Call for Applications: Game Changer
This program developed by Villa Albertine, and Albertine Foundation, in partnership with Institut Français Paris, France Télévision and ASU university, in collaboration with Game for Change, aims to support the immersion of video game professionals from French studios with high international potential in California.
From March 10 – 20, 2025, Game Changer will welcome representatives from five French studios selected by a French American expert jury to participate in a 10-day learning expedition to Los Angeles and San Francisco to meet key industry players and draw inspiration from games of impact. The studio representatives will have an accreditation pass to participate in the Game Developer Conference (March 17-21), the game industry’s premier professional event, championing game developers and the advancement of their craft.
“California Dreaming”
The United States is the world’s leading video game market in terms of value, and a key market for French video games. Video games have established themselves as a fully recognized artistic discipline and have been represented in Villa Albertine’s residency program since its launch in 2021 (Tatiana Villa Dos Santos, Accidental Queens, Digital Playgrounds). The video game industry in the United States is made up of several types of players from production studios and publishers to distributors and arcades. California is the leading state in terms of employment in the field, and alone accounts for almost half of the value generated by the industry in the United States.
Key Goals of Game Changer
- Participate in the internationalization of the French video game industry and introduce French studios to American publishers, financiers, and key contacts in the industry; learn from the best practices of American studios; and understand the practices of American gamers.
- Raise awareness in the US of the diversity and uniqueness of French video game players and promote France’s attractiveness in the industry.
- Promote French intellectual property to American studios
Encourage French studios to make progress on societal issues such as the feminization of the industry, diversity, impact gaming, and sustainable development.
A tailor-made program for French creation.
Participants will be invited to attend the following sessions:
- Presentation of the American and French ecosystem, a masterclass, keynote speech, and workshop with key American players.
- Meetings with platforms, publishers, studios, and producers, featuring agents and artists.
- Networking event at the GDC festival, IP mini market
- Site visits in Los Angeles and San Francisco, e.g. Activision Blizzard, Riot games, Twitch, Warner Bro, Twitch, Netflix Games, Epic Games [program in the process of being consolidated]
The travel and accommodation expenses of the candidates will be covered by the program.
These meetings will focus on the following strategic themes:
- Creation: adaptation of intellectual property from or to video games (literature, film, audiovisual, etc.); storytelling; diversity and character creation; drawing inspiration from illustrators, animators, performers, and artists in American video games.
- Technology & Production: AI at the service of video games (level generation, behavior trees, asset creation, etc.); multiplayer management.
- Commercial: the free-to-play model; using social networks in the game lifecycle; succeeding on mobile; activating streamers.
- Societal: inclusion for the development of gaming communities; feminization of the industry; impact gaming.
The sequence will revolve around the Game Developer Conference, the world’s largest video game trade show, held in mid-March in San Francisco. During this week, a networking cocktail will be organized, with meetings and a presentation for the national trade press.
Who can participate?
The program is open to candidates representing French studios, who meet the following profiles:
- Be a video game studio director or CEO with at least 2-3 published video games.
- Have ongoing video games in production.
- Have an interest in growing in the US.
- One representative per studio.
- Must be of legal age (18+).
- Must possess French nationality.
How to apply?
Candidates are invited to complete this online form: link XXX. Candidates should specify their background, past and current projects, and their motivation for participating in the program.
What criteria will the application be judged on?
- The quality of the candidate’s background and experience.
- The candidate’s interest in participating in this program considering their background.
- The candidate’s interest in the US video game.
The delegation will represent the French video game industry in all its diversity, particularly in terms of gender and geographical origin.
Jury
Johanne Rousseau, Video game producer, CEO of Spiders
Jeanne Marchalot, France TV Story Lab Director, France Télévision
Eric Zimmerman, American game designer, CEO of Gamelab
Jordan Mechner, game designer, screenwriter, and author, Prince of Persia. (TBC)
Schedule
Application deadline: November 2, 2024
Jury session and announcement: December 2024
March 10 – 14: Delegation in Los Angeles
March 14 – 20: Delegation in San Francisco
Contact
Camille Jeanjean, New Media Officer: camille.jeanjean@villa-albertine.org