Students from Republic Polytechnic’s School of Technology for the Arts (STA) can look forward to working on a new video game with Ubisoft, a leading French game creator and distributor.
The poly and Ubisoft Singapore signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday that will see them collaborating for two years.
Selected students from the diploma in sonic arts and diploma in game design programmes will be involved in the production of foley effects and sound design for selected Ubisoft game releases, starting with the upcoming multi-player pirate game Skull and Bones.
Foley effects are audio effects added to films or games in the post-production stage.
The poly’s Foley Arts Studio, launched last June, is the only full-scale studio of its kind here and has allowed students to have hands-on experience by producing foley effects for their own projects.
STA director Sharen Liu noted that foley effects have largely been used in the film and broadcast industries.
She said using the effects in Ubisoft games will open a new avenue of employment for the poly’s students, who will be given internship opportunities at Ubisoft.
The company will also conduct workshops on topics such as game audio design and audio production software, or provide career guidance at the poly every semester.
Ubisoft’s director of production Hugues Ricour said the company is committed to working hand in hand with local institutions to groom a new generation of game and sound designers.
For second-year student James Young Chee Hin, the collaboration is a dream come true. The 23-year-old has been playing Ubisoft-developed games since he was a boy.
“Ubisoft games are so large scale and immersive, they allow their players so much freedom. It would be amazing to be a part of creating something like that,” he said.
Article from Straits Times