Keynote Speakers 2020

Gonzalo Frasca is a game designer and scholar internationally recognized for his work in serious games as well as for his pioneering work in ludology and newsgames. He currently works as Chief Evangelist Officer at DragonBox (a Kahoot! company), the Norwegian pedagogical studio behind the award-winning series of math videogames.

For the last 5 years he has worked on the development of DragonBox School, a full-curriculum solution for learning math based on videogames and storytelling. DragonBox School is currently used by tens of thousands of students in Finland, Norway and France. It was recently awarded the eEmeli Award for Best Digital Learning platform in Finland.

As a designer, he has created successful videogames for companies such as Disney, Pixar, Cartoon Network, Lucasfilm and Warner Bros. Dr. Frasca is based in Uruguay where he is Professor of Videogames at Universidad ORT.

 

Jeffrey Shaw is an Australian visual artist and leading figure in new media art who, since the late 60’s, has pioneered the use of digital media technologies in the fields of virtual and augmented reality, immersive visualization environments, navigable cinematic systems and interactive narrative.

His seminal exploration of new technologies such as computers and interactive interfaces allowed Shaw to introduce new operational and aesthetic dimensions into contemporary art that have profoundly influenced generations of media artists.

Shaw was the founding director of the ZKM Institute for Visual Media Karlsruhe, Germany, from 1991 to 2002. Currently he is Yeung Kin Man Chair Professor of Media Art at City University Hong Kong, Director of the CityU Centre for Applied Computing and Interactive Media.

He is also Visiting Professor at Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing, China, Visiting Professor at EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland and Honorary Professor at the Danube University, Krems, Austria.

During his career, Shaw’s works have been presented at leading public galleries museums including the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, Centre Georges Pompidou Paris, Kunsthalle Bern, Guggenheim Museum New York, ZKM Karlsruhe, Hayward Gallery London and Power Station of Art Shanghai.

He has received numerous honours and awards including an Australian Research Council Federation Fellowship; the Immagine Elettronica Prize, Ferrara, Italy; the Oribe Prize, Gifu, Japan and the SAT Lifetime Achievement Award, Montreal, Canada.

In 2015 he was awarded the Prix Ars Electronica for Visionary Pioneers of Media Art, and in 2020 the ACM SIGGRAPH Distinguished Artist Award for Lifetime Achievement in Digital Art.

https://www.jeffreyshawcompendium.com

 

Piet Kommers is an early pioneer in media education and leader of NATO Advanced Research Workshops on Cognitive Learning Tools. UNESCO professor and scientific leader with extensive experience in educational technology and social media.

” … Media proved to be instrumental to emancipation, equity and societal evolution: the smart phone, virtual reality, interactive video, hypermedia, expert systems, modelling and simulations.”

He is a Ph.D. holder in Educational and Media Design, with a Masters degree in Pedagogy and a Bachelor degree in Teacher Education. He received the prestigious academic award for innovative ‘Experimental Design’ and was offered a research position in collaborative group problem solving wherein he designed the ‘Concise Urban Planning Task’.

He has long-term experience at management level coupled with a strategic appreciation and vision, and he is methodical in evaluation and systematic implementation. He has a strong work ethic with a high level of personal integrity (leading by example); able to create trust in teams.

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