Dr Juan Hiriart Vera
| Biography | I have taught at the University of Salford since 2010, first as an Associate Lecturer in game studies, moving to a full-time lecturer in Interactive Media Arts and Design. I have also taught various digital design and creative technology subjects in Chile, Malaysia and China University programmes. Along with my lecturing work, I have over twenty years of experience as an artist, designer and coder. I started my professional career in 1994, working as an illustrator and concept artist, producing art pieces for books, concept art and storyboards for TV commercials and films. From 2003 to 2007 I led a team of designers, programmers, and educational researchers producing learning resources for pre-scholar, primary and adult's education. Between 2009 and 2014, I worked in the games industry, developing digital games for clients such as BBC, ITV, United Airlines, Sony, Phillips, EMI, Pepsi, Vimto, Cancer Research and Cambridge ESOL. These projects were played by millions of people, received important awards (DADI, Big Chip, Roses Design, Webby, among others), and were featured in the first place in highly competitive markets such as the Apple (UK) App Store. |
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| Research Interests | My research interests lie in the intersections between serious and critical gaming, digital heritage, and education. My current research focuses on developing participative and ethical design frameworks for historical game design with indigenous communities and, more generally, the use of games in contexts where they can promote positive social change. I am particularly interested in the following research areas: - Serious and critical gaming - Historical game-based learning - Digital heritage visualisation - Cultural Heritage - Digital storytelling |
| Teaching and Learning | I currently deliver modules at level 7: - Games and Extended Reality Lab I - Games and Extended Reality Lab II - Major Project Previously, I have delivered modules in Digital Media and Game: - Design and Production: - Digital Contexts (level 4) - Digital Innovations and Technologies (level 4) - Enhanced Digital Innovations and Technologies (level 5) - Dissertation (level 6) - Design Theory Fundamentals (level 4) - Design Practice Fundamentals (level 4) - Game Design Planning (level 5) - Game Design Prototyping (level 5) - Creative Artefact Production Planning (level 6) |