NOTE: This is the latest in a series of stories featuring faculty members who are integrating the 2022 Canada Games into the courses they teach at Brock University or the research they’re leading. For more information on Brock’s academic activities around the Games, visit brocku.ca/canada-games

A group of Brock University students is hard at work preparing for a premiere that will be seen across the country.

As part of an Interactive Arts and Science (IASC) experiential learning course, Brock students are creating a looping visual presentation that will highlight the evolution of Canada Games medals of the past while also setting the stage for the reveal of the new medal design for the Niagara 2022 Canada Summer Games.

The visual display requires students to create a product from the ground up using an array of skills, including animation, modelling, sound design, video editing and music composition. Students from Interactive Arts and Science, Game Design and Game Programming came together using skills from their respective programs to make the presentation possible.

Game Design student Tom Crawford is one of the students overseeing the medals project.

Fourth-year Game Design student Tom Crawford, one of two students tasked with managing the team, said the chance to engage with real-world clients and deliver a presentation on such a grand scale is perfect preparation for his next steps after he graduates in June.

“It’s the best experience you can get for the job market,” he said. “Our Canada Games partners keep up the same amount of professionalism and don’t treat us any differently because we are students. They need us, and we get the same kind of respect from them, which I really value.”

With the premiere of the student presentation set to take place virtually Friday, April 23, Crawford’s co-producer, fourth-year Interactive Arts and Science student Kacie de Wit said the entire class is working to ensure the presentation is not only ready on time, but also exceeds expectations.

“Everyone has been a part of creating the idea we are working on,” she said. “We are using pictograms from one student and modelling from another. It’s cool to see everyone’s ideas come together, especially since we come from several different programs.”

The array of responsibilities and their delegation and completion is a component of the course that instructor David Hutchison, cross-appointed Professor of Education and Digital Humanities, said is invaluable.

“It’s really important to bring those diverse backgrounds together and to allow the time and space for them to develop as a group,” he said. “While they help the client, our students also appreciate and respect the different roles they can contribute, which enriches the learning experience.”

Though the final presentation’s reveal is still nearly six weeks away and the medal design will not be unveiled to the public until April 2022, the team’s partners at the Canada Games could not be happier with the product so far.

Interactive Arts and Science student Kacie de Wit is one of the students overseeing the medals project.

“I am beyond thrilled by the efforts made by these Brock University students and how they have fully embraced this important initiative,” said Vittoria Wikston, Senior Director of Marketing and Community Development for the Niagara 2022 Canada Summer Games. “It’s meant a great deal to me, personally, to see how they’ve been able to take our vision about the evolution of the Canada Games medal designs over its 50-plus year history and conceptualize an idea that not only meets our expectations but exceeds it. We can’t wait to share their efforts during our Medal Reveal Ceremony, tentatively scheduled for April 2022.”

With expectations high all around, Crawford said the team can’t wait to show off the final product.

“We have put in lots of effort. Everybody is on board and we are very excited looking towards April 23,” he said. “We’ve all been working to the wire and that level of dedication has shown and will continue to show. We can’t wait for everyone to see it.”