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The Great Canadian Video Game Competition announces the 10 winning firms to vie for $2 million
Montreal, January 15, 2007 - Ten Canadian game developers have been singled
out from nearly 70 submissions to vie for up to $2 million in financing and invaluable
industry mentorship as part of Telefilm Canada's Great Canadian Video Game Competition,
the Corporation announced today.
The top 10 video game projects were selected by a proven industry jury that
comprised Yannis Mallat, CEO, Ubisoft Montreal; Ron Moravek, Vice President,
Chief Operating Officer, Electronic Arts Canada; and Kelly Zmak, President,
Radical Entertainment (Vivendi Universal Games Canada).
"The jury's feedback was phenomenal," says Earl Hong Tai, Telefilm
Canada's Director of the Western Region. "The level of creativity and enterprise
displayed in the winning submissions impressed everyone."
Michel Pradier, Director of French Operations and the Quebec office, adds:
"We're excited to see how these winning companies will take their project
to the next level. These companies share the Competition's theme of wanting
to create, commercialize and conquer. They want nothing more than to see their
original content make it to market."
The Great Canadian Video Game Competition, created with the input and support
of industry, takes place in three rounds that mirror traditional industry financing.
As Round 1 (Innovation) winners, the 10 firms will each receive $50,000 to refine
their gaming concepts, develop a visual identity and elaborate a plan to raise
private-sector investment. Each winning company will also receive ongoing mentorship
from industry veterans with senior experience.
The names of the 10 winning companies (followed by province, project name,
platform and select jury comment) are:
- Big Blue Bubble, Ontario, Hobby Shop, console. "I
am fast becoming a big Wii fan and Hobby Shop is something that leverages
the strengths of this platform." (Moravek)
- Cerebral Vortex Games, Ontario, Ambush! Trivia, PC/Mobile/Xbox
Live Arcade (XBLA). "Ambush! Trivia is innovative in the way that
it merges the fun of a trivia game and the ability to reach and ambush people
anywhere with the XBLA platform." (Mallat)
- Dark Matter Entertainment, Ontario, Vertical Ascent, console.
"Even on a well-known platform you can still create a breakthrough
with controls. The concept is immediate and intuitive and could be very addictive."
(Mallat)
- HB Studios & TPB Productions, Nova Scotia, Trailer Park Boys,
console. "This was one of the pitches that made us laugh out loud.
Trailer Park Boys was a GREAT pitch." (Zmak)
- Hop To It Productions Inc., Ontario, Create-a-date, online.
"Create-a-date is exploring some totally new areas in the gaming industry
that we never have seen before." (Mallat)
- Hothead Games Inc., B.C., SWARM!, PC. "I love the
character development and the innovative game play in SWARM!. It's highly
relevant in terms of trying to clean up the world, without being ultra violent."
(Moravek)
- Humagade Ltd., Quebec, Tamano, handheld. "Here is
a developer that understands the dual-screen platform. It has the right mechanics
and game play and the characters are cool." (Mallat)
- LiveWires Designs Ltd., B.C., Reckless, wireless. "I
love the way they take real world technology we take for granted everyday,
turn it into your worst nightmare and force you to use that same technology
to solve the mystery." (Zmak)
- MindHabits Inc., Quebec, MindHabits Trainer, handheld. "MindHabits
Trainer is exciting because it is not only trying to do some brain training,
but its also trying to have an impact on your feelings."(Moravek)
- Murmur Inc., Ontario, Echelon, wireless. "Echelon
plays to the conspiracy theorist in all of us. It applies to both male and
female gamers and, in forcing social interaction, adds a new dynamic."
(Zmak)
The Competition received 69 submissions as of the December 15 registration
deadline, including 24 from Western Canada, 22 from Ontario, 16 from Quebec
and 7 from Atlantic Canada. Submissions from game developer firms included an
"executive summary" and filmed "elevator pitch" of their
proposed game project.
In March 2007 at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, all of the
10 winning companies will pitch the jurors and four will receive up to $250,000
from Telefilm in Round 2 financing to create a playable prototype. In September,
those four companies will compete and one will receive up to $500,000 in matching
funds from Telefilm to support the commercialization of its game.
The Great Canadian Video Game Competition provides a needed opportunity for
Canadian game developers to build their own capacity and original intellectual
property. Competition information, including company profiles, is available
at www.telefilm.gc.ca/game.
The Competition is made possible through Telefilm Canada and the Department
of Canadian Heritage, the Canada New Media Fund and the sponsorship of industry
partners Electronic Arts, Radical Entertainment and Ubisoft.
Competition advisory board members include: Lynda Brown, President, New Media
BC; Jason Della Rocca, Executive Director, International Game Developers Association;
Rick Griffiths, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP; and Victor Lucas, producer
and co-host, Electric Playground.
Industry mentors include: Warren Currell, President, CEO, Sherpa Games; Mark
Dickenson, Executive Producer, Electronic Arts Canada; Rob Edgar, Manager of
Business Development, Union Entertainment; Kirsten Forbes, Producer, Radical
Entertainment (Vivendi Universal Games Canada); Clint Hocking, Creative Director,
Ubisoft Montreal; Adam Mock, Instructor, Game Design Documentation and Producing/Project
Management, George Brown College; Alexandre Parizeau, Producer, Ubisoft Montreal;
and Alain Tascan, Vice President and General Manager, Electronic Arts Montreal.
Developing and promoting the Canadian audiovisual industry
Telefilm Canada is a federal cultural agency dedicated to the development and
promotion of the Canadian audiovisual industry. Telefilm provides financial
support to the private sector to create distinctively Canadian productions that
appeal to domestic and international audiences. The Corporation also administers
the funding programs of the Canadian Television Fund.
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Media inquiries:
Glen Edwards, Competition Media Relations
(604) 561-4640, glen@karyo.net
Douglas Chow, Deputy Director, Strategic Communications, Telefilm Canada
(514) 283-6363 or 1-800-567-0890, chowd@telefilm.gc.ca
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