BAF Game 2010

BAF Game 2010, Bradford Animation Festival’s strand dedicated to exploring the connections between video games, animation, and film, is back for its sixth year on Tuesday 9 and Wednesday 10 November. 

BAF Game gives festival goers a real insight into one of the most creative industries in the world, packed with even more screenings, workshops, talks and discussions led by industry experts.

Confirmed guests for BAF Game 2010 include  Guy Midgley and  James Stephenson of  Ninja Theory,  Tim Appleby and  Laurel Austen of  Splash Damage,  Andy Brunton of  Lionhead,  Tim Heaton from  Creative Assembly and gaming industry expert  Charles Cecil.

Tom Woolley, director of BAF Game said: “BAF Game gets more exciting year on year and continues to attract key speakers who can share the stories and challenges behind the games we play today.  Anyone hoping to have a career in gaming should come along for the rare opportunity to hear some of the inside secrets that could help them break into the industry.”

Ninja Theory’s lead animator Guy Midgley and senior animator James Stevenson will talk about animating the characters, motion capture and scriptwriting for the new Playstation 3 game  Enslaved: Odyssey to the West.

Lead character artist, Tim Appleby and senior concept artist, Laurel Austin, from Splash Damage will give an insight into the concept art and character design behind new action game,  Brink.

Andy Brunton, lead animator at Lionhead will speak about his work on Fable III, the latest instalment to the action-packed, popular Fable series.

For retro-gaming fans, key figure in the British games industry for over 25 years, Charles Cecil will be attending.  Charles formed Revolution Software in 1989 and is the creator of acclaimed PC adventure games  Lure of the Temptress,  Beneath a Steel Sky and the multi award-winning  Broken Sword series.  Charles Cecil has recently directed the new  Dr Who: The Adventure Games for the BBC and will be joined by Sumo’s creative director Sean Millard to unravel the secrets of bringing the Doctor’s interactive adventures to the PC.

BAF Game will conclude with a panel discussion that focuses on the new wave of stereoscopic 3D, motion sensing controllers and mobile gaming which will be chaired by Jamie Sefton, sector manager at Game Republic, and will feature experts including Ian Bickerstaff from Sony’s stereo 3D team and Ian Palmer, Dean of Informatics at the University of Bradford. 

Organised in strong partnership with the University of Bradford and Screen Yorkshire’s Game Republic, this exciting festival explores the creative elements of gaming in all its forms.  BAF Game 2010 will have a strong focus on the future of gaming, which includes discussions on the influence of independent gaming and new technology.

Tickets for BAF Game are on sale now from the National Media Museum Box Office (call 0844 856 3797 or visit www.baf.org.uk).   Passes for both days are priced at £55 (£45 concessions) – book your pass now for special early bird prices £50 (£40 concessions) available until 8 October.  Day passes cost £40 (£30 concessions) and group discounts are also available.  Bradford Animation Festival runs from 9 – 13 November at the National Media Museum. 

The Department of Creative Technology at the University of Bradford, development partner for BAF Game 2010, organises the festival strand in conjunction with BAF and provides venues for a selection of events and talks.  Creative Technology offers a high quality student learning experience on dynamic, dedicated and industry focussed Animation and Games courses.  Blending their extensive teaching experience as one of the earliest Departments to offer courses in Animation and Games and working with an extended family of professional partners, Creative Technology are also members of the Yorkshire and Humberside Skillset Media Academy.  Information on the Department and its courses can be found at www.scim.brad.ac.uk. 

The principal sponsors of BAF 2010 are  The WOW Academy and  Bradford College. Housed within the Innovative Technologies Centre at Bradford College the WOW Academy is a unique educational training facility aimed at inspiring young people, students, graduates, trainees, and employees to develop an interest in digital and creative media using state-of-the-art technology. Find out more at www.wowacademy.org.ukor take a special guided tour during the Festival. In addition, Bradford College provides facilities for Games Technology in both Further and Higher Education and an extensive range of art, media and graphics programmes in the renowned Bradford School of Arts and Media – www.bradfordcollege.ac.uk

For full BAF Game and BAF listings and prices visit www.baf.org.uk

-Ends- 

For further information, interviews, images or press passes please contact:

Louise McKenzie, Press Officer, National Media Museum

01274 203305 louise.mckenzie@nationalmediamuseum.org.uk

Notes to Editors

BAF Game prices

Early bird full Game pass: £50/40/30

Day Pass: £40/30/25 (No early bird rate available)

Full Game pass: £55/45/35

Day Pass: £40/30/25

Delegate packs will only be given to Full Game pass holders.

Groups:

The group rate applies for groups of 10 or more. Includes 1 free pass for the group leader for every 10 passes sold. (i.e. If you buy 50 passes you’ll receive 5 free passes. 55 in total)

About the Bradford Animation Festival:

The 17 ^th Bradford Animation Festival (BAF) takes place from Wednesday 10 to Saturday 13 November 2010 at the National Media Museum.  This year, Ray Harryhausen will receive the lifetime achievement award – a video of his presentation will be screened at the festival on Saturday 13 November. Guests will include Paul Franklin from Double Negative, Clare Kitson, Tim Searle from Baby Cow Animation, Nexus Productions, Phil Mulloy and Gary Jackson from ScaryCat Studio. 

BAF Game is a strand of BAF and takes place on Tuesday 9 and Wednesday 10 November at the National Media Museum and University of Bradford.

The National Media Museum

The National Media Museum in Bradford, West Yorkshire, opened as the National Museum of Photography, Film & Television in Bradford in 1983, with a remit to explore the art and science of the image and image-making, and has since become one of the most visited UK museums outside London.

The National Media Museum aims to be the best museum in the world for inspiring people to learn about, engage with and create media.

It is devoted to film, photography, television, radio and new media and looks after the National Photography, Photographic Technology and Cinematography Collections.  Its Television Collection incorporates an unrivalled collection of objects relating to the history and development of television, including John Logie Baird's 1925 experimental apparatus.

The National Media Museum organises three major film events every year – Bradford International Film Festival and Bradford Animation Festival and Fantastic Films Weekend.  It also hosts three cinemas – Pictureville, Cubby Broccoli and the first IMAX screen to open in Europe.  The Museum shows films in all of the major formats from Cinerama three-strip, to digital, to IMAX 3D.

It is also home to two temporary exhibition spaces - recent programme highlights include Simon Roberts – We English and Robbie Cooper - Immersion.

Other attractions include a host of permanent galleries including Experience TV, a hands-on visitor experience about the history, present and past of television; the Kodak gallery, charting the history of photography; the Animation gallery and the Magic Factory for the young and young at heart. Learning activities for families and schools bring the Museum’s subject matter to life and there are regular cultural events for adults to complement the Museum’s changing programme.

For more information visit: www.nationalmediamuseum.org.uk.