Call for Submissions

Vector Festival 2024: GAME JAM RESIDENCY

We invite artists to take part in a game jam residency, deu(s ex) machina, curated by Bracy Appeikumoh. The game jam will explore how technology, the machine, and machina have both enriched and hindered our pursuits for sexual intimacy and understanding in relation to ourselves, one another, and the collective whole. Participants are encouraged to develop games focused on narratives including, but not limited to:

  • Mapping human flesh onto motherboards
  • Parasocial relationships with online content creators
  • Aided discovery of queer identities through the internet
  • Hyper-visibility of marginalized bodies as a result of increased access to online pornography, in contrast with invisibility within public life

Read the full game jam curatorial statement here.

The incubator starts during Toronto Games Week (June 13 – 20, 2024) with a keynote panel and networking social, continues with workshop and thematic support for game development, and ends in an exhibition showcase during Vector Festival (July 11 – 21, 2024).

Participants are welcome to use any game-making tools or platforms they are comfortable with. Technical support through workshop sessions will be provided for game-making tools within the indie and DIY scenes, often with roots in Queer gaming communities, such as Twine, Scratch, and Bitsy.

Participants will receive free InterAccess-led workshops and an InterAccess studio membership for the duration of the residency.

This program is curated by Bracy Appeikumoh and co-presented with Toronto Games Week

Timeline

Application deadline: April 19, 2024
Notification: End of May, 2024
Game Jam: June 13 – July 10, 2024
Exhibition: Within July 11 – July 21, 2024

TYPE OF SUBMISSION

Artist applications for participation in an experimental Game Jam incubator.

Location

In-person events will take place in downtown Toronto and at InterAccess (950 Dupont St, Toronto ON, M6H 1Z2).

Fees

Vector Festival does not charge submission fees or provide production expenses. All artists selected for participation will receive fees in accordance with CARFAC and IMAA fee schedules, as well as support to apply for external funding.

Collaborators

This program is curated by Bracy Appeikumoh and proudly co-presented with Toronto Games Week.

Equity

InterAccess is committed to equity and strongly encourages applications from equity-deserving communities, including artists who are Black, Indigenous, People of Colour, LGBTQ-identified, Gender Diverse, Two-Spirit, and Persons with Disabilities. 

Contact

Please reach out to art@interaccess.org with any questions.

TorontoGamesWeek2023

VF24 GAME JAM INCUBATOR: SUBMISSION FORM

This helps the programming committee & curators properly address you upon deliberation.
This helps the programming committee & curators properly address you upon deliberation.
Approximately 150 words
Click or drag a file to this area to upload.
PDF, under 20MB
Do you belong to any marginalized or equity-deserving communities? These are including, but not limited to: People of colour/Racialized, Indigenous, Black, LGBTQIA2S+, Disabled/Chronically Ill/Living with a Mental Illness, Newcomer (to Canada), Low-income/No generational wealth. Please be as specific or general as you'd like. Sharing this information is completely voluntary and helps us ensure artist selection is diverse and representative of our community.
Please share an overview of your experience and familiarity with making games.
This helps us tailor workshop and technical support to the selected cohort.
Please share any previous games or interactive artworks you have created. If you're sharing documentation through a file sharing service (Google Drive, OneDrive), ensure share settings are accurate and the link does not expire; we will not reach out to fix any broken links.
Please share your practice's alignment with the curatorial theme, linked at the top of this page. What interests you about the theme, and what are you looking to further explore? (Maximum 500 words)