IGDA ARG SIG Elections Candidate Statements

Andrea Phillips:

I’m the current ARG SIG chairman. As such, you already have a pretty good idea what to expect from me on the day-to-day. I’m not going to spin pretty election promises, but I do have hopes and dreams for the SIG. Let me share my to-do list with you. If elected, my ambitions are to:

•    Turn this year’s salary survey into a regular annual event, so that we can begin collecting a meaningful amount of data on who we are and
what our business looks like.
•    Find a way to encourage broader diversity in our SIG.
•    Clean up the official IGDA.org site (and the wiki!)
•    Come up with a strategy for regular posting on ARGology.org.
•    Hold IRC chats and Topics of the Week more routinely than they are now.
•    Make regular contributions to the IGDA newsletter to heighten our profile.
•    Find ways to strengthen our affiliation with the main IGDA (and encourage our members to join up!)

Some of these problems have been hanging around for a while; some of them are big jobs, and I won’t be able to do them alone. So one other goal I have is to encourage all of you to take ownership of the SIG. It doesn’t belong to any chairman -- it’s your group! If you have a great idea, let’s make it happen. If you have a post you want on ARGology, knock yourself out.

To steal Wendy’s lines: We’re an amazing group of talented, motivated people. Let’s make the SIG amazing, too.

Brooke Thompson:

Since its inception, the ARG SIG has suffered from a lack of focus and mission. As Chair, I will make rectifying this my first concern. The recent interest in “transmedia entertainment” has been centered around film and television. While those working in film & television are great storytellers and can create for those mediums, they lack experience and understanding of the playful game-like elements often required in transmedia projects and, more specifically, alternate reality games. Likewise, game designers have much to learn about working in a transmedia environment. I believe that the ARG SIG, with IGDA being its parent organization and many of its members coming from film, television, and marketing, is in a great position to facilitate the sharing of knowledge between those of different backgrounds. The SIG can also serve as promoter of the need and opportunities for experienced game designers, developers, and writers in the field. Essentially, we are a bridge between games and more passive media types. This is where we will find our focus. 

My other goals, as Chair, will be to see an increase in activity and value of membership. Both of which will be easier to develop and maintain once we have a solid focus.  In order to support those goals, I will encourage participation and provide opportunities for people to get involved that may or may not require significant commitments of time and responsibility.  The recently proposed White Paper will become a priority and that includes discussions on the same topics that will be covered in the white paper. This will not only help the writers & editors which should improve the quality of content in the White Paper, but will help bring the list to life. 

Finally, it will be a priority of mine to identify and support potential leaders within the SIG. I have no desire of making this a long-term thing.  In fact, the only reason that I am throwing my hat into the ring is that the appointment will end come December.  I will only be able to exit with a clean conscience by making sure that other goals have been met and we have future leaders ready and wanting to step up. This means that, for the first time in a long while, we will have a proactive leadership in the ARG SIG. A change, I'll admit, we may not want.