Chapter Meeting: September 2001
Our September Chapter meeting was by far the best so far. We are getting used to the joint SIGGRAPH/IGDA meeting format and it seems to be working for us. We are also getting a general structure together for the meetings that seems well suited for our locale.
Things started out with the continued screening of the 2nd half of the SIGGRAPH2001 Electronic Theater DVD. We started last month's meeting with this but did not have time to run the entire presentation. A real nice way to get things rolling with mental and visual stimulation. You should have seen the look on Board member, and this week's presenter, Marc Mencher's face as one of the more edgy presentations ran...on and on and on....after a while he was wondering out loud if someone had dosed his afternoon latte with acid! OK, OK...some of this stuff is wayyyy out there. But that's why it's good for us...it stimulates the imagination and expands our horizons. And the SIGGRAPF2001 DVD does that...plenty.
The meeting continued with some words from Fran McAfee, the local SIGGRAPH chair regarding SIGGRAPH, and a short presentation by yours truly regarding the IGDA and its mission and member benefits. Then everyone in attendance had the opportunity to introduce themselves and briefly state their interest in interactive multimedia.
Then the main presentation - Marc Mencher of Virtual Search on Managing your Career in the Game Industry. We are very fortunate to have Marc as a member of our board. His knowledge of the industry, in general, and careers in the industry, specifically, is unparalleled. And his presentation was much more than a thinly veiled pitch for business like many "so called" presentations are. Marc has a genuine passion for games and also gets a kick out of helping people succeed in it. Whether they be lead programmers or game designers with 10 years of development experience, or recent graduates or gamers looking for their first job in the industry, Marc will take the time to help. Even in the case of the newbie looking for that first shot, where there is no money in it for Marc, he is there with counsel and advice.
And this guy knows everybody in the business and will always take the time to listen to your situation and give you ideas on how to proceed. One more thing...can he talk...his 30-40 minute presentation was done without breathing (at least it seemed that way!).
We then retired to the Iguana Cantina for our usual mixer. I remembered to bring my digital camera this time to get some shots of the members lounging around drinking brewskies....but this time, though I brought the camera...I left the flash memory card back at the office...hahahahaha. Well, better luck next month.
Tom Buscaglia
Chapter Coordinator
IGDA South Florida Chapter
