EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
One of my strengths is crafting exciting learning experiences where the participant acquires knowledge or inspiration through hands-on activities and then derives meaning from that experience to apply directly to work or personal development. There’s a time and place for eLearning, blended learning, and other learning formats–just as there’s a time and place for exciting, live, and interactive learning experiences!
MEDIEVAL DAY
Blizzard Entertainment : Irvine, CA / Austin, Texas / Albany, New York
As the Art & Design Learning Manager, my stakeholders would often request “anything medieval” an an evergreen training ask. Since I was already scheduling some in-person sword fighting workshops for developers at our Irvine campus as part of a bespoke training request to explore the physical mechanics of using weaponry, I pitched the idea of a multi-site, multi-event “Medieval Day’” for all employees to enjoy. Guess what? We made it happen!
In Irvine, we opened the day with an educational lecture on Cool and Unusual Weapons given by the masters of Davenriche School for European Martial Arts. This talk was also livestreamed to all of our global employees. Irvine employees also enjoyed a sword fighting demo on campus after a medieval feast, traditional chamber music of the era, and hands-on weapons training. In Austin, we welcomed the group Full Steel Combat– a collective who taught employees about the medieval sport of burhurt. Lastly, in Albany, employees were entertained by the theatrical group, The Lords of Adventure, who performed an interactive and educational play about medieval traditions and weapons. Costumes were encouraged at all three sites.
Taking ideas from a simple brainstorm to a full production is a true passion of mine. I love sourcing vendors, handling contracts, writing press releases, collaborating with events teams and departments, and all the other tasks associated with pulling off a big event like this. Blizzard’s first Medieval Day Celebration was met with plenty of Huzzahs!
SLIDESHOW: Sword Fighting Demo on the lawn in Irvine (1), Lecture and Demo in Austin (2), Demo/Play in Albany (3), event spectators in Irvine (4), and Medieval Quartet in Irvine (5).
FIELD TRIP: MOTION CAPTURE STUDIO
Blizzard-Activision: Los Angeles, CA
Two of my game teams were interested in leveraging the resources of Activision’s motion capture studio, so I designed a learning and exploration experience for them along with the staff at the mocap studio. Participants traveled through several learning stations and exercises throughout the day including directing actors for mocap, camera setup, retargeting techniques, facial-action recording, and more. The day ended with a panel discussion with the central tech team. Participants put what they learned from the experience into action immediately through the design and mobility of characters from Diablo.
Slideshow: Various images from Blizzard’s trip to ATVI MOCAP
DIVERSITY DAY
Lawndale high school: Lawndale, ca
As part of the Academy of Media Arts, I put together Lawndale High School’s first ‘Diversity Day’ for academy students, featuring diverse professionals in the entertainment industry. Students got to choose to attend various events/masterclasses throughout the day according to their personal interests. The afternoon was reserved for a special presentation for all participants including a keynote speech from a DEI Scholar, a live improv show, and a Q&A with the screenwriter of the movie CREED.
AEF Portfolio 