse Albert is a former Sr. Agent at ICM where he focused on high profile digital and branded entertainment strategy and engagements for world leading clients and brands including Beyonce, Chris Brown, Megan Fox, Showtime, Sony, Ford, Ikea, Activision and many others. His efforts crossed all divisions, including traditional media, web, publishing, video gaming, venture capital, music, etc..

Prior to ICM, Albert led US digital entertainment for Simon Fuller’s 19 Entertainment, creator of American Idol where he helped establish the first American Idol/iTunes relationship as well as launch the careers of Daughtry and other American Idol artists.

Albert also helped establish United Talent Agency’s online division and began his career in Hollywood serving as general manager at Media Revolution, an award-winning leader and pioneer in digital marketing, working with most of the major Hollywood studios and networks, and such campaigns as Independence Day, Air Force One, X Files The Movie, Alien Resurrection, and many others.

Since leaving ICM, Albert has focused on leveraging his Hollywood relationships and expertise into producing and consulting partnerships across most media platforms with active projects in film, television and digital, and partnerships with companies such as Quadrant Films, Chill, Stitch Media, USC Stevens Center for Innovation, Ryan Seacrest Productions, eOne, Hulu, Achilles Media, Vuguru and many others.

Albert is active in the technology sector developing services and IP, and serves on several boards of advisors and often speaks on panels globally concerning the digital landscape, transmedia or cross platform IP development, and branded entertainment.

In a previous life, Albert spent 8+ years working in the music business where he toured with such illustrious rock bands as Aerosmith & Guns ‘n Roses.

Albert holds two degrees from the University of Southern California, including a BA from the Annenberg School of Journalism and an MFA from the Peter Stark Producing Program in the School of Cinema and Television.

Tom is Chair of the Digital Futures Initiative at OCAD University Toronto, adjunct professor of innovation at the University of Technology Sydney Australia and Design Fellow of the 1851 Royal Commission London. Tom was previously a professor at the University of Technology Sydney (2008-2011) and professor at the Royal College of Art London (2005-8). Prior to this he founded b consultants Ltd and technology incubator SmartSlab Ltd. He has worked for DCA Design, Cray Supercomputers and Arup. Tom’s academic research breaks down into 3 core themes: Design Enterprise – digital economy and urban creative industries; Urban Digital Media – digital-physical space hybrids; and Innovation learning – new formats and delivery for industry and training. Tom has worked as a researcher, strategist, designer and serial entrepreneur in the fields of technology and design for 20 years and is responsible for over 20 patents, several having achieved commercial success. His public profile includes appearances on CNN (USA), Channel 4 (UK), ABC TV and radio, along with over 100 newspaper and magazine articles. His extensive collaborations include work with Sony Playstation, Bank of America, Proctor & Gamble, Lend Lease, Unilever, 3 Mobile, O2 Mobile, B&Q, BenQ, Targetti Lighting, Dyson, McLaren and Sharp Solar. Tom has graduate degrees from Cambridge University and the Royal College of Art, an honours degree from Edinburgh University, and a diploma from Imperial College.

Laura Baxter began her digital media career driven by the belief that successful online experiences are produced as a result of combining both logic and creativity. Over 14 years later, she is still driven by this same belief. Not willing to compromise one for sake of the other, Laura continues to develop new ways to engage and communicate with online audiences by challenging the status quo.

A digital media veteran, Laura has held senior positions with both corporate organizations and service agencies. Building her extensive digital media expertise in strategic planning, user experience design, creative direction, production management, and team leadership.

Throughout her career Laura has transformed ideas and opportunities into winning solutions for a host of top-notch clients including; Globaltv, MuchMusic, Fashion Television, Lavalife, Toyota, Hersheys, Bell Canada, Toronto Public Library and World Wildlife Fund.

In 2009, ready to funnel her experience and passion into an independent venture, Laura founded MitreBox Media a digital consulting firm focused on user experience design that would eventually become MitreBox User Experience Design.

At MitreBox, Laura helps clients capture business requirements and translate those requirements into demonstrable results. From opportunity to execution, Laura is passionate about continuing to explore the endless possibilities for interactive content and eager to develop digital media solutions that engage, educate and enable users.

Jay Bennett is an award-winning creator, producer and writer of original content for the web, television, mobile devices and live events with a distinct focus on creating engaging stories to attract and retain mainstream audiences. He joined Smokebomb in 2008 and has worked for clients such as the BBC, Disney, CTV, Family Channel and UKTV.

Recent projects at Smokebomb include overseeing and creative producing Totally Amp’d, the world’s first App series for iPad, iTouch and iPhone; creative producing the International Emmy-nominated, 13-part web series Murdoch Mysteries: The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs for Citytv; and producing State of Syn, a digital motion novel targeted to science fiction fans and starring Jewel Staite and David Hewlett. Bennett also served as creative director on Baxter, the Online Experience and the award-winning Overruled: You Rule, both for Family Channel.

Prior to Smokebomb, Bennett developed the creative for the International Emmy-nominated Collapsus: The Energy Risk Conspiracy for Submarine; wrote and directed the International Emmy-nominated and Rose D’or-winning M.I. High: Whack the Mole! for the BBC; creative produced the International Emmy-nominated Total Drama Island – Totally Interactive! for TELETOON; and wrote and directed the Fallen: Alternate Reality Game, which was filmed on location around the world and won the first Prime Time Emmy award for Interactive Television in 2007.

Bennett holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Victoria. He has worked in India, the UK, the Netherlands and Canada and has had further media training with the National Film Board of Canada and the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA).

David Bergantino’s career in digital entertainment spans over twenty-five years as a writer, producer, designer, programmer, consultant and executive for nearly every major family entertainment company and game publisher, across all digital platforms. He’s held executive, production and creative positions at Disney Interactive, Jim Henson Interactive, The WB Network, Visual Science, THQ, and, most notably at Nickelodeon as VP of Digital Production. As a game writer, he has worked with numerous companies, including Midway, Sony Europe, Eurocom and, most recently on The Hunger Games Adventures Facebook game for Funtactix. He has had a robust consulting business since the late 90s, and most recently served as Transmedia Director overseeing a Dept. of Education-funded cross-platform project and currently is the Executive Producer of all digital extensions of the Walking with Dinosaurs brand for BBC Worldwide.

Outside of games, Bergantino is the author of 11 published novels, writer and designer as part of the award-winning team responsible for Universal Studios Florida’s ride themed to the Mummy film franchise, has performed stand-up comedy professionally alongside the likes of Ray Romano and Drew Carey, and has worked in both TV animation and film development. In his career he’s worked with mega-producer Kathleen Kennedy, and directors M. Night Shyamalan, Wes Craven, Sean Cunningham and Steve Oedekerk.

Among his real life adventures, Bergantino has hung out with the Village People and spent a day in jail with George Jung, Johnny Depp’s character in the movie Blow.
Bergantino also maintains a robust life (and death) in fiction, officially part of the Star Wars universe as two characters and having been killed three times in the course of two novels.

Mark Bishop, Co-CEO and Executive Producer, marblemedia, co-founded The Company with his business partner Matt Hornburg. Now celebrating its 10th year in the business of entertaining audiences around the world, marblemedia remains focused on innovative content creation and distribution for television and digital media with a commitment to telling stories that entertain and engage audiences across all platforms.

Most recently, Bishop’s Executive Producer credits include Skatoony, a liveaction/animated quiz show targeted to Tweens currently airing on TELETOON; Splatalot, a medieval-themed physical game show geared to Kids 8-12 and their families that airs in over 120 countries around the world including Nickelodeon in the U.S.; as well as the Gemini Award winning Taste Buds, an original kids culinary adventures series airing on TVO. With international acclaim as the Executive Producer behind the hit preschool series This is Daniel Cook and This is Emily Yeung, which air in over 200 countries and in 12 languages, Bishop and his team continue to deliver the property with the franchises most recent and third installment, This is Scarlett and Isaiah slated to launch on-air and online in 2013. A champion of the production and development of digital media, Bishop is currently on the Executive Committee of Interactive Ontario, is a board member of the Canadian Media Production Association and is on the advisory committee for the Ontario Media Development Corporation. He also lends his time to various universities as a guest lecturer and acts as a curriculum advisor at Centennial College, OCAD University and Ryerson University. Bishop has been honoured by The Hollywood Reporter as a Next Generation Producer, won the Lions Gate/Maple Pictures Innovative Producer Award and was also recognized as Producer of the Year by the Canadian New Media Awards.

In the spirit of giving back to the industry, Bishop and his business partner Matt Hornburg, together with Corus Entertainment, established the Innovative Storytellers Award – a $20,000, five-year educational initiative in conjunction with Ryerson University’s Master of Arts in Media Production program.

Seamus Blackley has collaborated technically with Bill Gates and creatively with Steven Spielberg. He worked on the experimental and theoretical physics team that discovered the Top Quark at Fermilab, and wrote the proposal for, assembled the team behind, and was the face of the Xbox and the Xbox division of Microsoft. He has designed, programmed, produced and written music for videogames, and has, as the founding head of the videogame division of CAA, closed well over $500 million in console, PC, mobile, and cloud based videogame deals, representing nearly every famous working game developer on Earth.

A 10-year veteran of the interactive digital media industry, Sasha is business-focused but content supportive professional who believes that industry growth comes through the innovation and monetization of compelling projects that resonate with their intended audiences.

As an independent business consultant to the Canadian digital media industry, she advises on the business management of interactive digital media studios, business models for digital media content, government policy for digital media content, funding proposals to government agencies, and project feasibility assessments.

In addition to her consulting work, Sasha is the Program Coordinator of the Centennial College Interactive Digital Media post-graduate program and an Instructor on marketing and interactive content for the Children’s Entertainment post-graduate program.

A graduate of Ryerson University in Radio and Television Arts and Marketing Management, Sasha regularly shares ideas and reference materials via twitter (@sashaboersma), blogs insights on the business of digital media at bewareoftheleopard.ca, and is an occasional contributor to VillageGamer.net.

Keith Boesky has been active in the content and technology communities as an attorney, a senior executive and as an agent. Representing owners of intellectual property and game developers, his company, Boesky & Company, closed more intellectual property and game development deals, than any other agency in the world. Mr. Boesky’s clients are responsible for creating franchises including Call of Duty, Midnight Club, Prince of Persia, Tomb Raider: Starring Lara Croft, Command and Conquer, Medal of Honor, Red Dead Revolver, Robert Ludlum’s: Jason Bourne and Afro Samurai. Mr. Boesky’s developer clients are responsible for expanding well known brands into games including, Marvel, The Tolkien Estate, Gracie Films (The Simpsons), The Roald Dahl Estate, Hasbro, The Walt Disney Company, Universal Studios, Pixar and Nickelodeon. From time to time he provides guidance regarding the game industry to venture capital, private equity firms and investment banks.

Between November 2002 and November 2004, before returning to Boesky & Company, Mr. Boesky worked at International Creative Management where he assisted ICM clients in the migration of properties to and from video games. During this time he facilitated relationships for writers and directors, including John Milius and Peter Jackson into games as well as Jordan Mechner’s transition from game creator to film writer during the sale of Prince of Persia.

From 1999 to 2002, Mr. Boesky established Boesky & Company to help clients bridge the communication gap between the worlds of content and technology included Universal Studios, Paramount Studios, Squaresoft and The Upper Deck Company and advice to Apple and Morgan Stanley.

In 1996, shortly after representing Eidos plc (NASDAQ: EIDSY) in its initial public offering, Mr. Boesky left the practice of law to join Eidos Interactive, Inc. as president. While at Eidos Mr. Boesky focused on expansion of Eidos properties, including “Tomb Raider” and “Lara Croft,” into film, toys and publishing as well as the acquisition of new properties, such as “Final Fantasy VII PC” and “Fear Effect.”

From 1992 to 1996 Mr. Boesky worked as an attorney with Cooley Godward, where his practice included public and private finance and intellectual property protection. Over the next few years Mr. Boesky grew the practice from the representation of industry pioneers Presto Studios and Angel Studios, into one of the United States’ largest new media practices, covering developers and publishers of content ranging from home gaming platforms to location based entertainment.

He is an adjunct professor in Carnegie Mellon University’s MEIM program and has given keynote and other addresses at the Consumer Electronic Show, Showbiz Expo, E3, San Diego Comic Con, Game Developers Conference, Game Developers Conference Austin, NATPE, Digital Hollywood, The Rotterdam Film Festival, Xmedia Lab – Sydney Australia, Europrix- Vienna Austria, The UCLA Entertainment Law Forum.

Mr. Boesky graduated Magna Cum Laude from The University of San Diego School of Law in 1990 and received a B.A. in Economics from UCLA in 1987.

He lives in Pacific Palisades, California with his wife Sari and son Kevin.

For the past four years Lenny ran point for Transmedia strategy at video game company THQ with a variety of business partners that included Syfy, Random House, Machinima.com, Funimation, and Sony Pictures. Talent deals included Guillermo del Toro, Tomonobu Itagaki, Patrice Desilets, and Matt Stone & Trey Parker. Prior to joining THQ, Lenny worked at HBO where he covered Everybody Loves Raymond, Martin, Spawn, Sex in the City, and The Sopranos as a current programming executive. He graduated from UCLA and majored in English Literature.

Rob Caouette is a Sector Advisor for the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Sector Team, part of the Business Development Group at Export Development Canada.

With over 15 years of EDC experience, Rob has an in-depth knowledge of the ICT Sector, and is the go-to person both internally and externally for all matters related to this vibrant growth sector for Canada. Rob provides meaningful advice and support to both the team of dedicated ICT underwriters within EDC as well as to Canadian Exporters operating within the industry in order to help them grow their business abroad while mitigating their financial risks.

Over the past 2 years, Rob has been focused on the New Media sub–sector, striving to better understand the unique financial challenges and gaps in the industry. He has been an innovative force in developing and supporting EDC’s New Media Sector Strategy aimed at supporting both Canadian Exporters as well as foreign buyers and investors in the industry.

EDC is Canada’s export credit agency, offering innovative commercial solutions to help Canadian exporters and investors expand their international business. EDC’s knowledge and partnerships are used by nearly 7,000 Canadian companies and their global customers in up to 200 markets worldwide each year. EDC is financially self-sustaining, is a recognized leader in financial reporting and economic analysis, and has been named one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers for eight consecutive years.

Deb is an award -winning television and film director and producer with over 20 years in the entertainment industry. Using her finely-tuned communication, strategic and creative thinking skills, Deb works with entrepreneurs, businesses, production companies, distributors and broadcasters to create effective digital and social media strategies and content to engage customers, clients and audiences in the social media sphere. Deb’s passion both for storytelling and directly engaging with audiences, combined with her talent for listening, analyzing and connecting, has made her an in-demand consultant in the world of social, digital and transmedia.

As a strategist and producer, Deb connects businesses and productions with the right partners to support their projects and goals. Incorporating the powerful and ever-changing digital and social media space, Deb and her team strive to forge new opportunities while remaining true to the distinctive look, feel and voice of the project at hand.

Learning and empowering are a big part of Deb’s life. As a workshop leader, moderator and trainer, she designs and runs training and development programs for industry organizations and associations. From leading small, intensive workshops to addressing larger conference audiences as an individual speaker, panelist or moderator, Deb loves to engage people in conversation and expand possibilities.

Deb Day has recently worked with Bell Media as the Digital Producer of CTV’s hit summer series Saving Hope; with Vérité Films for two seasons CBC’s InSecurity; and with Rhombus Media on CBC’s critical hit Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays. This fall, Deb will be speaking and moderating at the Atlantic Film Festival Music and Images Conference, Women in Film and Television (WiFT) Career Accelerator, the ImagineNATIVE festival, and the 2012 Merging Media (Vancouver) conference. Deb is also an active mentor, working with emerging talent or people in transition. She is currently part of the Canadian Women in Communications Mentorship Program.

Jason Della Rocca is a game industry consultant that works with game studios and organizations all over the world. For nearly nine years, he served as the executive director of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), and was honored for his industry building efforts with the inaugural Ambassador Award at the Game Developers Conference. In 2009, Jason was named to Game Developer Magazine’s “The Game Developer 50″, a list which profiles 50 of the most important contributors to the state of the game industry. As a sought after expert on the game industry, Jason has lectured at conferences and universities worldwide.

Ipsa manages strategic partnerships for YouTube, focusing on TV, music, sports and news. She also helps drive Google product launches in Canada and associated partnerships. She was previously a Principal in the Business Operations and Strategy group at Google based out of Mountain View, California.

Flint Dille is a living embodiment of Transmedia. Flint has spent most of his creative life on the porous border between the game business and the film business, and firmly believes that it is all becoming one big media industry. His career started by turning toys into TV Shows with G1 Transformers (and Movie) all the way to writing the 2007 movie game and the Digital Comic ‘Autocracy’ with Chris Metzen currently being released, G.I. Joe, Inhumanoids and Visionaries. He has designed games with Gary Gygax and written movies for Steven Spielberg. Flint has sold game design documents as feature films twice (Venom: Dimension 2006) and Agent In Place (Lionsgate 2010). He created the ‘Comics Module’ for TSR, a comic book that contained both roleplaying and tabletop gaming content way before Transmedia (soon to be re-published by Cryptozoic). His Agent 13 novels, are in feature film development. Flint directed the Interactive Movie Terror T.R.A.X., Track of the Vampyre which became a television pilot for Fox as well as Dragonstrike, one of the first hybrid film projects.

Currently, Flint’s graphic novel for Diablo III, The Book of Cain is charting on Amazon, and his digital Transformers Comic, Autocracy, is a best-selling digital only comic which, at the time of this writing holds four of the top 25 slots for digital comic downloads (only four issues are out right now).

Flint has, himself, become a Transmedia character. Old friend Frank Miller immortalized him as Dillios (Spartan-ization of Dille), the narrator in 300. Gary Gygax made him a Barbarian named ‘Chert’ (in geology a low grade of flint). And nobody knows whether Flint from G.I. Joe was named for Flint, but Mr. Dille certainly elevated the Warrant Officer’s career.

Deemed by the Writer’s Guild of America, the most published Game Writer in the World, Flint has twice won ‘Game Script of the Year’ (Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (with JZP) and Dead to Rights and was nominated for Ghostbusters and Dark Athena. He has a degree in Ancient History from U.C. Berkeley and an MFA from USC. Currently, Flint is teaching a class on Alternate Reality Games at UCLA. His follow up book to The Ultimate Guide to Video Game Writing and Design is about Transmedia.

Stephen Ellis is President of RocketFuel Media Inc., which launched in September, 2012, providing convergent media production services for the film and television industry. It’s a joint venture of his Media Catellist Holdings with the new media enterprise Rocket Digital Management. Stephen is an internationally known, award-winning television producer and distributor, with over 300 titles in his filmography in the wildlife, history, science and kids genres, seen in over 100 countries. He previously headed up Toronto-based Ellis Entertainment Corporation for 25 years, the longstanding Canadian indie founded by his father, Ralph C. Ellis, in 1964.

For over three decades he’s also been an advocate for independent Canadian production and distribution through extensive volunteer work with various industry bodies, including the Canadian Media Production Association, which awarded him the CFTPA-Kodak Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005. Stephen has also pioneered non-profit digital age enterprises for producers, founding the Canadian Retransmission Collective in 1990 and ISAN Canada in 2007, both of which he
continues to Chair. CRC has distributed over $150 million to date in cable and satellite royalties for distant program signals to domestic and international producers. ISAN Canada is the ISO standard for digital fingerprinting of audiovisual works recognized by both CAVCO and the CMF.

<a href=”http://www.stitchmedia.ca” target=”_blank”>Stitch Media</a> partner Victoria Evans has extensive production experience in media with a background that includes: coordinating international news broadcasts, production management on several award-winning international documentaries, and coordinating an award-winning alternate reality game. At Stitch Media, Victoria has been responsible for producing and executing several award winning projects including: webseries, an interactive documentary, e-learning and extension to TV Series.

Stitch Media is a production company specializing in interactive content recognized for interactive storytelling using innovative technology, game design, and stories that build communities.They span across multiple platforms and genres as they educate, entertain and engage with our audience.

Victoria also sits on the Board of Directors with Women in Film & Television, Toronto and she is part of their digital strategy committee. She was nominated in 2010 for ‘Producer of the Year’ at the Canadian New Media Awards.

Emmanuel Evdemon is an avid gamer and film buff turned Entertainment Lawyer. With close to a decade of legal experience in the entertainment industry, Emmanuel focuses his practice on providing exclusively entertainment industry clients with legal advice relating to their businesses. The majority of his practice lies in contract drafting and negotiation, copyright and intellectual property rights, and risk management. Emmanuel’s clients include individual creative talent and producers/developers of interactive digital media, video games, film, and television properties. Emmanuel has presented on entertainment law and industry related topics at universities, legal conferences, and industry events including X-Summit.

Emmanuel is playing: 100 floors, “they bleed pixels”, and is waiting for the next installment of Call Of Duty

Jay Ferguson is an award winning filmmaker who has contributed as a writer, director, producer and cinematographer on over 15 feature films. His work with institutions such as The National Film Board of Canada has garnered him acclaim, including winning the top cinematography award at the Atlantic Film Festival for the 2005 documentary ANIMALS. He has also won the Canadian Society of Cinematographers top award for cinematography for INSIDE TIME and has been nominated for this award numerous other times for such projects as ANIMALS and ALTER EGOS. In 2005 he was nominated for a Gemini award and won top honours at various film festivals for his work on LA MULE ET LES EMERAUDE and MY DOG VINCENT. Besides features and documentaries, Jay also has 12 years of experience in commercial production. He has directed and shot spots for CIBC Wood Gundy, GolfTown, Nike, Spalding, The Shaw Theater Festival and BCS. Jay’s first feature film, SUBURBAN LEGEND was selected for official competition in the 1996 Montreal International Film Festival and won best director at the RPM film festival in Toronto. His second feature POSTHUMOUS was short listed for official competition at the Sundance Film Festival in 2001. Jay has also directed an assortment of music videos, cooking shows and web-series. Jay’s ongoing work with interactive online content has helped earn TV Ontario a WEBBY nomination and a SXSW interactive nomination for writing and directing segments for EMPIRE OF THE WORD. Jay co-created, co-wrote, co-produced, co-shot and directed his latest project – the online series GUIDESTONES. Guidestones won the 2012 Banff Rockie for Best Web Series and has also been nominated at Marseille Web Fest and The Geneva International Film Festival. Jay has been asked to speak across the globe about the content and distribution innovations he stewarded through the Guidestones series. Please watch Guidestones at www.Guidestones.org

Ryan has written for linear and non-linear media in film, TV and new media. He is an alumnus of the Canadian Film Centre Media Lab’s Interactive Art & Entertainment Program, the National Screen Institute’s Features First Program and the inaugural National Screen Institute’s playWRITE Program for video game writing. He has taught transmedia nationally, including Melting Silos for the National Film Board, at the Banff New Media Institute for the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network and the Transmedia Production Lab for in both Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

Ryan has served as the President & CEO of Rogue Nation Studios and as the Executive Director of Canada’s first video game incubator Fortune Cat Games Studio. As the current community manager and in-house content creator for Celtx, Ryan fosters community, discussion and feedback among Celtx’s 2,000,000 users in over 170 countries. He lives with his family in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

David Fono is a game designer and developer, proficient across a wide variety of media and technologies. He is the co-founder of The Mission Business, an adventure laboratory; and of Atmosphere Industries, an award-winning not-for-profit that creates cross-media pervasive games. His work has been featured at Indiecade, Gamercamp, Come Out and Play, London’s National Theatre, and Berlin’s HAU. He also runs Recess.to, a Toronto-based community group that facilitates the design and playtesting of experimental games, as well as Board Game Jam, an annual event focusing on the rapid prototyping of board games. David has an MSc in computer science from University of Toronto, with a specialization in human-computer interaction. His research work has been published in the Internet Research Annual Volume, the Proceedings of the Conference on Computer-Human Interaction, and the Proceedings of the Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work. David is currently an external research associate at Ryerson’s Experential Design and Gaming Environment Lab.

Anthea Foyer is a diginista, who makes beautiful things using technology, compelling narratives across platforms, and starts conversations between strangers & friends – on and offline. She believes that anything is possible when worlds collide.

She has created, produced and advised on a wide array of critically acclaimed projects including graphic novels, interactive installations, online narratives, wearables, participatory theatre, multiplatform experiences and tv and film convergence projects. She has produced large-scale conferences, developed & presented cutting edge workshops, and curated highly acclaimed exhibits. She can often be found speaking, mentoring and presenting workshops about the continually evolving realm of digital media, with a focus on interactive narrative and the creative convergence of a variety of media forms.

Mark is currently in post production on two multi platform series that he produced and starred in; THE PROGRAM a supernatural thriller by Matt Lutz and a comedy, ANNIE TAKES OFF by Sybil Temtchine and Steve Peros directed by Perry Andelin Blake. Both series have a unique take on storytelling from a transmedia perspective. Mark is also developing several projects that he will be starring in and producing including; the dramedy LOVEMAKERS with Yuri Baranovsky, DRIVE an action web series/feature film with a top Youtube channel and sci-fi action series, SEVVEN with Taryn O’Neill.

Mark is best known for THE BANNEN WAY, which he co-wrote, produced and starred in, and has been an incredible success. Financed by Sony’s Crackle distribution arm, this unique Web Series/Feature Film included Academy Award Nominees, Robert Forster and Michael Lerner and Emmy winner Vanessa Marcil. Within the first ten weeks, it garnered over 14 million views and went on to win 4 Streamy Awards including Best Drama, Best Actor (Mark), Best Director and was nominated for two Webby awards and a BANFF Interactive Rockies Award. BANNEN is distributed internationally on VOD, DVD, iTunes and Amazon as a feature film. Due to its vast success, Mark is currently developing the project into a TV series.

He also produced and directed two episodes of the 2011 BANFF Interactive Rockies Award nominated series, SUITE 7, a branded web series for the Better Sleep Council, released online by Lifetime, starring Shannen Doherty, Jaime Murray and Eddie McClintock. As an actor, Mark recently guest-starred on Showtime’s DEXTER.

Trevor’s interests in interdisciplinary creative strategies have led Trevor down a wandering path. While studying film theory, he began thinking critically and creatively about storytelling and technology. Trevor has worked as Producer on the popular virtual world Habbo Hotel as well as with Earth Rangers. He is also a visual artist, and has been working as a commercial and artistic photographer for eight years. Trevor has attended Wilfrid Laurier University, the Rhode Island School of Design, and CFC Media Lab. He is in the midst of the MDes in Strategic Foresight and Innovation program at OCAD University.

Steven Hein has spent the past four years at 20th Century Fox supporting the development and production of digital series. He currently serves as the Vice-President of Production at Fox Digital Studio. At Fox he has supervised such series as the Buffy: The Vampire Slayer Season 8 Motion Comic, Wolfpack of Reseda, Let’s Big Happy, and Suit Up. The series have appeared on Netflix, Yahoo, MySpace, Xbox and iTunes.

Prior to joining the studio, Steven worked as an independent producer and digital media consultant. With director Sam Raimi, Steven produced the Boogeyman trilogy of films for Sony Pictures. The first Boogeyman was released on over 3000 screens in 2005 and went on to be the number one grossing film on a Super Bowl weekend and spawned two sequels. Steven continued his relationship with Sam Raimi’s Ghost House Pictures by producing two seasons of the web exclusive short-form series of 30 Days of Night which premiered on FearNet. He has also produced a number of independent films including Punk Like Me and Brotherhood.

In the digital space he has consulted for a number of companies including Walt Disney Pictures, Ifilm, Atomfilms, National Banana and Ghost House Pictures on original content development and production strategies.

Steven also has experience in the start-up world. He worked as Head of Production at Hypnotic, Doug Liman’s branded entertainment company. There he served as
a producer on the 2003 Chrysler Million Dollar Film Festival, the 2004 MasterCard Priceless Experience and won a Golden Lion at Cannes 2003 for Reebok’s hit short film and commercial series entitled Terry Tate: Office Linebacker, which premiered on Super Bowl XXXVII.

Before working at Hypnotic, Hein founded Quality Filmed Entertainment, a literary management and production company focused on feature films, television, and new media. The company’s films have played at Sundance, Toronto and Berlin and have won over 50 film festival awards. Steven was honored at the 2001 HBO US Comedy Arts Festival for having “delivered short-films that set the standard…and displaying a remarkable eye for material and directing talent.”

Steve first worked as a feature development executive for the animation studio Film Roman (Simpsons, King of the Hill) and for producer Lucas Foster (Crimson Tide, Bad Boys, Mr. & Mrs. Smith), while Foster was stationed at Columbia Pictures.

Steven was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He holds a B.A. in Critical Studies of Film and Television from the USC School of Cinematic Arts and a M.B.A. from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. He currently resides in Santa Monica, California.

Jo Holz is Senior Vice President, Client Research Initiatives at Nielsen, a leading global provider of information and analytics around what consumers buy and what they watch. She works with Nielsen’s Television clients in helping them understand the rapidly evolving media environment and assess its impact on driving their audiences. Previously, Jo served as Vice President of Research for NBC News, MSNBC, and CNBC, and as head of research for Oxygen Media and for Sesame Workshop, where she oversaw the Workshop’s research for all its domestic and international television productions, interactive media, and licensed products. Jo holds M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania.

Kirsty Hunter is one of the UK’s leading digital media executives. She is the Managing Director in the UK of digital production company, The Project Factory. Multiplatform credits include: Summer Daze with Blackberry (Channel 4), GTST: Wie is Tim? (RTL4), The British (Sky), The Great British Property Scandal (Channel 4), Britain from Above (BBC), Horrible Histories (cbbc) and History Detectives (PBS). Her projects have received a Digital Emmy, RTS, Digital Broadcast, History Maker and IVCA Awards. Kirsty was previously the Head of Interactive at Lion Television. She teaches Multiplatform production at the Indies Training Fund, mentored at the Documentary Campus Masterschool and the American Film Institute’s Digital Content Lab, and also sits on PACT’s Interactive Group. She has spoken at many leading international events including: The International Women in Digital Media Summit, The World Congress of Science and Factual Producers, Intelligent Factual, MIP Screenings and the Australian International Documentary Conference.

Brian Seth Hurst is CEO of The Opportunity Management Company, a strategic consultancy driving the next generation of entertainment. Referred to as “the father of cross platform”, Hurst coined the term in 1998 as MD of Convergent Media, Pittard Sullivan, where he launched TV Guide as the first ever cross platform brand, and was on the team that developed the original user experience for TiVo. Hurst’s credo “go to where your audience lives” continues to transform the relationship of audiences to storytellers, brands and programming.

TOMC has assisted broadcast clients and content rights holders in, extending their story worlds and programming, and building communities on new platforms. In the ever-expanding world of multiplatform storytelling, the company brokers relationships between leading storytellers, technology companies and brands, provides multiplatform strategy and production services, and distribution. Clients have included: Showtime, Lifetime, NCBUniversal, SVT (Swedish Pubic Television), Intel, and AOL as well as successful start-ups McLean Masterworks, Nixle and Paltalk. Hurst is a principal of and strategist on Tim Kring’s multiplatform award winning experience “Conspiracy For Good” for which he created the terms “Social Benefit Storytelling” and “Social Benefit Marketing” to describe this new entertainment genre and the project’s impact.

Hurst serves on the advisory boards of Vwalls and Social Samba amongst others and his well known for his volunteer work in the industry. He spent 10 years on the Board of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences building the Primetime Emmy® Brand Strategy and serving in various positions including second vice chair. He served 3 terms on the Board of the Producers Guild of America, serving two terms as Chairman of the PGA’s New Media Council. Recipient of an Interactive TV Today Award for Leadership in Interactive Television, he was profiled in Emmy magazine as one of the 10 media executives leading the industry’s digital drive and was named two years running to the Hollywood Reporter/PGA Digital 50. Hurst was appointed Global Digital Ambassador for the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in 2009. He is currently host of the series “StoryCentered” at ITVT.com. Author of the best selling children’s book “A Pig Tale” with Olivia Newton-John, October 2012 will see the release of the book “WHOLE” – a collection of observational and inspirational essays.

Twitter: @briansethhurst, @storycentered @wholethebook

From his first part-time job working as a theatre usher on a Canadian Military base in Germany, he has spent two decades working in media. During his undergraduate at Queen’s University he founded the Van Allen Belt a progressive rock group that recorded two albums and toured with acts including The Tragically Hip, Wilco and Primus. After graduation, he directed award-winning shorts, worked as a stage manager at the Just for Laughs festival, and later at every level of production on films, television and commercials in Toronto. Relocating to Vancouver he founded OverInterActive Media Inc (OMI) receiving first investment from Bootup Labs to develop dimeRocker, a cloud-based platform designed to accelerate the creation of branded social games, gamification and social TV strategies. It was a finalist for “Best New Media Technology” at the 2010 CNMA Awards. J. was identified by Techvibes as “Digital Media People to Watch in 2011.” Conference participation includes: Banff World Media Festival, VIFF, Merging + Media, nextMedia, and NXNE. Recently he was appointed to the board of VIFF, and as a National Advisor for the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, Merging + Media and X-Summit. In May 2012 he and Brian Wideen founded CineCoup which was spun out from OMI. The company received initial backing from Growlabs and partnered with Cineplex Entertainment for the 2012 Canadian pilot.

Stitch Media partner Evan Jones, is a two-time Emmy Award® winner whose innovative work on interactive content for primetime television, radio, web, mobile and games have established him as a pioneer in new genres of Alternate Reality Games, Locative Media and Interactive Documentary.

His work was recognized as one of the ‘Top 10 New Media Groundbreakers’ according to the Bell Broadcast & New Media Fund. Evan’s international clients include Microsoft, Disney, FOX, CBC, Bell, Discovery and The Movie Network.

He has taught ‘Rich Media Production’, ‘Transmedia Storytelling’ and ‘Extending TV Drama Experiences’ around the world at the Canadian Film Centre, the Australian Film, Television & Radio School and the University of Southern California with Dr. Henry Jenkins.

Evan was nominated as “Producer of the Year” at the 2011 Digi Awards.

Johnny Kalangis is an internationally acclaimed feature film writer/director and interactive entertainment lead. Johnny currently works at marblemedia as Creative Director within its award-winning interactive department where he oversees the creative development of the company’s digital media productions. Prior to his current post, Johnny worked as Producer and then as Executive in Charge of interactive entertainment at the CBC. There, he worked with A-list properties such as “The Nature of Things,” “Being Erica” and “The Rick Mercer Report.”

Johnny’s movie, “Love Is Work,” premiered at the Whistler Film Festival in 2005, and won the People’s Choice Award. It was also presented by multi Oscar-winner Paul Haggis at its U.S. premiere in Los Angeles. Johnny has lent his time to the Genie and Gemini Awards juries, among others. He has lectured at University of Toronto, Vancouver Film School and Ryerson University on interactive narrative, transmedia storytelling and the convergences of conventional and emerging platforms.

Creative D is a Toronto-based entertainment software company whose products blend content, social media and games. He is a 15-year veteran of digital media, including more than 10 years in strategy, product and business development roles at Canadian broadcasters CHUM and CTV.

Richard counts many Canadian and North American innovations in his accomplishments, including: first interactive television applications in Canada, the first broadcaster mobile video offering, the first cross-carrier ringtone store in North America, the first premium SMS program in North America, and the first licensed interactive music video channel in North America. He has also worked with brands and agencies to develop integrated marketing campaigns, microsites and advergames, including winning the Promax Gold award for an integrated mobile campaign executed with MuchMusic and McDonalds.

He also has significant experience in multi-platform content distribution, including structuring licensing deals with all four major labels as well as studios including Disney, Warner and Universal. He has also struck distribution agreements with Apple and with Canadian mobile operators Bell Mobility and Telus Mobility.

Richard hold a film degree from York University and was a resident at the Canadian Film Centre’s New Media program. He is a frequent speaker and instructor on the integration of digital and traditional media and emerging business models.

Byron is a Canadian playwright, director, dramaturg and critic. Highlights include the world premiere of Waiting for Gilgamesh: Scenes from Iraq; the Canadian premiere of Reefer Madness at Hart House Theatre; the Off-Broadway remount of Daniel McIvor’s Monster in NYC with TerraNova; Little Crickets at the 2011 Summerworks Festival; and the Dora Award winning Morro and Jasp Series with U.N.I.T. Productions. His criticism and arts journalism has appeared in Eye Weekly, In Toronto Magazine, Scene Changes and Adbusters. Byron is currently completing a PhD degree in Theatre Studies, specializing in Interactive Theatre at York University and teaches in the Theatre Department.

Having spent the past twelve years working in the online space, Gina has dedicated her career to mastering and refining Digital Project Management practices and strategic planning. Gina is a graduate of Ryerson University’s Radio and Television Arts program, as well as the post-graduate program in Internet Management, from Humber College.

Gina’s expertise in stakeholder relationship management, cross-functional team leadership, web development production cycles and interactive strategy allows her to bring a depth and breadth of thinking to dynamic and fast-paced project teams. She has managed hundreds of client initiatives, servicing verticals including media and entertainment, education, not for profit, pharmaceutical and health care, consumer packaged goods, and travel. Clients include University of Toronto, Ocean Spray, Metro News, Thomas Cook Travel, Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Plan Canada, Jamieson Laboratories, Havergal College, and Zurich Canada. Most recently, Gina helped craft digital visions and online strategies for Plan Canada’s ‘Because I am a Girl’ campaign, and Partnership for a Drug Free Canada.

Gina sits on the advisory board for Humber College’s web development program, is a leading blogger in the digital management space, and has served as a mentor for Wired Women, Toronto Chapter. She is currently writing a book on the art of Digital Project Management.

Maureen McHugh is a novelist and short story writer who began working in multiplatform marketing in 2003 when she worked on the ilovebees campaign for Halo 2. She’s worked on major campaigns including Year Zero for Nine Inch Nails (winner of the Cannes Lion) and internal campaigns for Cisco with No Mimes Media. She is currently a writer at Fourth Wall Studios. Her last collection of short stories, After the Apocalypse (2011) was one of Publisher’s Weekly’s 10 Best Books of the Year. She lives in Los Angeles.

As a senior executive in multi-screen content development, licensing, and digital distribution, Jeremiah has lead discussions in the digital entertainment industry specializing in “second-screen” strategy {web, mobile, TV} and new business models around the development, financing, production and distribution of multi-screen content internationally.

He is a member of the Academy of Television, Arts & Sciences – Interactive Media Group, and the Producer’s Guild of America – New Media Council. Jeremiah also sits on the International Committee for the Producer’s Guild of America, and is a Co-Chair of “On the ground with…”, event at the annual PGA Produced by Conference, a collaboration between FILM USA and PGA International Committee.

Andy is the Producer for Special Projects and Transmedia at Mirada. Overseeing all cross-platform and nontraditional storytelling projects, Andy specializes in developing narrative for film, interactive, and digital, as well as unique user experiences and production management methods that maximize the studio’s diverse creative talent. Since joining Mirada, Andy’s work has included director Chris Milk’s interactive music video 3 Dreams of Black for Rome (www.Ro.me), the IBM Centennial THINK Exhibit and its iOS and Android apps (thinkexhibit.com), and the Department of Human Management website for Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan’s The Strain Trilogy. Andy is also a frequent speaker on transmedia strategy and production approaches, at USC, UCLA, Harvard Business School, and professional conferences such as PromaxBDA.

Andy holds an MS from MIT specializing in Transmedia Production Management, an MBA from HEC-Paris specializing in Creativity Management, as well as an AB with Honors from Rollins College in Anthropology and International Business. He’s written two theses: The Management of Transmedia Production in an Era of Digital and Media Convergence, and Head Cults: Alternative Forms of Religious Phenomena in the Followers of The Grateful Dead, Jimmy Buffett, and Phish.

Andy’s previous work experience includes development and production for Sony Pictures Television, training entrepreneurs and educators in the Peace Corps in Bangladesh, performing improv, and educating students in zoo keeping for Busch Gardens – Tampa.

Peter Miller is a lawyer and engineer with over 20 years of broadcast and telecommunications industry experience, in private practice and senior executive positions. Since 2005, he has acted as an advisor to select clients in both the public and private sectors, specializing in business and policy development, as well as regulatory counsel.

Peter is the current Chair of Interactive Ontario, a trade association committed to the growth of Ontario’s digital media sector.

When billable hours are required, Peter runs a legal and consulting practice largely focussed on the media sector, but wide ranging in terms of the types of clients and nature of assignments. Over the last six years, clients have included numerous private entities, such as the CMPA, Shaw, Astral, Blue Ant and Rogers Media, as well as many public entities, including the CRTC, Canadian Heritage, the Competition Bureau, OMDC and the Ontario Ministry of Culture. Assignments themselves have varied from regulatory and public policy advice and analysis, to strategic planning and economic impact exercises.

Peter’s professional background includes acting as Parliamentary Assistant to Members of Parliament, private practice in communications law, and senior broadcast executive positions.

From June 2008 to May 2009, Peter was Chief Operating Officer for S-VOX, the Vision TV group of companies. In this capacity he oversaw the organization’s operations and broadcast infrastructure as well as its marketing, communications, advertising sales, business development, legal, regulatory and affiliate relations functions.

From 2002 to 2005, Peter held the position of Vice President, Planning and Regulatory Affairs for CHUM Limited, where he was the key strategic advisor on industry
developments and growth opportunities for CHUM Limited, as well as being responsible for all facets of CRTC regulatory affairs and government relations. Prior to joining CHUM in 1998, Peter was Senior Vice-President and General Counsel to the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB), responsible for all policy and legal issues for radio, specialty and television.

Peter Miller began his career in telephone network design at Bell Northern Research in Ottawa.

Peter is a frequent industry commentator who has been actively involved in numerous industry boards and committees. Peter is past chair of the CAB Specialty & Pay Services
Board, past treasurer of Canadian Digital Television and, in addition to his IO duties, a current constituency member of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

Peter can be contacted at info@petermiller.ca or via twitter @peterhmiller.

As Executive Producer at Secret Location, James has built numerous award-winning, large-scale digital entertainment and brand projects. In just four short years, he has taken Secret Location from a small boutique to a bustling agency with a staff of 25 full-time and 10 to 15 freelancers, at any given time.

Under his watch, Secret Location won a Digital Emmy® in the Best Digital Program: Fiction category for Endgame Interactive, a highly engaging and immersive transmedia experience. With over 50 other awards, including a Gemini Award and multiple AToMiC, Creativity International, CASSIES and Marketing Awards plus shortlists for the Webby Awards and a Cannes Lion, James has secured a place for the company as one of the top digital entertainment and interactive agencies in the world.

James is a regular speaker at international conferences around the world including: SXSW Interactive, FITC, nextMEDIA, the Banff World Television Festival, Realscreen, Kidscreen, FNC Montreal and meshmarketing. He also serves on the digital advisory board of the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, Strategy Magazine’s AToMiC Summit, The Playback Summit and nextMEDIA.

He has a degree in Economics from Bishop’s University and a postgraduate degree in Interactive Art and Entertainment from the New Media Lab at the Canadian Film Centre. James worked extensively in TV commercial production and documentary film, prior to defecting to the dark arts of interactive.

Amy Miranda is one of the most awarded integrated producers in North America, and she knows how to make a production feel easy. She draws on over 13 years of Interactive, Creative, Strategic and Operations experience delivering internationally award-winning digital solutions. Amy’s work has garnered her multiple Gold Cannes Cyber Lions, One Show Pencils, and industry recognition for both high quality creative – and results.

She began her career in the early days of CNN.com in Atlanta and since then, Amy has produced, conceptualized and managed thousands of large-scale campaigns, applications and solutions ranging fromfrequency programs to e-commerce sites.

Her ability to assess, strategize and implement, coupled with her passion for creative have made her one of the interactive industry’s creative production experts. She’s worked as an Editor, Designer, Developer, Technology Director, Project Manager and Director of Production at companies including CNN, U8TV/Alliance Atlantis, Henderson Bas, TAXI and Grip Limited.

In May of 2009 Amy moved forward in executing her unique vision for integrated production made easy with the launch of Lunch. Lunch is a network of companies who work both together and separately to create high quality integrated work for clients, agencies, and production companies. Lunch has already been awarded internationally for their work to date.

Amy is a frequent speaker at conferences (FITC, NXNE, TEDX), and universities, frequent awards show judge and is also known for her non-profit work in founding and curating Canadian think tank Inter-action.

Darren is Co-Founder and Managing Director of NextTime Productions. Along with his brother Harley, they create and produce EpicMealTime, the widely successful YouTube hit. Darren has helped grow the Montreal start-up production company into one of the top 10 most subscribed YouTube channels worldwide. With a Masters degree in education, and a decade of experience teaching, Darren made the leap to producing online content two years ago.

As Managing Director, Darren has created and developed strategic partnerships with various online networks to monetize their channel’s views. Through creative and thoughtful integrations and strategic collaborations in the industry, Darren has helped position NextTime Productions and their properties as one of the more exciting companies to work with for online advertising and marketing campaigns.

Some of the companies that have worked with NextTime Productions include The Collective, Yoshimoto Entertainment, CH Media, MSN, Trion Worlds, Hearst Communications, Netflix, Kingmaker and Ubisoft.

Jacqueline is the Senior Training Programs Manager of CFC Media Lab, the award-winning institute for interactive storytelling created in 1997 at the Canadian Film Centre.

As an interactive producer, Jacqueline supervises project and prototype development while working closely with industry partners on strategic relationships on projects and national training activities. She is currently working with OCADU on the recently jointly launched Digital Futures MA program. In addition to this has fostered curatorial relationships with the 2010 Cultural Olympiad and is currently working on program design for incubating the next generation of entertainment properties.

With her company Eventide Media she has worked as a consultant with several Canadian production companies and convergent projects such as Direct Current’s 4Real.com and Kensington’s Diamond Road Online websites. In the past, she was the Director of Communications at DECODE Entertainment Inc. in Toronto. She has an award-winning cross media portfolio, and has a wide range of experience in content strategy, online/broadcast convergence, branding & marketing, and communications strategy.

She frequently speaks at digital media festivals and is an active board member on the Davenport Perth Neighborhood Community Health Centre.

Marc Scarpa is a veteran Director and Executive Producer of live participatory media.

His most recent credits include The X-Factor’s Pepsi Digital Pre-Show and Second Screen Experience, The Global Citizen Festival, Incubus HQ Live, GRAMMY LIVE!, Earth Day Network’s Earth Day Live! Concert on the National Mall (2008-2012) and MySpace LIVE!. In 2011, he launched VidBlogger Nation, the first participatory media television channel in association with Comcast’s X-Finity On Demand.

Scarpa has directed Grammy Award winning artists John Legend, 50 Cent, Alicia Keys, Beastie Boys, Elton John, Moby, Steve Aoki and many others. Additionally, he produced and directed several pioneering “firsts” for the live participatory programming genre including Townhall with President Clinton, Woodstock ’99, The Tibetan Freedom Festivals and HSX/Excite Rocks the Oscars featuring Beck.

Prior to Simplynew, Scarpa was the architect for New York City Hall’s Mayoral Blue Room multi-platform broadcast facility and served as the original New York Bureau Chief for C|NET networks where he co-developed C|NET’s early VOD deployment strategy and produced CNET’s  first live webcast from the 1997 PC Expo.

Scarpa is a featured speaker with Streaming Media East/West/Europe and Digital Hollywood and is recognized as one of Silicon Alley Reporters Top 100. His productions have been recognized by Webby Awards, Social TV Awards and the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

Scarpa is a national board member and founding New York committee chair for the Producers Guild of America New Media Council. Personally, he is a partner with Lifebeat – The Music Industry Fights AIDS, a member of the Global Advisory Committee for Earth Day Networks and a member of the Gate Leadership Council.

Presently, working at comScore Inc. as a Vice President, Bryan has a pulse on electronic media, the future of the Internet and its full spectrum. His love of statistics and Sociology at McGill University allow Bryan a broad knowledge base. His work in theatre as well as teaching in South Korea added to his rich global views and helped him to develop a creative mindset.

Bryan’s creativity, energy, and a pervasive work ethic have helped him to become enriched and knowledgeable in his industry. Bryan works with prestigious clients such as Bell Media, Astral Media, Yellow Pages Group, Facebook, TC Media, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Google Canada, Quebecor, and The Weather Network, as well as many major Canadian agencies.

In addition, Bryan is a dedicated member of the Internet Advertising Bureau and CARF Board of Directors, where he works actively to enhance digital media in Canada.

With a background in live action, animation and event production, as well as a CFC Media Lab Residency under her belt, Vanessa has built a life on turning personal obscure media obsessions into her career.

Currently, Vanessa is designing for the Holodeck (fingers crossed). While at the CFC, she co-created a Kinect prototype called Heart of Stars, which debuted at Nuit Blanche and was recently performed at the 2012 CDA Awards at The National Arts Centre. She continues to work with motion capture and live special effects, currently collaborating with director Alison Humphrey, York University, Gesture Tek and Motives in Movement / Dynamixyz to produce a groundbreaking production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. This technical proof of concept will encompass new software and processes relevant to previsualization, performance and production.

Previously, Vanessa spent a number of years putting her skills to use working in concept development, as well as consulting on subjects such as how TV relates to the internet. She cares deeply about television, and watches it entirely online. The future is bright for those who love and/or make 22 and 48 minute blocks of linear narrative, regardless of platform.

In his role as Director of Art & Design for Disney Online Studios at Disney’s Interactive Media group, Orrin Shively manages the studios creative staff and is also the Art Director for a variety of upcoming products. His team works primarily on exiting MMO titles and new development projects & initiatives for the group.

Prior to This, Orrin spent 20 years in the theme park division at Imagineering in a variety of creative roles, working on attractions for parks in Tokyo, Paris and Orlando, most notably designing and show producing Test Track, presented by General Motors, at Epcot in Walt Disney World Resort.

Orrin joined Imagineering in 1988 as a show designer for Star Tours at Tokyo Disneyland, and subsequently worked on various projects during their early design phases. Raised in England, he moved back to the United States in 1981 to attend the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, from which he received a bachelor’s degree in industrial design in 1983, specializing in transportation design. He has maintained ties with his alma mater, and taught Industrial Design there for 15 years.

Tessa oversees the production of interactive content for shows like Dragons’ Den, Mr. D, Arctic Air, Over the Rainbow, Cracked, Cover Me Canada, Heartland, Murdoch Mysteries, Steven and Chris, Best Recipes Ever, George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight and more. Her team creates compelling new ways for audiences to engage and interact with stories as they unfold on the screen and between broadcasts. She believes the success of the modern storyteller lies in their ability to embrace rapidly changing distribution and consumption models, while creating ways for audiences to not just be entertained by a story – but help tell it.

Jon Taylor is a Senior Director for Bell Media Digital, responsible for the creation and publishing of Bell Media’s premiere video content on Digital platforms. Jon previously worked as Executive Producer in the Programming and Production departments at CTV and continues to work closely with those groups. Jon was also Senior Producer of Digital Media for Canada’s Olympic Consortium at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games.

Corey Vidal is a Canadian YouTuber from Toronto, Ontario. He has been making videos on YouTube since 2006, and his videos have been seen over 65 million times.

Corey is the founder and president of ApprenticeA Productions, one of the largest and most-viewed YouTube networks and production companies in Canada.

Today, ApprenticeA spans 9 unique YouTube channels, and releases dozens of videos a month.

With over 25 years of professional experience Dave is regarded as a leading expert in solution-focused change, applied systems thinking, team performance and strategic design thinking. He has worked for leading consulting firms in Canada and the US, was Director of Operations for a leading real estate development company in Arizona and Executive Director of Outward Bound Canada. He holds faculty positions at The Institute without Borders at George Brown College, The New Media Lab at the Canadian Film Centre, Ontario College of Art and Design University and Carnegie Mellon Design School.

Dave sits on the Leadership Advisory Board at the Banff School of Management. He is also a founding partner in Toronto’s leading organic food distribution company, OrganicFoodDelivery.com.