Craig Wells
Craig received his BFA in Fine Art Studies with an emphasis in Computer Animation from the University of Arizona in May of 2004. Moving to Los Angeles, Craig worked as an office manager for an architect and then for a small production studio. Working for these small companies allowed him to explore a variety of different disciplines including, Architecture, Film/Video, Video Games, Theatre, and Interactive Presentations. Having done all that he decided to pursue his graduate studies and applied to and was accepted to the ETC at Carnegie Mellon University. Craig hopes to use his time at the ETC to weld together the disparate parts of his background and allow him to pursue his artistic and professional endeavors. First and foremost amongst these endeavors is his love of Video Games. Since playing Donkey Kong off of a Cassette Tape on a Tandy CoCo 3 he has loved the idea of play and interaction that video games provide. Twenty years later, Craig fully believes that Video Games will not only compete with other mass market entertainment options such as film and television, but will surpass them both artistically and commercially. His goal is to be on the forefront of this exciting and innovative field.
Homepage: http://www.neolegacy.net
Posts by Craig Wells
Empyrean 2D
Jan 22nd
Empyrean 2D is an ETC project team that is working with EA studio EA2D to build a game that closely integrates with their latest title Dragon Age Legends. EA2D’s goal is to create connected and social games for gamers and Dragon Age Legends is just the latest in a line of games that have been developed for mobile and social platforms such as Facebook and mobile platforms.
EA2D has asked the Empyrean 2D team to develop a game that connects to Dragon Age Legends which would enhance the gameplay experience for the players who play both games. This game will initially be developed for the iPad with an eye towards extending it to other tablet platforms such as google’s upcoming android based tablet. Our goal for this semester is to deliver to EA2D a fully functional and connected game that is ready for release to the general public.
I am the producer on this project and my role includes the following responsibilities:
- Implementing a modified agile environment using Greenhopper with JIRA
- Establish and maintain the schedule, including release dates
- Manage a team of 6 people
- Documentation
- Maintain client relations
- Convert Dragon Age Legends art assets as needed for our game
Heavy Metal : Terrain Shaping Prototype
Sep 10th
Heavy Metal : Terrain Shaping Prototype is a client project at the ETC. In this project we are developing a 3D visualization system to work with Caterpillar’s remote and autonomous control systems for their heavy equipment. This also includes developing a graphical user interface and preparing a cost-benefit analysis of different game engine platforms that could be used in future projects.
http://www.etc.cmu.edu/projects/caterpillar3d
In my capacity as Producer I am responsible for the following:
- Client coordination
- Implementing a production schedule and methodology
- Managing the tasks of my team members
- Ensuring that deadlines, both internal and external, are met
In addition to these responsibilities, I will be taking on the bulk of the cost-benefit analysis task. This will include, performing the necessary research, working with the vendors to get pricing and other technical information and preparation of the overall document. I will also incorporate any technical input as necessary from my other team members.
BVW Show Manager
Sep 10th
I was the Head Show TA for the BVW 2010 show which had 2 performances on Dec 11, 2010. The show was featured in an article on cmu.edu and in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
http://www.cmu.edu/homepage/computing/2010/fall/bvw-2010.shtml
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10346/1110226-51.stm
My duties included
- Coordinating with the venue – Chosky Theater
- Coordinating with the Broadcast group CMUtv
- Coordinating with the Online Group MediaTech
- Coordinating with the Rental House AB Tech
- Managing other TAs tasked with working on different aspects of the show
- Managing volunteers from the 1st year and 2nd Year students
- Anticipating and rectifying live performance issues
The entire show can be seen here:
mms://wms.andrew.cmu.edu/001/ETC/BVW2010.wmv
Panda LE
Jul 17th
The Panda LE project’s goal is to build a working level editor using the Panda 3D Game Engine for use by the BVW class, NHSGA, and the ETC in general. In order to accomplish this goal we will be building the level editor as a standalone utility along with a world that demonstrates not only the capabilities of the level editor but also demonstrates the best that Panda3D can achieve visually.
The team is made up of 7 people consisting of:
- 1 producer
- 3 artists
- 2 programmers
- 1 artist/scripter
My responsibilities as Producer include the following:
- Managing the Schedule to hit our deadlines
- Managing the Scope of content both in programming and in art
- Manage the relationship with out project manager (ETC Faculty)
- Maintain the procedures that have been adopted by the team
- Bug Testing
- Documentation
In order to accomplish all of this I have implemented a system based loosely on a SCRUM Agile system. We hold daily meetings and send out daily emails. The two teams (Art and Programming) work on a sprint schedule of 2 week iterations. I ensure that the product we are developing meets the needs of our varied clientele.
Project Documentation:
Iminintech Project
Jul 17th
The ImininTech Project – Archival Video
The Iminintech Project’s purpose was to design and build a 2-story themed entertainment attraction for Carnegie Mellon’s Spring Carnival in 2010. I was part of a team of 9 people who designed developed and built the attraction including 2 new platforms that will be incorporated into future ETC Curriculum.
The booth itself was essentially a pulsed attraction with 6-8 people going through it every 2 minutes. Over the course of the 2 days that we were open we had a throughput of almost 2000 people, which is about a third of CMU’s undergraduate population.
In my role as Architectural Designer I had the following responsibilities:
- Design and build a 2-story structure including architectural and structural plans.
- Obtain approval of plans from CMU’s Department of Engineering, School of Architecture, and Facilities Management
- Incorporating 3 different interactive pieces including a motion floor, multi-touch floor, and a Pepper’s Ghost Effect
- Incorporating a rich storyline that ties all 3 interactive pieces together
- Managing traffic flow of the entire experience
- Re-purposing the design of interactive pieces and to be presented at a local dance company fundraiser
Below are the final architectural plans that were approved and used to build the project. Please note that these plans are provided for informational purposes only and should not be used to build any structure. If you choose to do so, Carnegie Mellon University, the Entertainment Technology Center and members of the Immersive Interactive Installations team will not be responsible for any and all loss or damage and any claims or demands that arise from such action.