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FableVision Shines at Games for Change

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the Games for Change (G4C) Festival in New York City brought together industry leaders, game developers, executives, and fans to share best practices from the best impact-making games and the creative minds behind them. 

As frequent festival presenters, attendees, and award nominees and winners, FableVisionaries are no strangers to G4C. FableVision has attended and been involved with the festival from its early years, as it perfectly aligns with the studio’s mission to move the world to a better place through positive media. We’ve proudly collaborated with G4C in the past and have been honored to showcase our work in its arena. In previous years, FableVision’s Caduceus: Staff of the Alchemist, created with Children’s Hospital Trust, was nominated for the Direct Impact award, while Quandary, created with Learning Games Network, won the 2013 Game of the Year award.

FableVision shone at two studio project briefs, featuring our games Nunaka and The Plastic Pipeline. Read on for a recap. If you have questions about these projects, please reach out! We’re happy to chat.

Nunaka!: Games for Indigenous Cultural Heritage Preservation
FableVision Presenter: Anne Richards, Producer, Game Designer, Co-Creative

Created with Chugachmiut, a non-profit that serves Native tribes in the Chugach region of Alaska, Nunaka is an early childhood mobile game that excites 3-5-year-olds about the Alaska Native Sugpiaq culture, teaches the Sugt'stun language, and targets key school readiness goals. The game recently won the Formal Learning (Elementary) award at the James Paul GEE! Learning Game Awards. 

Anne Richards, who produced the game, has deep expertise in developing children’s media for television, publishing, games, edtech, and more. Her experience and game design background contributed to creating a fun, engaging, and beautiful game. Anne’s presentation emphasized the importance of making communities like G4C more accessible to the Indigenous people who are inspiring conversations around representation in the edtech space – also how we can travel to meet knowledge holders where they are.

In the story-driven game, players take on the role of a Sugpiaq child living with their grandparents, Emaa and Apaa, in a fictionalized version of a community based on villages in the Chugach region. Players create an avatar and explore the village, completing activities and minigames, while collecting items and interacting with other residents, including human characters and animals from the region. 

To make the game as culturally accurate as possible, FableVision co-designed and co-developed Nunaka with Chugachmiut and the Sugpiaq people during virtual Elder meetings. Studio members also visited Alaska multiple times for meetings to get feedback in person from the Sugpiaq Elders and village Head Start students. 

Nunaka stands out from other cultural games by preserving an endangered language. “There were a lot of intricacies of working with Sugt’stun,” said Anne. “This language has been passed down via oral tradition rather than as a written language, and there is an extremely small number of master speakers remaining, many of whom have lost some of their knowledge of the language over time.”

To ensure that Nunaka captured Sugt’stun correctly, FableVision gathered groups of speakers to help each other with script translations and to collectively navigate dialectical differences, which could be significant even within a small geographic region. It was also important to investigate the cultural context behind translations to make sure details weren’t getting lost in the process. “One of our favorite examples: ‘Akutaq,’ which is translated as ‘Sugpiaq ice cream’ in English, is a dish of potatoes and seal oil. Very different from the ice cream we are used to,” said Anne.

Anne acknowledged the limitations of her ability to represent the Sugpiaq perspective on Nunaka’s creation process. “I’d like to challenge attendees and the larger G4C community to engage with ways in which these conversations can be more accessible to Indigenous people themselves,” she said. “It was not possible for our Alaska Native partners to travel a long distance for a brief conference presentation. I encourage the community to consider how to make our spaces more genuinely accessible to Indigenous and marginalized people.”

Play Nunaka today! The game can be downloaded on iOS and Google Play.

The Plastic Pipeline
FableVision Presenter: Jonah Gaynor, Producer

Considering that the world is producing double the amount of plastic waste as it did two years ago, the Wilson Center partnered with FableVision to create The Plastic Pipeline, an online game that educates and encourages policy change to combat leaks in the real-life “plastic pipeline.” 

FableVision producer Jonah Gaynor utilized his game design background to design Nurdle Alert!, a minigame that teaches players about nurdles and their impact on the environment. “Nurdles are the ‘lego bricks of the plastic world,’ the smallest unit of melted down plastic,” he said. “Staying consistent to the art and style of the game, the minigame centers around capturing these nurdles with a net before they damage the environment and creatures.” 

To engage young adults with the game, players act as influencers in Plasti City who have the power to create change by learning from characters in different locations who interact with the pipeline at every stage and represent different voices within the discussion of what to do about the plastics crisis. The game centers around policy decisions to show that the largest burden of responsibility for lessening plastic pollution falls on legislatures and policy makers, rather than individual consumer actions. 

Director of Wilson Center’s Serious Games Initiative Dr. Elizabeth M. H. Newbury and Director of Wilson Center’s China Environment Forum Dr. Jennifer Turner presented with Jonah to explain the game development process – policy research, iteration and design, and testing, and the next steps, which would involve more testing and further building out of the game. 

While Nurdle Alert! starts out fairly easy, the levels get exponentially challenging, mimicking the real difficulty of the clean-up process, and encouraging replayability. “The levels of the game demonstrate that the clean-up process doesn’t have a simple solution,” said Jonah. “While that is frustrating, players keep returning to the minigame hoping to improve their score. That also allows them to keep exploring the game, furthering its mission in educating players about the plastic pipeline.”

Check out the game and stay tuned for its further development.

In Summary – More Highlights & Takeaways

The G4C movement promotes using games for social change, and changemakers discussed how games can be more than great entertainment, but can also unite communities, improve players’ well-being, help players express themselves, foster creativity, provide education, and more. To spark change and make the most impact, speakers encouraged game developers to broaden the community by looking into emerging markets, making games available to a larger audience, and creating games with players’ interests in mind.

Among other topics, this year’s festival discussed how games can raise awareness about sustainability and social justice issues. Games like Endling: Extinction is Forever by Herobeat Studios (Game of the Year and Most Significant Impact) and Terra Nil by Free Lives (Most Impact) confronted environmental degradation and restoring nature. 

Meanwhile, Go Nisha Go: My Life My Choice by Howard Delafield International, LLP (Best Learning Game) and (val)iant: or, val’s guide to having a broken vag by Cactus Studio (Best Student Game) focused on sexual and reproductive health, empowering women to make informed decisions about their bodies. The festival’s winners from this year represented eight countries – check out the full list of winners and nominees. 

Grace Collins, a former FableVisionary and founder/CEO of Snowbright Studio, was recognized as the 2023 Vanguard recipient for their work in bringing the game industry to new places, such as the Smithsonian and U.S. Department of Education, as well as their advocacy for LGBTQ+ voices. We congratulate Grace on all of their amazing work! 

Thank you G4C for a great festival. Until next time!

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A Baker’s Dozen of Summer Learning Activities

The recipe for a perfect summer includes a myriad of activities for you and your kids to enjoy together, whether at home, on the beach, at a campsite, another country, or grandma’s house. FableVision compiled a list of top notch ingredients, including games, interactives, videos, and more for kids of all ages. Check out our recommendations and start cooking up a fun and educational summer.

Young Learners, Ages 0-5

My S.T.E.M. Adventure

With the help of Leila Diaz, take your children on an adventure through 10 place-based activities in My S.T.E.M. Adventure, created with Bridge Multimedia and STEMIE. The born-accessible app promotes STEM learning skills for 0-5-year-olds with disabilities as players engage with science around them, emphasizing that science and learning can happen anywhere. Players are prompted to take photos and write descriptions of items, which get compiled at the end for a customizable storybook.

Learn with Sesame Street

“It feels so good to be kind!” Learn with Sesame Street, an educational app created by Sesame Workshop and HOMER Learning, helps 2-4-year-olds build social emotional (SEL) skills with the help of Sesame Street’s beloved muppets. As kids play through the app that helps them navigate big feelings and everyday challenges, check out the FableVision-created animated music videos written by VP of Moonladder Tone Thyne, each focusing on a specific SEL content area.

Sago Mini Friends

“Leaf pools, mustache finders, thankful trees, and singing a lullaby to a loaf of bread are entirely commonplace in Sagoville,” says Tone, showrunner and one of the executive producers of Sago Mini Friends. Read his interviews in Animation World Network and Animation Magazine to learn more about the adorable show for 3-4-year-olds focused on gratitude, and watch the series on AppleTV+.

PBS Parent Activity Videos

For a rainy day, dust off that old box of craft supplies in your attic and check out PBS KIDS’ series of “Find Ways to Play'' educational videos, including 20 live-action videos created by FableVision. The activities, ranging from crafts to games to printables, inspire and guide parents and caretakers through fun, hands-on family activities that are aligned to their favorite PBS KIDS series.

Children Ages 6-12

Cyber Fashion Challenge

Don’t throw out outgrown clothes this summer; instead, upcycle them. Using favorite characters from Cyberchase, born-accessible Cyber Fashion Challenge, created with The WNET Group, PBS KIDS, and Bridge Multimedia, teaches 6-8-year-olds about avoiding fast fashion and encouraging the creative reuse of materials. Players design new pieces by reusing materials, while learning counting, shape identification, and shape characteristics.

When Things Aren’t Going Right, Go Left

If you or your kids ever had frustrations, doubts, fears, or worries, check out When Things Aren’t Going Right, Go Left, written by Marc Colagiovanni, illustrated by FableVision founder and New York Times bestselling author/illustrator Peter H. Reynolds, and published by Scholastic. In their second collaboration, Peter and Marc created an inspirational and optimistic story about overcoming adversity and pursuing dreams. Watch the FableVision-created trailer to learn more and read the book.

Roasting Vegetables

How do you ensure that your kids eat their veggies? By bringing those funny vegetables to life, of course! Created with audiyo-yo and Pinna, Roasting Vegetables is a rollicking, silly, pun-filled trip into the crisper drawer to see what happens when two vegetables meet in an epic battle of wits and words. The podcast for 8-10-year-olds brings together original beets, a ton of puns, and a cast of characters that are as nutritious as they are delicious.

Pinna Original Yes No Audio Escape Series

Speaking of podcasts, check out audiyo-yo’s other collaboration with Pinna – the Pinna Original Yes No Audio Escape Series. Your 7-12-year-old kids are stuck in a spooky haunted house, the creaky cabin of a ship, or a magical marshmallow dream forest, with five minutes to escape. They can respond yes or no to activate their own audio adventure and change the course of the story. Start your 7-day-free trial. 

Tweens, Teens, and Young Adults

“Digital Connections” Video Series

Created by Common Sense Media in collaboration with AT&T and Public Library Association, “Digital Connections” is a free online video series for tweens and families to learn the competencies of good digital citizenship and how to use technology safely and responsibly. FableVision is proud to have worked with Common Sense Media to help bring this project to life. Watch “Digital Connections” today to help young people connect with balance, kindness, vigilance, and purpose.

Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman Documentaries Website and Interactives

Encourage your 6-10th graders to journey through the history and impact of social change. Maryland Public Television (MPT) and FableVision created a website and two interactives highlighting the PBS documentaries Harriet Tubman: Visions of Freedom and Becoming Frederick Douglass. Check out the multimedia timeline with more than 70 landmark moments in American history, complete the narrated self-assessment “Map Your Role for Social Change,” and watch the documentaries.

Forest Quest

For older teens thinking about their careers, Forest Quest, created with Project Learning Tree Canada (PLT), provides an engaging and educational online experience about green jobs, sustainable forest management, and wildlife biology. Hear from foresters, wildlife experts, biologists, and Indigenous peoples to discover the secrets of forests.

Start It Up!

In lieu of a forestry career, maybe entrepreneurship is your teen’s calling. Start It Up!, an online business simulator created in partnership with GPB Education and Georgia Council on Economic Education (GCEE), teaches high school students and young adults the ins and outs of creating a business, while adding mentorship, customization, humor, and vibrant design to the experience.

That Bonus Activity

Yusuf/Cat Stevens’ “King of a Land”

After a long day, relax by listening and singing along to Cat Stevens’ new album, “King of a Land.” FableVision created animated lyric videos for two songs (stay tuned for one more) – “Take the World Apart” and “King of a Land” – featuring artwork by Peter H. Reynolds, who brings the message of finding inner peace to life. Is your entire family ready to sing?

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March FableFriday: Owen Hey, Junior Developer

With his upbeat demeanor, signature smile, and twinkle in his eye when given the opportunity to build a new game, Junior Developer Owen Hey makes one thought come to mind – "O-wen will we learn more about him?" The answer is simple: right now.

FableVision scored a goal when the freelancer joined the company as a full-time staff member in July. His passion for games combined with his love of art, creativity, and overall aesthetics in programming help Owen build unique interactives that further FableVision’s mission in developing meaningful, educational projects.

“In college, studying both game design and computer science reaffirmed the feeling that I like the creative avenue of programming,” said Owen. “I understood the cybersecurity and low-level computing classes, but they didn't hold a candle to the cool games I was making.”

Owen brings not only his game development knowledge and desire to grow his coding skills, but also his positivity and ability to put everyone in a good mood, which brightens the studio. Read more to learn about Owen’s methods for finding the best feasible solution on a project, his original game Polygunners, his love of wizards, and the activity that brings him the most joy per minute. 

What’s your “journey to FableVision” story?
I knew I was interested in educational kids’ games after I worked with Eco Resilience Games in college to create a VR experience that helps kids learn about different eras of Earth. For example, they could look at Lake George in New York now, in the 1800s, in the Cretaceous period, and so on. With this organization, we play tested various games with kids at the science museum and it warmed my heart seeing them enjoying the games we worked so hard to make. I knew that I liked the children’s gaming industry, so FableVision appealed to me even more once I discovered it. 

After I graduated from Rensselaer (RPI) in December 2021, I went to GDC – the Game Developers Conference – with my resume, business cards, and a great smile on my face. I left with no job, but I met a connection who works as a programmer in educational media. We set up a call and he listed several companies in that industry on the east coast, telling me which ones he respects, which to avoid, and other information. He had great things to say about FableVision, and within two days of speaking to him, I applied for a freelance Unity developer position, spoke to Technical Director Jordan Bach, and was assigned to a FableVision project. 

What do you like about computer science?
Growing up, I really admired and looked up to my older brother, who’s five years older than me. He did computer science, so following in his footsteps was a no-brainer. Very quickly I learned to love it, and not just because of my brother. My high school offered an awesome Unity development course that sparked my interest in this field and really shaped my future. That class and my RPI courses made me realize that game development and creativity specifically were both aspects of computer science that I enjoyed and wanted to pursue. And it all started because of my brother.

What types of projects do you like to work on?
I definitely like games and interactives. I grew up playing lots of games, so it was always one of my goals to create them. It’s fun to work on projects that you have a lot of experience in, which for me is Unity, but I want to expand my palate to other frameworks, libraries, and game engines. 

I prefer working on smaller games because it’s always a new experience; you can learn from something you worked on in the past but also try something new. There’s quicker iteration with a cleaner process. On a bigger project, while the end-product may be more impressive, you get stuck with the code you wrote a while ago. I enjoy splitting the work into mini projects, like mini games within the larger game, so that each game is a breath of fresh air and I can create things from scratch.

How did your previous experience prepare you for your role at FableVision?
In RPI’s game design program, our projects were structured in small groups of four-to-five people, with a person from each field – designer, writer, programmer. From a programming standpoint, I worked on half a dozen projects with a similar group size and structure as FableVision. The biggest thing that was missing were the producers. At FableVision, they make the whole process so much easier and great, I love them! On my own time in college, one of my main hobbies was going into a game engine I was learning at the time and playing around. I worked on a lot of small projects to dive deep into a certain visual effect or style. 

My previous internships were closer to traditional software development, which helped reiterate that I want to be a game developer as opposed to a software engineer, but I also had an IT support position that taught me communication skills. The job was 20% knowing how to fix the problem and 80% being able to explain the solution to those who needed help. Growing my people skills was really beneficial, especially for a company like FableVision that values interpersonal relationships, and where I have to communicate with different members of a project.

Owen and his decade-long best friend Caleb.

Speaking of communicating with different folks, how do you work with producers, artists, and designers to create the best possible games and interactives?
Not everything can be built exactly the way people might want it, so there is some back and forth between the teams where we work to find the best feasible solution. To help with this, I’m good at giving these roles different options for what they can do. I prototype or mock up multiple variations and send them to the designers, artists, and producers to see what sticks. 

What advice do you have for aspiring game developers?
Something that I’ve found to be invaluable is separating what is good from what is easy – you don’t want to create something only because you know how to build it. Instead, focus on the design and what is right for the experience, even if it’s challenging. You will create a better game and learn new techniques, which will help you build new games in the future. You don’t want to get stuck and do the same thing over and over again. It’s also valuable to be very clear with what is doable, especially in the time and budget parameters that you’re given.

Tell us more about Polygunners!
In college, I worked on many small, narrative, puzzle-based games, but I wanted to create something closer to the type of games I personally enjoy playing. I also hoped to expand my skill set and develop a project by myself. For about six months, I worked on Polygunners, a cooperative action game where players fight evil shapes. I was really, really passionate about it and it eventually turned into my capstone project.

I did the game design, art, programming, and sound creation, which was a lot of fun, sitting in my bedroom, recording “pew, pew, pew!” I paid a friend to create the music and trailer. It’s called Polygunners because everything in the game is composed of basic geometric shapes, including the evil, scary Polyqueen. I published it on Steam, and while it’s not the most popular game, over 40,000 people have played it! It’s definitely the project that I’m most proud of making.

It seems like soccer is a huge part of your life.
Soccer is really important to me. Growing up, I played it like every kid plays a sport, but in middle and high school, I became very serious about it, traveling every weekend to play in tournaments. At one point, I was on the “Maine team” as part of the Olympic Development Program. I took a step back in my junior year of high school after a severe back injury, but I continued to play intramural in college. To this day, I watch a lot of professional soccer and play in intramural leagues throughout Boston. It’s my favorite thing to do – definitely my highest fun had per minute.

You also love drawing?
Even though I’m a developer, I’ve always liked the visual parts of game development, like graphics programming and procedural animation – it’s all about making stuff look pretty. I like doing artsy, creative things in code, which extends to drawing, because I see that as the most pure form of creativity. You can make something look cool in code or you can just draw it. I’m not very good at it yet, but I’m getting there, and I’m having lots of fun, especially drawing wizards and clouds. 

More About Owen

Favorite game: Starcraft II.

Favorite wizard: Septimus Sylvaria – he’s my D&D character, a 12-year-old boy who thinks he’s the best, greatest wizard that ever lived. My red wizard hat is his hat, that unfortunately for him got burnt, so now it’s black.

Favorite movie: Game Night.

Favorite sports player: Marco Asensio. And my favorite soccer team is Tottenham Hotspur.

Favorite snack: Oreos! 

Favorite place you’ve traveled: Perú – Machu Picchu, Lima, Cusco.

An Owen fun fact that most people don’t know: As an 8-year-old kid, I lived in Edinburgh, Scotland in a flat and I went to school in a castle!

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February FableFriday: Snow (Xue) Dong, Producer

Some places have winter wonderlands that last a few months and others sparsely get a few snowflakes, but lucky for us, we get Snow all year round.

FableVision’s Producer Xue Dong, who goes by Snow, joined FableVision to pursue her interest in children's media. An artist herself, she brings her creative eye to each project, combined with her strong project management, communication, and teambuilding skills. To ensure that client needs are met while taking the thoughts of artists, developers, designers, writers, and others into consideration, Snow creates a safe working environment and the opportunity for anyone to speak up.

“I’ve enjoyed projects where the team is collaborative – everyone brings their skillset to the table, we bounce ideas off each other, and we learn from one another,” says Snow. “I make sure to ask everyone’s opinions, which can be challenging, but ultimately rewarding.” 

Keep reading to learn more about Snow’s approach for producing the best possible projects, how her Chinese upbringing helps her pay attention to small details, and the type of art that she loves to create.

What’s your “journey to FableVision” story?
As I studied sociology and animation in college, I didn’t know what I could do with those two fields, but I knew I wanted to do something creative and educational. While taking an animation class, I started researching what other Harvard students did with this degree, and I found Lead Animator Didi Hatcher’s work. I met up with Didi in the old, quirky FableVision office and it was a great opportunity for me to see how smaller organizations create purposeful media. After college, I met Executive Producer Peter Stidwill when he spoke at a local event. I introduced myself and learned about his FableVision experience. There weren’t openings then, but a couple of years went by, and I applied to an open producer role… and here I am!

Why are you drawn to children’s media?
Growing up in China, I took great pride in learning English at a young age and being good at it. Disney movies were a main resource for me, so the media was very impactful for my own childhood experience. As I worked on personal animation projects in college, I had so much agency over my creations, since I was the film director, writer, storyboard artist, and animator. The children’s piece comes in due to my sociology background. I was really interested in how education plays a part in our society, and I thought it would be cool to see how media could influence kids at a young age and facilitate learning in a fun way. I also watched Mr. Rogers for the first time in college, since he’s not famous in China. He has such strong beliefs in what media should do for kids, and he became a huge inspiration for me.

Why did you decide to go into producing? How did your background prepare you for this role?
Producing makes so much sense to me since it combines my strongest skills, knowledge of art and animation, and creative eye. My past experiences have helped me organically find how to best position myself and use my strengths. In my previous job, I worked with others, managed projects, facilitated communication, focused on timelines and deliverables, and made sure we got things done. So being a producer at FableVision was a great fit and once I started working here, everything felt familiar and comfortable to me.

What types of projects do you like to work on?
I love projects where we can collaborate amongst ourselves and with the client to come up with a great solution. It’s cool to see the problem solving that takes place in a project. It’s rewarding when a client wants our input, since we have more creative agency over the project, and it takes us some figuring things out along the way. And of course, every project is different, so you have favorite art in one, a favorite game in another, and so on.

How do you work with other team members to produce the best possible projects?
Proactive communication is so important. Since our projects are educational, they’re research-based with a lot of information, and we have to be careful to deliver the right information and content. I help team members be in sync, especially since people may be working on multiple projects, and I never assume that someone just gets it. I check that everyone is on the same page.

A lot of our projects are interactive games, which involve designers, artists, and developers. Everyone works on different pieces, but still needs to have a global understanding of the project, so that no one falls out of the loop. I try to remind myself that everyone’s ideas matter, and the most valuable opinion might come from someone who is two steps down the pipeline.

Lastly, I focus on the client relationships. Producers are the bridge between the client and the project team, so I make sure to connect them with each other and ensure there isn’t miscommunication.

How has your experience growing up and studying before college in China shaped your perspective?
I’ve lived in the U.S. for about seven years now, but having my own upbringing that is different from people in America, even though America is diverse, keeps me very curious. I have to remind myself to educate myself more and ask questions, which makes everything more interesting. Something may be common for Americans, but for me, it might feel new or different. It also helps me be a conscious observer; the things that are new to me might not trigger the same questions to those raised in the U.S.

It makes me appreciative of the American education system’s resources, but also raises more questions. For instance, even though there is an abundance of resources, not everyone learns and discusses complicated topics, such as race, in the same way. I love seeing what’s on American public television. There are many thoughtful creators, and it’s great knowing that FableVision is adding good content to that repertoire.

Lastly, it keeps me inspired to bridge the cultures. I’m working in an all-English environment, but I would love to at some point connect with Chinese creators and work on a Chinese project.

We heard that you’re also an artist! What type of art do you like to create?
I love figure drawing, which I’ve done since childhood, and drawing faces. I took a drawing class in college with live models, which helped improve my drawing since the human form is full of wonderful geometry, shapes, and textures. I would invite friends over, do portrait sketches, and show them my work. People usually liked what they saw and that felt rewarding. When I retire, I want to bring an easel to the farmer’s market and do free portrait drawings. I did this in China for a month where I would go to a cafe and sketch people. Once, I asked those who sat down with me to play their favorite songs, and the songs informed my sketching styles. For example, if it was a sad song, I would make the linework more somber, and if it was happy, it would look almost like anime.

I also want to improve my children’s illustrations. One of my goals is to create a small children’s book for my friend’s 4-year-old kid, who I’m tutoring in Chinese. I’ve been procrastinating, but I’m halfway there. It’ll be in English and I want to illustrate it myself. 

On a very different note, I tried songwriting during the pandemic. I played a little guitar in college, so I wrote some silly tunes, took an Ableton class, and tried producing my own songs. 

And you’ve been dabbling in baking?
I started baking also during the pandemic, which I found very comforting. I hated the idea of baking before, but once I started, I leaned into it and went all out. Originally, the measuring system really got me… ounces? Cups? Tablespoons? Teaspoons? They didn’t make sense. One time, I mistakenly put a tablespoon instead of a teaspoon of baking soda and everything tasted like toothpaste. But, my key moment was buying a baking book. I followed the recipes exactly, so my baking would turn out really well, and I would feel super accomplished. And I love sweets and sharing them with people – that makes me happy too.

Anything else you’d like to share?
I’m an aspiring cat parent! I’ve always loved cats and have recently been surrounded by cat people, especially at FableVision. Fingers crossed, before the end of 2023, I’ll have my own orange cat.

More About Snow:

Favorite book?
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari.

Favorite film?
Princess Mononoke.

Favorite game?
Ransom Notes.

Favorite holiday?
Mid-Autumn Festival because the traditional food for this holiday is moon cake, and it’s delicious.

Favorite American idiom?
“I’ve got bigger fish to fry” – when I hear this, it reminds me of a villain in an animated movie moving on to their next scheme, the next problem that they’re going to cause.

A Snow fun fact that most people don’t know?
In Chinese schools, some students are asked to give motivational speeches that they prepare ahead of time. Our school would have a speaker every Monday, usually a different student, and I’d be called up quite frequently. Outside of school I competed in public speaking contests. A super niche and buried past of me!

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