Brian Wood Memorial Game Design Internship
Four month placements at Relic for three graduating students.
January 25, 2011 – Vancouver, BC, Canada – The Brian Wood Memorial Game Design Internship was announced this past weekend at Game Design Expo, hosted by the Game Design program at Vancouver Film School (VFS). The announcement by Relic Entertainment General Manager Jonathan Dowdeswell was made to an audience of nearly 200 game industry professionals and enthusiasts at the conclusion of Saturday’s Industry Speaker Day at the Vancity Theatre in Vancouver.
Relic Entertainment, a leading worldwide developer of video game entertainment and a subsidiary of THQ publishing, established the internship to commemorate the work of Brian Wood. The longtime Relic employee and Lead Game Designer on the Company of Heroes franchise was killed in a tragic traffic accident in September 2010, leaving behind his wife, Erin Wood, and his then-unborn child, both of whom survived.
To honour and continue Brian’s contribution to the international game community, as well as in memory of his passions in life, Relic will be awarding a four-month internship to three graduating VFS Game Design students each year who exhibit a similar passion and excellence in game design.
“Relic Entertainment has worked with VFS for a number of years and in the past has had employees who taught classes as part of the Game Design curriculum,” says Dowdeswell. “Continuing this partnership in a meaningful and long lasting effort by introducing the Brian Wood Memorial Game Design Internship was a natural fit for all concerned.”
The inaugural internship will be awarded in February 2011, and the chosen VFS Game Design graduate will have the opportunity to work directly with a team at Relic, pioneering exciting projects that impact the development of titles at the Vancouver-based studio.
“We are honoured and humbled to be a part of carrying on Brian's legacy with this memorial,” says Dave Warfield, Head of VFS Game Design. “Not only does it represent the values of game design and supporting new designers that were such a big part of his passion, but it allows us to share that with the community that was so affected by his tragic death.”
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About Game Design at Vancouver Film School
Vancouver Film School, founded in 1987, offers a proven education for everything in the entertainment industry. With 13 production-oriented programs and a world-leading one-year education model, VFS prepares students to join the creative economy. S tudents in the Game Design program, named a top 10 school most favoured by video game industry recruiters by the Los Angeles Times, learn to be part of any development team by experiencing all aspects of game design, ultimately creating and presenting high-quality playable games. Graduates have worked on such titles as Mass Effect 2, ModNation Racers, and Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II.
About THQ
THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) is a leading worldwide developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software. The company develops its products for all popular game systems, personal computers and wireless devices. Headquartered in Los Angeles County, California, THQ sells product through its global network of offices located throughout North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. More information about THQ and its products may be found at www.thq.com. THQ and its logo are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of THQ Inc. For more information on Relic Entertainment, please visit: www.relic.com
For more information, please contact:
Thuy Khuc, Public Relations Coordinator
Vancouver Film School
+1 604.631.3563 or toll-free in North America 1.800.661.4101
tkhuc@vfs.com