London Games Festival 2018

London Games Festival 2018 will launch a new exhibition of work by UK games creatives from BAME (backgrounds this April.


Ensemble highlights the significant contribution BAME creatives have made to the UK’s games culture at every level, focusing on up to eight artists and delving into their work.

Ensemble aims to inspire the next generation of game developers from all backgrounds, offering a fresh angle on game development as a creative process. It will also showcase how diverse talents and perspectives are vital for building more diverse digital worlds and creating the games of the future.

The London Games Festival has enlisted Sharna Jackson to curate Ensemble. Jackson has a wealth of experience in digital initiatives within arts and culture, and has held roles at Tate, Design Museum, The Broad in LA and the Royal Collection Trust and consulted for National Maritime Museum, Museum of Childhood, V&A and Science Museum. She is a trustee at Sheffield Doc/Fest, New Writing North and Upswing, and a non-exec director at Bright Little Labs.

“Important work is being created by minorities, and it’s imperative to highlight these achievements – especially in this climate – and to encourage and support the next generation of talent as they emerge. The show foregrounds the importance of a diverse industry, by demonstrating its significance in the creation of rich and intoxicating worlds and experiences for everyone,” Jackson says.

A steering group that helps guide the exhibition’s content and ethos includes Jackson plus Shahid Ahmad (Ultimatum Games, formerly Sony), Nainita Desai (leading UK composer for BBC, HBO, ITV and more), Kish Hirani (BAME in Games, formerly Sony), Adrian Hon (Six to Start), Nahrein Kemp (Film London), Dr Mitu Khandaker (Spirit AI, NYU Game Center) and Anisa Sanusi (Hutch Games).

Ensemble is supported by the British Council, the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities.

Ensemble will be unveiled during the larger London Games Festival 2018, which runs from 5-15 April 2018 across the capital, before touring key games clusters in the UK. This includes two days at LGF’s HUB event in Bloomsbury on 9 & 10 April, and other activity to be announced.

The London Games Festival is organised by Games London, a partnership between the capital’s screen industries agency Film London and games trade body Ukie, supported by the Mayor of London’s London Economic Action Partnership (LEAP).

If you are interested in submitting your own work for the exhibition – or want to put forward someone for consideration - contact sharna.jackson@games.londonor @sharnajackson on Twitter. The deadline for all recommendations and entries is March 6 – more information at www.games.london/ensemble .

For more information on the London Games Festival visit www.games.london .