Damien Di Fede: Game/Web Programmer

Skills

C/C++
Java / Processing (www.processing.org)
Virtools (www.virtools.com)
XHTML, XML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP
Basic knowledge of Photoshop and GIMP
Microsoft Word, FrontPage (including macro writing), Excel
Good communication skills
Highly organized and self-motivated
An uncanny ability to learn new skills quickly
Languages: native English speaker, some French comprehesion

Game Programming

Glee

Glee is a music-driven game that was written for the GAMMA01 game event, using Processing, a specialized Java IDE. As part of the development, I wrote a beat detection class that tracks impulses in streaming audio, so that the game can respond to the music in real-time. The game can be downloaded at www.kokoromi.org/glee. Additionally, a version history, complete with playable demos and source code, can be seen at code.compartmental.net/kish.

Lapis 2.0 for the Panoscope.

Working with the game designer Heather Kelley, I programmed a version of the game concept demo Lapis for the half-sphere immersive Panoscope environment, using Virtools. The game was presented at the Society for Arts and Technology in Montréal as part of the city-wide Nuit Blanche event held in the winter of 2006, and featured on Mange ta Ville.

MUJAX.

MUJAX is a web-browser based MUD that uses the Ajax technique to give the impression that the player is actually connected to a MUD server. There is not a running process on the server, it is all accomplished through database manipulation using PHP on the server-side and JavaScript on the client-side. Despite this fact, it is possible for multiple players to "connect" to the game and interact with each other in typical MUD fashion. It is a work in progress: the framework is there, but the content is not. Even still, it can be played here: mujax.compartmental.net

Web Design

Work Experience

01/2007-Present Assistant Programmer, Hexagram Institute for Research / Creation in Media Arts and Technologies, Concordia University (Montreal, QC)

Extending the Wild Magic Game Engine with new functionality.
Building prototypes using Wild Magic, Virtools and Processing.

09/2005-12/2006 Web Developer, Securex Filing Corp. (Montreal, QC)

Developing in-house software (using HTML, XML, and JavaScript) for constructing legally valid SEC Filings (Forms 3, 4, and 5)
Converting legal documents to HTML and ASCII for electronic filing (EDGAR) with the Securities and Exchange Commission of the United States
Building and maintaining the company website
Proofing and correcting converted documents

01/2004-08/2004 Temporary Employee, Venturi Staffing Partners (Austin, TX)

Receiving and registering invoices, forms, records and other documents for data capture
Verifying accuracy and completeness of data
Manually processing incoming and outgoing mail
Installing computer hardware
Classifying, coding, cross-referencing and storing records
Stocking, reshelving, and organizing books

09/2002-06/2003 Teacher's Assistant, University of California at San Diego

Reviewing and explaining material presented by the professors
Preparing and administering quizzes
Grading concert reports and exams
Holding regular office hours for one-on-one tutoring
Supervising the creation of a collaborative composition

Presentations and Events

Game Developers Conference 2007
Presenter: Experimental Gameplay Sessions

Canadian University Software Engineering Conference 2007
Speaker: Let's Make Sweet Game Together: Game Art In Montreal

Festival Arcadia 2006
Speaker: Let's Make Sweet Game Together: Game Art In Montreal

GAMMA 01: Audio Feed (November 2006)
Featured artist: Glee

Jeux Divers at SAT - Nuit Blanche 2006
Featured artist: Lapis 2.0 - Lapin d'hivers

Education

2001-2003	Master of Arts in Music Composition University of California at San Diego (La Jolla, CA)
1997-2001	Bachelor of Music in Music Composition, Phi Beta Kappa Minor in Math University of Redlands (Redlands, CA)

References Available Upon Request