I am an Assistant Professor in Game Design and Development at Wilfrid Laurier University. I have a Ph.D. in Information Studies from the University of Toronto, a Master of Arts in Media Production from Toronto Metropolitan University, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film and Video Production from York University.
Scholarly practice:
I research autobiographical game design as a practice to support mental health and well-being. As a qualitative researcher drawing from arts-based, participatory, and phenomenological methods, I organize game jams (hackathons) to study the creative processes of game makers from marginalized and high-risk communities. My principal research contributions are to critical computing and social justice frameworks in human-computer interaction, the health humanities, and disability studies. I have published on various topics including game design practice, abstract board games, machinima filmmaking, and autism in virtual worlds. Currently, I am the lead researcher on a qualitative study exploring how adults living with opioid addiction harness game-based storytelling to support their recovery, funded by Canada's Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).
Multimedia practice:
I am the lead designer of an educational mobile app called "Dreamer" (in progress) for the Laurier Career Centre, which will be released in the future. This journaling app helps students reflect on their competencies while seeking career counselling at the centre. I have at least 10 years of experience working as an independent documentary filmmaker and multimedia artist/designer. My documentary machinima on female self-image, avatar identity, and mental health/disability--Second Bodies--won Best Documentary at the New Media Film Festival in San Francisco and the Gordon F. Keeble Award at Toronto Metropolitan University. My previous documentaries explored immigrant narratives set within historical and contemporary contexts; Portrait of a Street: The Soul and Spirit of College (funded by the National Film Board of Canada and Toronto Arts Council) and Just Arrived (commissioned by Rogers Media) were respectively broadcast on PBS and Rogers OMNI Television.
Scholarly practice:
I research autobiographical game design as a practice to support mental health and well-being. As a qualitative researcher drawing from arts-based, participatory, and phenomenological methods, I organize game jams (hackathons) to study the creative processes of game makers from marginalized and high-risk communities. My principal research contributions are to critical computing and social justice frameworks in human-computer interaction, the health humanities, and disability studies. I have published on various topics including game design practice, abstract board games, machinima filmmaking, and autism in virtual worlds. Currently, I am the lead researcher on a qualitative study exploring how adults living with opioid addiction harness game-based storytelling to support their recovery, funded by Canada's Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).
Multimedia practice:
I am the lead designer of an educational mobile app called "Dreamer" (in progress) for the Laurier Career Centre, which will be released in the future. This journaling app helps students reflect on their competencies while seeking career counselling at the centre. I have at least 10 years of experience working as an independent documentary filmmaker and multimedia artist/designer. My documentary machinima on female self-image, avatar identity, and mental health/disability--Second Bodies--won Best Documentary at the New Media Film Festival in San Francisco and the Gordon F. Keeble Award at Toronto Metropolitan University. My previous documentaries explored immigrant narratives set within historical and contemporary contexts; Portrait of a Street: The Soul and Spirit of College (funded by the National Film Board of Canada and Toronto Arts Council) and Just Arrived (commissioned by Rogers Media) were respectively broadcast on PBS and Rogers OMNI Television.
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