On Friday, January 29th, Flashpoint Academy students across multiple disciplines came together to join in a worldwide event called the “Global Game Jam 2010″ held at universities and game studios around the world (well over 1000 participants are now working in 38 countries! — these crazy people are known as “jammers”). At Flashpoint’s sound stage in Chicago’s Merchandise Mart we started a 48-hour marathon to build games according to parameters kept secret from our jammers until the launch of the event at Flashpoint at the start of their 48-hour adventure. Jammers at Flashpoint are working in teams of about ten students to build these games by 3 pm on Sunday local time.

This year the theme is “deception” and jammers must include one or more of the following in their games: a man, a plan or a canal. Key outcomes include providing an intense opportunity for jammers to collaborate and work together in “crunch mode” doing what they love doing…making games. This is not a school assignment and it is not a business-driven game studio console game effort. These jammers are the true artists of the future. This weekend will stay for them for the rest of their lives.

We have a few special guest “judges” for the end of the weekend where we will allow the teams an opportunity to present their games to the judges. Teams will be awarded recognition in different areas, but only one game will get trophies for top honors here.

I started the ball rolling at Flashpoint after we had a student team join in with the wonderful people at DePaul who graciously invited them to be a part of the experience there in January of 2009. We would have been there again this year but we had such high interest here that we had to set up our own location. After months of preparation and the efforts and dedication by a really enthusiastic team of staff and faculty…here we are, starting up day 2. I am honored to be directing our location, but I could not have done it without them — and without our really amazing students who surprise me from time to time when they finally realize that they have the potential to do anything in the world they want to do.

Flashpoint Academy continued its support of CG Society: Chicago Chapter on Friday night, hosting another well-attended workshop with a presentation by Heinz Schuller from Day 1.

Heinz presented an in-depth look at lighting for games that included:

• Heinz’ background and the background of Day 1
• Who lighting artists are, what a lighting artist needs to know, and what a lighting artist does
• Day 1’s approach to lighting from an aesthetic point of view
• Comparisons between dynamic and static lighting
• Deferred shading
• The relationship between light volumes and light complexity
• The elements within an artist’s toolbox for lighting
• Global lighting
• Local lighting
• The future of lighting for games, including radiance sampling

Flashpoint Academy’s Production In Action, “At the Mart,” a live to tape comedy show featuring The Second City and musical guest Rhymefest, taped this week in front of a live studio audience — and NBC Chicago was there to capture the action.

Click For Video on nbcchicago.com

Cameras and coffee and bears, oh my!

As a part of Flashpoint’s January 2010 Production In Action curriculum, Flashpoint Academy students band together to create “The Point” – A Live to Tape Television Show Featuring an Ensemble of Second City Performers.

Flashpoint Academy students are workign with a very talented cast of actors from Second City to develop new characters and write a series of live sketches for the new show. In addition, the Second City troupe will perform a number of short digital films being produced by the students.

Throughout the process of creating this show, students of all disciplines have helped tackle some of today’s most pressing issues, including animal nights and inter-species cooperation, office decorum, and such timely questions as, “Where can a bear get a decent cuppa joe in the morning?”

Animation and Visual Effects students at Flashpoint are working with a major Hollywood animator to prepare an animated short for the show. In addition, they will be creating the show’s opening credits, behind the scenes materials, and special effects for other digital shorts.

2009 was a big year for iPhone apps, seeing the development and release of thousands of mobile applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch. At the beginning of 2010, the editors at The Portable Gamer consulted on the best App Store games and selected bitFLIP as one of the top TPG Picks of 2009.

“BitFLIP has got a unique take on the gem matching casual game that has been so popular for the last several years. By giving each piece two sides, there are multiple ways to create your combos. Add to that the variety of power-ups that are available, and you have a game that is always different. Whether you have a few minutes, or all the in the world, the multiple game modes have an option to fit into your schedule. Honestly though, one of the best things BitFlip has going for it is the music by Robert Clouth, it’s energetic and fun which sets the tone for gameplay well. – Frank Delaney”

bitFLIP was developed by Flashpoint Academy graduates at Metamoorephosis.

With announcements of 3D programming coming from several key television networks and a 3D animated feature in theaters shattering box office records, ABC 7’s Leah Hope turns to Flashpoint Academy’s Animation & Visual Effects chair Perry Harovas for insight into the art and science behind this increasingly popular 3D technology.

Click for Video

January 05, 2009
Education 2010: Digital Planet
Emily Torem

The starving-artist stereotype has unfortunately maintained a decent amount of credibility, which could explain why myriad parents scoff at kids who harbor Dawson Leary-like dreams of being the next Spielberg past adolescence. Flashpoint Academy, with its combination of real-world practicality and a passion for the digital arts, is helping to dispel that notion. “Thanks to the ubiquitous nature of media, and the downscaling of technology, anyone can make a living in the arts—with the right education to get them started,” says Academic Dean Paula Froehle.

Founded in 2007, the fledgling digital-arts college in downtown Chicago offers intensive two-year programs in one of four areas: Game Development, Film & Broadcast, Recording Arts and Visual Effects & Animation.

Flashpoint differs from other four-year colleges in its cross-disciplinary, immersive approach to teaching that keeps current with the pace of the industry. “Today keeps changing to tomorrow; it’s a constantly evolving field,” says Perry Harovas, Chair of the Digital Effects and Animation Department. Timeless skills, like the ability to follow a project through from start to finish, teamwork and problem-solving skills are emphasized. “Rather than having them be button jockeys, [they] learn how to use all the tools together and have them know everything that’s going on behind the scenes.”

Flashpoint’s faculty are all strongly encouraged, if not required, to continue working professionally in their respective industries, keeping up to date with current developments and software changes. Harovas has just completed some film trailers for Liongate Entertainment. “When a new piece of technology comes out and does things better and faster, we can change the curriculum to reflect that,” says Harovas. “This flexibility keeps us attentive, alive and current for the students—a vital aspect of teaching the digital arts,” says Froehle. “As soon as it becomes outdated, you’re teaching history, not contemporary approaches.”

Flashpoint students are on a schedule that is far from typical for a college student: they are expected to be on site forty-to-sixty hours a week. Additionally, students are expected to adhere to Flashpoint Professional Standards, including accountability, collaboration and initiative, traits considered vital to succeeding as a professional in any field. Students can gain or lose FPS points based on their behavior outside the classroom. “In a lot of ways we are more like a graduate program—we expect a dedication that is at that level, and in return, we offer a student a two-year immersion in professional education,” says Froehle.

“We aren’t a place where a student can spend time ‘finding themselves’ or trying to discover what it is they want to do,” says Froehle. “A Flashpoint student must know the field they want to enter before being accepted.”

For the right student, however, Flashpoint seems to have held up its end. Froehle easily lists impressive job placements by Flashpoint’s first—and as of yet only—graduating class, freshly minted in May 2009. Film grads litter the West Coast, placed with top production companies, while others make their way in freelance gigs on reality TV crews. Still others have stayed in Chicago, working for outfits like WriteGoal, a local production company. A group of Recording Arts students work audio for area concerts, having done the Elton John/Billy Joel at Wrigley and several Broadway shows, including “The Addams Family.”

“When I see our students at graduation, and hear how well they’re doing in their new careers,” Froehle says, “I feel absolutely certain that for the right student, this approach is the best education for media artists in the twenty-first century.”

Vincent Guisetti is a Hollywood Foley artist with experience working on more than 350 films, TV shows, and cartoons including Passion of the Christ, Mr. Brooks, Hostel parts I & II, The Pursuit of Happyness, Talladega Nights, Behind Enemy Lines, and SpongeBob SquarePants. Guisetti shared stories about his experiences and some of his trade secrets to creating unique sounds behind-the-scenes.

Flashpoint Academy’s Class of 2010 experienced a behind-the-scenes look at working professionals in action during Flashpoint Academy Career Services Development Week. Students visited several high-profile companies in each of their disciplines and got an in-depth look at how the day-to-day business within each of those companies operates and were treated to one-on-one sessions with employers.

SOL DESIGN

The week kicked off to an exciting start when the Animation/VFX students visited Sol Design, a creative design and effects company that works across several categories of media including entertainment, advertising, broadcast, and interactive. An extensive tour of Sol and their parent company Cutters was led by 3-D designer Brian Bullock, who gave the students a breakdown on how each department works together to create one project.

CRC

The Recording Arts students “got an earful” at Chicago Recording Company (“CRC”), a historic recording studio in downtown Chicago where dozens of notables have recorded hits including Michael Jackson, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Britney Spears, just to name a few. Students who concentrate in sound design for film were granted a tour by studio manager, Rose Razal, of CRC’s multi-level post production studios, while those focused on music recording got valuable knowledge from studio General Manager, Chris Shepard, and a private listening session in one of CRC’s state of the art ProTools HD studios.

RAVEN

On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Game Development students took a bus trip up to Madison, WI to visit Activision/Blizzard affiliate, Raven Software, where they got the opportunity to meet with executives ranging from the game design team to the decision makers that hire the staff.

NBC

Back in Chicago, several of the film/broadcast students got an up close and personal look at what goes on behind the scenes and in front of the camera to produce a successful syndicated television series at NBC Studios with two tapings of the Judge Jeanine Pirro Show. Afterwards, the film/broadcast students got an exclusive Q&A with Emmy-Award winning director Joey Ford.

PIXEL BROTHER & KARTEMQUIN FILMS

Both Pixel Brothers (post-production facility) and Kartemquin Films (documentary filmmakers best known for “Hoop Dreams”) hosted field trips at their facilities where students watched sample demo reels and participated in a Q&A to analyze the quality of the work.

PIXEL

KARTEMQUIN

Overall, the Flashpoint Academy Career Services Development Week presented our students a golden opportunity to network and experience a “day-in-the-life” of working professionals in their respective industries.