Leading Gaming Artists, Designers to Speak May 13 at 2011 GDX

SCAD graduate and Visual Effects Society award winner for Halo 3 and Halo: Reach CJ Cowan to keynote

SAVANNAH, Ga., March 9, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --  The Savannah College of Art and Design will host the 2011 Game Developers eXchange, the Southeast's premier game development conference, May 13 in Savannah. This year's keynote speaker is SCAD graduate CJ Cowan (B.F.A., computer art, 1998), who is currently the director of cinematics at Bungie Studios, the creator of award-winning Halo. Cowan was a cinematic designer on Halo 2 and directed the cinematics teams of Halo 3, Halo: ODST, and Halo: Reach.

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"GDX is a great opportunity for game admirers in the Southeast to interact with award-winning industry veterans to gain an inside look into the ever-growing world of game development, " said Luis Cataldi, chair of the interactive design and game development department. "Topics this year will cover AAA game art, compelling game design, production best practices and more."

Now in its seventh year, GDX brings together game development professionals, educators, students and game enthusiasts to share in the experiences of game development. Experts present a behind-the-scenes glimpse at the inner workings of the game industry as it continues to grow and mature. Speakers this year include:

• Joe Halper, director of production at Virtual Heroes
• Lina Song Halper, senior game programmer at Epic Games
• Greg Foertsch, project art director at Firaxis Games
• Chris Cherubini, lead artist at Respawn Entertainment
• Navid Khonsari, owner at iNk Stories
• Mark Behm, artist at Valve software
• Lee Fraser, technical specialist at Autodesk

The conference offers a mix of sessions focusing on game art, design and production disciplines. Game art sessions focus primarily on visual aesthetics of game development. This includes visual storytelling through environment art, game cinematic crafting, visual experience crafting, interactive animation and more. Game design sessions will focus on the story, flow, pacing, interaction, rule sets, and gameplay mechanics that make up the gaming experience. The game production sessions will offer insights into the nuts and bolts of game development and what it takes to bring specific games to market.  

Registration for SCAD students and alumni is $45, and general registration is $60. For more information or to register for GDX, visit scad.edu/gdx.

SCAD: The University for Creative Careers

The Savannah College of Art and Design is a private, nonprofit, accredited institution that offers bachelor's and master's degree programs in more than 40 majors. Visit scad.edu.

SOURCE Savannah College of Art and Design