4mations talked about Dare ProtoPlay.

[Elaine Russell]

Shrunk! The Butterflyers' festive winning entry

Madévi Dailly from 4mations talked about her experience at Dare ProtoPlay:

Dare to be Digital is over for another year. Congratulations to Gentlemen of Fortune, Pixel Pirates and The Butterflyers, this years’ winners who will now compete for the BAFTA Ones to Watch award!

I have a confession to make: I took part in Dare to be Digital one summer, many moons ago. Back then it was a fairly low key, low-fi affair. A couple of stuffy rooms at the University of Abertay. Aging computers. Girls were a rare sight. An unkind soul would have said the nerd-o-meter was on high alert, but we all worked hard and learned a great deal about production, team work, and creativity.

Stepping into the Dare to be Digital showcase this week end, 6 years later, I was wowed. Disbelief mixed with pride at the snazzy stands, flashing lights, and general buzz of excitement. Corporate sponsor logos adorned a whole wall. At each stand, enthusiastic, articulate students pitched their wares, sometimes shyly but always with passion. Indian, Chinese, and Norwegian students mingled with the Scottish ones. And there were girls! Real girls! Bright and talented programmers and designers with the same rosy future as their male team mates.

Dare Protoplay is by far the most interactive, engaging event or showcase I have been to. Here the creators can talk directly with their audience and consumers. Kids, parents and industry figures crowd around the games, providing direct and genuine feedback. There was none of the reserve one often sees at film festivals, that quiet, vaguely smug feeling of belonging to a select club. It was enriching, professional, and, most of all, fun. Dare to be Digital has managed to build a true bridge between education and industry, creativity and commercialization.

So festival programmers, commissioners, film makers and educators, take note. We could all learn a thing or two.

Read the full article here.