Announcing the SMART Program 2024
It gives me great joy to announce that The SMART Program: The Early-Career Games Accelerator is officially returning for 2024!
This early-career development initiative was built from the ground up with the goal of creating career pathways for aspiring game developers and providing equitable access to those currently underrepresented in the Australian game development community.
The SMART program runs for 12 weeks and includes an array of professional development workshops, 1on1 career coaching sessions, mentorship by industry leaders and key upskilling-focused networking events including access to the Australian games industries premier conference, GCAP 2024.
The program also provides a rare opportunity to rapidly prototype new ideas and build out portfolio pieces alongside games industry professionals in a shared game development office space filled with some of Melbourne’s most exciting independent game studios.
Previous graduates of the program have gone on to achieve amazing things including getting their first full-time job in games, increasing their games follower count by 600% a month and securing funding for their team’s debut game.
“I feel like the SMART Program has genuinely changed the trajectory of my career.”
Jae Stuart, a 2023 SMART Program graduate and Screen Australia funded game developer had this to say about their experience with the program, “The combination of a shared workplace, group learning activities and mentorship sessions provided a wonderful space to learn and expand my knowledge of navigating the industry and business of games. I feel like the SMART Program has genuinely changed the trajectory of my career”.
This program simply would not have been possible without the generous support of the City of Port Phillip and all the amazing work they do to empower local game developers to create amazing games and build incredible teams.
I’m so incredibly grateful to have City of Port Phillip back this program for a third year and I’d like to personally thank James Shutt and the City of Port Phillip games team who have gone above and beyond to ensure that diverse and emerging creatives are championed and supported at every chance they get.
“We’re confident that the program will continue to achieve success under Ceri’s stewardship.”
I’d also like to give a big thank you to Ron Curry and the IGEA team for handing over the reins of the SMART Program to me, I promise that I will continue to proudly carry the torch and ensure the program is able to deliver great results year on year.
Ron Curry stated “The SMART Program has empowered many early-career game developers in Melbourne to achieve career growth over the last few years and we’re confident that the program will continue to achieve success under Ceri’s stewardship”.
Applications for the 2024 SMART Program are now open!
Applications Close: Sunday August 4th @ 11:59PM AEST
About City of Port Philip:
City of Port Phillip’s visions is to be the Games Capital of Victoria. Delivering on this vision means that the broad range of creative businesses, players, artists, and creative producers find a home in Port Phillip, and that Council’s priorities, resources, and programs support their activities.
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About IGEA:
IGEA (Interactive Games & Entertainment Association) is the peak industry association representing the voice of Australian and New Zealand companies in the computer and video games industry. IGEA supports the business and public policy interests of the games industry, through advocacy, research and education programs.
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About Ceri Hutton:
Ceri works as a business development consultant for the games industry specialising in commercialisation strategy, ESG-focused business transformation and product value innovation. He has over 15 years’ experience in the games industry and is passionate about building inclusive work environments that foster innovation and facilitate the growth of emerging leaders.
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