LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Notable national and international speakers will attend the Hispanic & Latin American Gaming symposium hosted by Texas Tech University’s College of Media & Communication faculty on Friday, February 25, and Saturday, February 26.
“The Hispanic and Latin American Experience: Imagery, Industry & Audience” is a two-day event that will be held in Room 154 of the College (3003 15th St) and will run from 9:00 A.M. to 4:45 P.M. on Friday, and from 9:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M. on Saturday.
Speakers and guests can attend virtually and in person. There will be speakers from other states and countries, including Australia, Brazil, and Spain.
Sponsored by the Game Design Culture program and the Thomas Jay Harris Institute for Hispanic & International Communication (HIHIC), the purpose of this event is to elevate and center the study of Hispanic/Latin X culture in the United States and Latin American video gaming and to catalyze scholarship as well as creative development in this dynamic and profitable media sector.
“The Harris Institue for Hispanic and International Communication is excited to sponsor this symposium focused on a key, yet an underappreciated area of the vast gaming industry and cultural space,” said HIHIC Director Kent Wilkinson.
Nick Bowman, associate professor in the Department of Journalism and Creative Media Industries spoke about the role of the University and its duty to inform. “As a Hispanic-serving institution, it’s especially important that we directly engage with the communities around us. This one is especially exciting as it takes a common shared experience – the video game – and provides fresh perspectives on how and why so many of us play.”
Texas Tech is also growing academic and community programming focused on gaming culture, including a renovated gaming and esports lab.
Other keynote speakers include:
- Dr. Phillip Penix-Tadsen, associate professor of Spanish and Latin American Studies as well as the co-founder of the academic program Game Studies and eSports at the University of Delaware. He is the author of the book “Cultural Code: Video Games and Latin America” as well as the editor of the book “Video Games and the Global South”. He will speak at 9:00 A.M. on Friday.
- Senior Creative Director for Electronic Arts/Maxis, Anna Huerta. She has been in the gaming industry for more than 10 years and participating in designing games at Zynga, working on FrontierVille, FarmVille, ChefVille, Zynga’s Social Casino Division, and Words with Friends. She focused on game design, AR, VR, and will be in attendance on Friday at noon.
- Dr. Adrienne Shaw is an Associate Professor in Temple University’s Department of Media Studies and Production. She is the author of “Gaming at the Edge: Sexuality and Gender at the Margins of Gamer Culture”. From 2011 to 2015, she was also part of the multi-million dollar and award-winning CYCLES project, an educational game that teaches players how to recognize and reduce dependence on cognitive decision-making biases. Her research and teaching focus on video games and gaming culture, LGBTQ video game history, representations of marginalized groups in media, and more. She will talk on Saturday at 9:00 A.M.
- Professor of Entertainment Arts & Engineering, Dr. Jose Zagal teaches “Ethics in Videogames”, “Experimental Gameplay” and more at the University of Utah. He has been invited to talk about ethics, intellectual property, and videogames on podcasts, and has been a keynote speaker in Chile, Great Britain, Sweden, and the United States. He’ll be speaking at 1:00 P.M. on Saturday.
Also, the symposium will feature programmed panels and interactive poster sessions assembled from competitively submitted abstracts organized by theme:
Panel 1: Games and Community – 10:15-11:45, Friday, Feb. 25 in Room 154
Panel 2: The Gaming Industry I – 1:45-3:00, Friday, Feb. 25 in Room 154
Panel 3: The Gaming Industry II – 3:30-4:45, Friday, Feb. 25 in Room 154
Panel 4: Games as Text 10:15-11:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 26 in Room 154
Panel 5: Games as Art and Play 11:45-1:00 Saturday, Feb. 26 in Room 154
For more information, click here.
The symposium is free to attend but registration is required, whether attending in-person or online. To register, click here.
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