Lifestyle Changes

Hello World! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving holiday! I enjoyed mine as much as possible. Unfortunately, my domestic life is going under construction, so my interactivity on this blog and my website will be limited. I'd like to congratulate my previous photographer, Courtney Lynne Brush, on her success as an Airman and her recent engagement. She decided to move in with her fiance immediately, so I will be spending my time looking for a new roommate or a new place. Speaking of searches, I've had luck in finding a reliable, field-related job in the area. I've been scheduling appointments for interviews, phone screenings, etc. I hope to announce that I've gotten a job in the near future. Another new change has yet to come! I have plans on attending the Pittsburgh Technical Institute (PTI) for their Associate's Degree program on Computer Programming. While my Bachelor's Degree at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh exposed me to the wonders of game-play programming, I feel like I lack the classical training of a true programmer. Furthermore, I'd like to expand my knowledge in the subject so that I can work a job in what I truly love to do.

Fuck This Jam

Good morning, gamers!

Today marks the first day of the newest Jam I've discovered.  Provocatively named "Fuck This Jam" (wow, won't that be a great eye-catcher on the resume!) is about creating a game in the genre you like the least.  Personally, I really hate card games, but I guess it's not really a "video game" genre.  In that case, the runner-up for me would be those mindless Facebook clicking games.

Here is the introductory Keynote video for Fuck This Jam:


Welcome to Fuck This Jam!

"Fuck This Jam is a jam centered around the theme of making a game in a genre you hate. Through utter ignorance for conventions and hate for the established rules of a genre, beautiful things will happen. The jam lasts from Friday November 9th 18:00 until Saturday November 17th 18:00. "

If you're interested in forming and/or joining a team, or simply getting involved yourself, you can sign up here!  I'm not technically hosting a gathering for the Pittsburgh location, but you are welcome to come to my house to work!

Double Life: Music

The team and I at Olopezo, Inc. are trying to get the word out about our newest project, Double Life: Music.  I'd like to give a super thank you to Deana Carpenter, a writer for the online newspaper called the Almanac, for talking with the company's founder, Constantine Paliouras, and writing an article about this great project.

Double Life: Music is 20% funded so far.  The goal is $100,000 by November 14th.  Please help us by becoming a sponsor.  Even the dollar that's been wedged in your couch for the past month is worth it.

Click to enlarge and read the full article.

The article was published online on October 24, 2012.  You can download a PDF version of the full page here.  I did a search for "Paliouras" to find the specific page, but it's under "Community News", page B05.  Even includes a few coupons that don't expire until mid-November.

First Breath in the Real World

I haven't posted a blog in a while, but I sure have not been idle.  I graduated from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh with a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science last month and I'm definitely showing it off!  I've been keeping up with Twitter and Facebook  with the more daily and weekly news in my professional life, but I think I've collected enough to warrant a blot post.

I received an email from a previous instructor, Jon Amakawa, the night of the Portfolio Show regarding a contract job for Columbia University of New York, NY.  I accepted the job, of course, and it's practically finished already.  I'm waiting on feedback from the client regarding the files I sent them.  I hope they like the progress!

I also recently signed a contract with Carnegie Learning in their collaboration with the students of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh.  This project isn't paid, but they want to create educational Flash games (which uses my personal favourite language, AS3) for students of various ages.  This connection may provide job opportunities for students or myself in the future.  Regardless, it will look nice on my portfolio page.

Alongside that project, I'm still available to 7th Level Studios as a Consultant for their newest project, Modus Operandi.  While my work there was nearly finished, there is still more to be done and I'm not the type to just leave a team hanging.  You can watch the progress for Modus Operandi on their blog.

Oh, and I'm not done yet.

I also signed up to be a Pet Care Professional in my free time with Grand Paws Pet Sitting and Home Cleaning.  You can email them for services at GrandPawsPetSitting@yahoo.com or visit their website at www.GPPetSitters.com.  You can also call them at (412) 400-4531.  Not only do they visit your pet, but there are sitters available as a pet taxi service that can provide transportation for you and your pet to the veterinarian, airport, and other locations.  I have a diabetic dog to take care of at home, so the well-being of my little girl is important to me.

But wait, one more!

Today I joined with Olopezo, Inc. to work on developing their latest Kickstarter project, Double Life: Music.  We're creating an online, social networking game for musicians and music fans all over the world.  Imagine Facebook, The Sims, and Rock Band being smashed together inside a browser or your mobile device.  This game is an innovative way for musicians to get their music heard, collect income, and even get record deals IN REAL LIFE through a video game!  You can check out the company website or Double Life: Music's Kickstarter page for more information on them.

Don't feel shy, pledge some money to help fund this project!

Achievement Unlocked: Bachelor's Degree

I had a great time at the Portfolio Show.  My family came down from Brookville to help set up my booth in the morning and they were a great support system in the few hours before the big meet and greet with the field professionals.

I met many people including the friends and families of other graduates, continuing students from my own major looking into what's expected of them in the end, and several game studios that will surely be seeing my applications soon enough if they haven't already.

As promised, here are a few photos from the show (photography by Dan Dexter):

I am all dressed up to look professional next to my finish display.

This is the final product of my display at the Portfolio Show.  Look at my sexy mug.

My mother and my niece were caught taking pictures.  I love how supportive my family is.

Matt Gillmeister, the winner for the Best of Show award for Game Art & Design, still took interest in the prototypes I had on display.

Overall, I am very excited for the results that shall yield from the Portfolio Show.  Congratulations graduates!  We did it!

Preparing for the Portfolio Show

All this week, I'll been preparing for the Portfolio Show for Thursday and making sure I have everything I wanted to give away ready.  For starters, my custom pens arrived early this morning:

They're the twisting kind so you don't stab yourself in the pockets.

I also had gotten most of the printing done on yesterday (all except for the DVD labels that I had to go home and fix in Photoshop).  But this is essentially what I will be giving away!

Custom pens in my custom mug, DVD demo reels that include a resume insert, business card, and the DVD with a custom label and case cover.  You can find a total of five logos on a single DVD give-away.

I also got a really sexy logo printed that I'll be cutting out to display at the top of my booth:

Sexy logo by Catzi Lacerenza.

Wish me luck!

Deep Breath.

I hope you all had a great Labor Day weekend.  I had a lot of work going on for me, such as programming the HUD for Modus Operandi, trying to make Pretend a little more appealing, brainstorming for a better demo reel, and working on the construction of my portfolio booth.  However, the portfolio booth is the only thing that I have pictures of right now.  The rest have their own respective places on the internet and you can click on their links to learn more about them.  So without further ado:

Latest photo of the semi-assembled portfolio booth.

This is my portfolio as it sits in my bedroom, minus the top-middle piece of fabric.  I haven't quite decided how I want that part to look yet; but whatever I do with it, it'll need to be done at the beginning of the show because it wouldn't be able to fold up neatly otherwise.  The two on the sides have been folded and stapled nicely.

Also, I got the monitor to stay up!

My monitor staying on the booth wall like a boss.

Last weekend, I was having an issue because it was too top-heavy.  My mother thought it would be a good idea to make a lip in the front for the monitor to sit on, but it is actually too narrow.  Naturally, I asked my mom for help because she's the construction woman of the year, and this is what I got.

Yes, that is indeed crayon.  No, I didn't get my drawing skills from her.

So... It was pretty close.  I just made this instead.

Displaying my awesome girl scout knots (not).

Those are absolutely, without a doubt, lanyards.  Three lanyards, actually.  But unlike my mother's very detailed drawing, the monitor was top-heavy like I mentioned before.  So I had the lanyards pull down on the back of the monitor (reversing what my mother suggested) so that the screen would appear upright and correct.

The lanyard is clipped onto the screw-loop thing.

About a year ago, I wanted to buy a lanyard and two card holders, one for my school ID and one for the bus passes.  However, they didn't seem to sell just one lanyard, so I had gotten a pack of ten.  Over time, I've been finding different uses for them.  My roommate used two to makeshift a temporary strap for her camera.  I have one rigged up to the standing fan in our apartment because it sort of broke and it's holding the fan to face people rather than the ceiling.  Another one was cut and melted to mend a belt.  I believe only one is actually being used as a lanyard for a USB drive (that I don't even use anymore).  Go figure, when I got a car and a fancy purse, I didn't need the lanyard anymore because I didn't want the whole thing dangling from the ignition and tickling my legs like little spiders.

Anyway, I had felt like a genius when I pulled out the lanyards and tied it all together.  They're actually quite stable the way it all holds together.  And no, you can't poke them at Portfolio Review.