Join us at BostonFIG 2019!

We can’t wait for this year’s BostonFIG Fest! This bigger-than-ever event is a great opportunity to sample the best independent games around among a rapidly-growing community of creatives. With hundreds of curated digital and tabletop games, talks from industry professionals, and chances to expand your network, BostonFIG is the place to be.

FableVision is excited to attend the fest this year as an exhibitor, showcasing four games from our portfolio. Stop by our booth to demo our games, pick up some swag (who doesn’t love swag?), chat about studio life, and maybe even win a special Zoombinis raffle prize! 

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Zoombinis (TERC and Learning Games Network)

Zoombinis, a re-launch of a beloved, classic learning game from the ‘90s, focuses on computational thinking for middle schoolers. Through the game, learners can build their skills in problem solving, analysis, and pattern recognition, as well as strengthen their ability to formulate theories and inferences. The puzzles, each designed with their own unique theme, increase in difficulty as players go along and free all 400 Zoombinis. 

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Quandary (Learning Games Network)

Quandary is a unique problem solving game grounded in an ethics curriculum, encouraging players to use their judgement in situations where there may not be one right answer. As the captain of a space colony lightyears away, players must listen to the concerns of the residents on planet Braxos and come to a decision that makes the most ethical sense and has the best outcome. Quandary provides a fun, unique experience that is accessible both at school and at home.  

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Gasha Go! (GPB Education)

Gasha Go! introduces students to early math concepts, numeracy, and literacy. Modeled after the Japanese gashapon tradition, Gasho Go! invites players into the colorful world of an arcade after dark. The players then take a journey through activities that teach literacy and number sense. Complete with ten modes of gameplay designed by FableVision, Gasha Go! provides students with a fun, expandable platform for strengthening their numeracy skills.

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Cyberchase Fractions Quest
(THIRTEEN/WNET New York Public Media and the Education Development Center)

Cyberchase Fractions Quest combines a high-stakes adventure story with a research-based approach to fractions learning. With a modern and futuristic look, this game is based on the popular PBS KIDS math series Cyberchase. Players take the role of a cyber-hero on a quest to defeat the evil Hacker. As they move through different quests, with help and scaffolding from the CyberSquad, they add to their “toolkit” and create a cumulative set of math skills that meet Common Core standards and build on prior knowledge for effective learning. 

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Don’t miss your chance to access top designers, business leaders, artists, and more who are transforming the world of gaming. See you there! 

Where: Harvard Athletic Complex, Murr Center, 65 North Harvard St, Allston, MA
When: September 14, 2019 

Click here to register. 

September FableFriday: Hannah O’Neal, Lead Animator

“One of the things I like most about my job is creating fun and engaging characters, animals, and designs that bring a smile to the audience’s faces and brighten their day for having seen it,” says Hannah O’Neal. Once a FableVision intern, now lead animator, Hannah has created stunning animation at the studio for years. During her time as an intern, Hannah connected with the work and mission of FableVision, and when she finished her internship, she soon began freelancing. She then joined the team as a staff artist/animator and later became lead animator. In her role, she has delivered high-quality animation on a number of award-winning projects, and takes part in many important conversations surrounding the studio’s animation process. 

What distinguishes FableVision from other studios in the industry, for Hannah, is the work environment. “FableVision has a tremendous studio culture that creates a positive place to work,” says Hannah. “As an employee for a while now, it’s always been a pleasure working in a place that has collected what is both some of the best talent and also the nicest people in the Boston area.” 

Read on for more information on Hannah’s role at FableVision, where and how she finds artistic inspiration, and how she is shaping the minds of future animators in her animation course at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design.

What is involved in being a Lead Animator at FableVision, and how has your day-to-day routine changed since the beginning of your time at FableVision?
I still get to do a lot of the day-to-day animation tasks, making characters and designs move around in an interesting way, but now I also get to be more a part of the upfront discussions on not just what we’re working on, but also why, and how. In that way, I have the opportunity to shape the way we approach our animation for a given project and make sure we’re doing the best we can to meet our clients’ and partners’ goals. I am also able to interact more with other animation freelancers on projects and help direct them. I interact more with clients, as well, and provide animation-related information and feedback that helps keep projects looking their best.

As the art/animation internship coordinator, you’ve guided many young artists and even former students of yours in their practice. What do you look for in an intern candidate, and how does it feel to work with your students and former students at FableVision?
I was once an intern at FableVision, so I feel really blessed to be able to help usher in our new art interns every semester. I’m always looking for candidates who have the appropriate skill level in their portfolios for art or animation; however, portfolios only get a candidate so far. I also need to make sure that the candidate will fit in well within our close team-oriented environment. So I look for talented folks who are also up-beat, goal focused, and willing to jump into a team project and work with other people to make something great! I do my best to make sure my interns and students are getting the best professional experience possible, while also making it a positive experience for the studio to interact with these talented young people. By the end of the semester, I tend to be very sad when I have to say goodbye to them, but we all typically stay in touch, and I do my best to keep those connections alive.

You started out as a FableVision intern! How does your experience transitioning from intern to animator to now lead animator affect how you run the internship program?
FableVision was a great place to intern, and if I have anything to say about it, it remains a great place to intern! Becoming an animator after being an intern was a very different experience for me. The transition from animator to lead animator involves more managing, which means there is more overlap with my role as internship coordinator. I manage a team and their time, as well as direct look and feel of a project’s motion needs. I take what I learn managing the interns and apply it to what I do as a lead, and vice versa. 

What’s a project you’ve worked on this year that you’re especially proud of? Do you have any all time favorites?
This year, I just wrapped up a project that deals with financial literacy content. I was able to work with some really amazing writing and character designs, as well as some fantastic voice acting. Things came together so well and made my job not only easy, but super fun to execute. When we previewed the animation in front of the studio, it made people laugh and have a good time. That’s the best part of the job, when our team comes together well and makes something everyone really enjoys.

What are some things that have influenced your art style over the years?
As a kid, I was really into anime-style animation. While I am not as interested in that as an adult, I still use its visual language in my work. This is easy to do because most animators these days are using anime-inspired visual cues as well. Other inspirations include independent comic artists and illustrators of varying styles and genres. I love styles that push poses and emotions beyond the expected, and you tend to see more of that in comics since you have to say more in one character pose than you would in animation. I also derive a lot of inspiration from video games in terms of how things can move and what software to use to do so. I love seeing the latest from top-name motion graphic companies, as well. I’m fascinated by how much one can relate to an audience using abstract shapes and good graphic design. But what I have always felt most inspired by is nature! I’m a huge nature nerd, and it has always informed what and how I create art.

How did you first become interested in animation? What advice would you have for an artist pursuing the field today?
As mentioned, I love nature, and it’s because of that love that I was drawn to animation, specifically to the idea that I could essentially create living art. I could make art move and breathe and run and laugh. It seemed to me to be a very powerful form of artistic expression. One thing I would suggest for an artist interested in learning how to create animation, and ultimately becoming a professional animator, is to make sure you’re okay with drawing a lot! It can be tedious, and if you’re finding the level of tedium is preventing you from feeling that spark of creativity, you may want to try other forms of art. But, if you are really into it like I was, you should learn the basics first! 

And I what I mean by “basics” is learning how to draw animation (either on paper or in a software that lets you draw frame-by-frame) before starting to learn software. The animation world is very competitive world, and there are more software options than you can shake a stick at. There’s also a lot of pressure for a young animator to learn ALL THE SOFTWARE! However, all the software in the world isn’t going to make you a good animator if you don’t understand how to move and draw with a sense of weight and 3-dimension. It takes an experienced artist to make that movement something worth watching, giving your object life, making it relatable, and giving it a purpose. That can be quite a tall order! But if you can figure out how to do that, no matter what software (or paper) you use, you’ll be on the fast track to becoming a successful animator and artist.

Where do you seek out opportunities for viewing art and animation? What are some of your favorite animated shows/movies/cartoons?
Studio Ghibli films are always a great source of animation inspiration for me in regards to tone, story, and character movement. Anything animated by Milt Kahl is worth studying for hours if you can as well! He was a master of animation. One of my most favorite animated TV shows is Batman the Animated Series from the 90’s. It was very formative for me! It pushed character design and story in the realm of children’s television and is still such a pleasure to watch. I also love the animation coming out of the Cartoon Saloon in Ireland. They’re great at adding interesting stylized design and story to make epic and enjoyable animated films. Practically anything coming out of Gobelins school for animation is also top-notch! And last but certainly not least, I’ve really enjoyed the works of Giant Ant, an amazing motion graphic studio! 

Tell us about your current teaching gig!
I am lucky to work in a place that lets me take part in teaching a class on 2D Animation software at MassArt. I have always really loved teaching, which is part of the reason I enjoy running the intern program at FableVision. I’m going into my second semester teaching, and I’m really looking forward to it. Helping young artists learn to be the best they can is super rewarding work!

We heard you’re also into gaming. What’s your current favorite video game, and are there any games that have influenced your artistic style over the years?
My favorite video game is Journey—hands down! It’s SO amazing in every way I hope a game to be amazing. It has a meaningful story that promotes cooperative play with others, it looks stunning, and the music is *chef’s kiss*. It’s an award-winning game for a reason.

More about Hannah:

What’s at the top of your travel bucket list and why? New Zealand because it’s so BEAUTIFUL and kind of weird, and I can pretend to be a hobbit. It’d be great!
You love to camp! Do you prefer a tent or a camper? TENT 100%. I like hiking into a remote location and pitching a tent by a fire. There’s just something so satisfying about that—being so lost in and surrounded by nature.
We heard you grew up on an animal farm. Do you know why cows come close when they hear trumpets or other music? Cattle will come to any weird noise you make so long as they believe there will be food at the end of their journey. We used to yell out a sort of song to attract the cattle to come feed. They have to hear you over fields and hills, so you have to be really loud! It went something like, “SoooooeeeeEEEEe Cooome n’ Get iiiiiiiitttt!” and hit the empty bucket against the giant feeding trough because it makes a loud sound. The cattle loved it!
Favorite song to listen to while working? I like to listen to albums, so it’s hard to pick one song! I like to listen to the album “Songs from Moonlit Lake” by Daniel Olsén because it’s so darn cute!
Favorite work snack? Double chocolate cookies from Flour Bakery!
Describe your ideal dessert: There was this legendary dessert dish my Granny made when I was a kid that she called Mississippi Mud Pie Graveyard. It was a kind of cake with LOTS of chocolate things. It had pudding, oreo crumbles, and maybe some cream cheese. MOST IMPORTANTLY, though, it was in a casserole dish decorated with gummy worms and marshmallow ghosts to resemble a graveyard, since she made it for Halloween. I will never forget that dish and want nothing more than to eat that again, but only for Halloween!
Summarize FableVision in three words: Hard-working, good people.

Nine FableVision Resources for 2019 Back to School

Back to school season is upon us, so you know what that means—shopping for a new backpack, mapping out the bus route, and gathering the newest tools for learning! FableVision is here to help teachers, parents, and students make this school year the best one yet. Check out some of the many resources we have available to support learners of all ages, both in the classroom and at home.

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Zoombinis (TERC, Learning Games Network)

In this relaunch of the nineties classic game, players can practice their logical reasoning, pattern finding, and problem solving skills with 12 puzzles and four levels of increasing difficulty. In Zoombinis, middle schoolers  strengthen and implement their algebraic thinking, data analysis, and theory formulation skills in a fun and engaging setting, helping the Zoombinis, groups of small blue characters, on their logical journey home. The game is available for use on mobile and desktop applications, and can be played both at home and in the classroom.

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Different Kinds of Hurt: Isaac’s Story
(Massachusetts Department of Mental Health, Walker Cares)

It can be hard to open up to the people around you about how you feel. But Isaac and Mia are here to show you that it’s okay not to feel okay! Different Kinds of Hurt: Isaac’s Story, a multimedia campaign to promote conversations about mental health, destigmatizes these conversations by highlighting the similarities between mental health issues and physical injuries. Additional resources on how to identify signs of mental health issues in children and who to contact for support can be found on the Isaac’s Story website. 

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Keenville (Georgia Department of Education, Georgia Center for Assessment)

Keenville, a game-based assessment we created for first and second grade students in the state of Georgia, changes what the traditional classroom looks like by making tests more fun and engaging. Students are faced with tasks and questions and are rewarded with beans, which they can exchange to buy items in the game. While students play through the games and improve their math and literacy skills, teachers can assign games and track their students’ progress through a specialized teacher dashboard. 

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Project Here Games (The Office of the Attorney General of Massachusetts, Health Resources in Action, and the GE Foundation)

Created as a part of Project Here, a Massachusetts state-wide initiative to promote substance use prevention and healthy decision-making, Project Here Games is a useful tool for teaching social emotional skills. This game-based app consists of minigames and quizzes that allows for the user to practice skills such as standing up to peer pressure, coping with stress, and making healthy choices. Project Here Games is designed for grades 6 through 8 and can be used in an independent or collaborative setting, both at home and in school.

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Digital Citizenship Music Videos
(Common Sense Education)

With the rise in internet and technology use in our daily lives, the next generation of young leaders need to learn how to navigate and use technology responsibly. With the help of the “Digital Citizens,” students will learn how to make safe decisions online. As a part of Common Sense’s re-vamped Digital Citizenship curriculum, FableVision created lyrics, songs, and animation for three music videos about media balance, being safe and respectful online, and more. Produced with students K-2 in mind, these videos will have you singing along while learning how to build good digital habits. 

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Lights, Camera, Budget!
(Georgia Public Broadcasting, the Georgia Council on Economic Education)

Ever wondered what it takes to be a big shot Hollywood film producer? Lights, Camera, Budget! teaches key personal finance skills to middle and high school students as they navigate the process of creating a hit movie without going over budget. In this Common Core Standards aligned game, students learn financial literacy concepts by distributing an initial $100 million production budget and correctly answering multiple choice questions on a variety of personal finance topics to earn even more money. A virtual advisor provides expertise in one of three popular film genres, as well as money management throughout gameplay. Implement this game in your math class to help your students understand the importance of budgeting and managing your finances. 

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The Paper Girls Show (Global Tinker) 

Join Caily and Reese on their journey of discovery, fun, and creativity! Inspired by STEAM education and the Makers Movement, The Paper Girls Show follows the two best friends as they explore Confetti, a world made of paper. Inspire the young scientists and inventors in your life to learn about art, science, computer programming, engineering, and friendship through the animated video series, maker projects, and additional resources available on The Paper Girls Show website here.

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The Word Collector Animated Film
(Weston Woods)

Kids like to collect things like stamps, baseball cards, and even bugs! But what does Jerome collect? Words! Learn more about Jerome’s story as he discover new words and learns more about their power and magic in The Word Collector, an animated film based on FableVision founder and best-selling author/illustrator Peter H. Reynolds’ book of the same title. This film shows learners of all ages the ability words have to connect, transform, and empower. Follow along with your copy of the book, and share your favorite words on the Word Collector website here.

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FableVision Learning CTE

Looking for a way to implement animation into your classroom? FableVision Learning’s Animation CTE Program is here to help students experience animation through Animation-ish, an animation training program that provides them with the skills needed to be successful beyond school. The Animation-ish software, designed by award winning author/illustrator/educator Peter H. Reynolds and the FableVision team, enables students to develop their creativity, collaboration, and communication skills.

The Future is Now: Vote to Send FableVision to SXSW EDU 2020

For years, SXSW has been a strong creative institution attracting the most innovative ideas in media and beyond. This year marks the tenth anniversary of SXSW EDU, a subsidiary of the conference focusing on the improvement and development of teaching and learning practices nationwide. SXSW EDU invites some of the brightest minds in education to propose presentations, panels, workshops, and more for the conference through its unique system, SXSW PanelPicker. Community members vote for their favorite proposals on the PanelPicker website, directly influencing the conference’s lineup. 

This year, FableVision is teaming up with MIT Education Arcade, MIT Playful Journey Lab, and Filament Games to propose a panel on game-based learning and assessment, featuring experts in design and development for educational technology. Now we need your help to bring our session  “The Future is Now: Games as Assessment” to SXSW EDU 2020!!

Voting began last week and continues through August 23. Use your voice to vote to bring us to Austin!

Voting Process

1. Make An Account: Sign up on SXSW PanelPicker 

2. Browse the Submissions

3. Cast Your Vote: Community Voting is from August 5-23

The Future is Now: Games as Assessment

Looking to develop your skills in educational game design? Join us to learn how industry experts create games that focus on future-facing skills and promote strategies for meaningful learning that are transferable to the real world. We’ll take a look at five unique games developed by FableVision Studios, MIT Education Arcade, and Filament Games and examine best practices for accountable assessment and skill-building. Click here to read more about our session.

Speakers

• Peter Stidwill, Executive Producer at FableVision Studios. Since studying at Cambridge University, Stidwill has had over 15 successful years managing the design and development of educational games/projects for some of the most prominent names in the industry. He has taken the lead on several award-winning productions for the BBC, Learning Games Network, and more and presented at numerous events on educational technology and gaming. At FableVision, Stidwill leads the company’s production efforts, working hard to manage and execute multiple projects with a consistent level of quality, care, and attention to detail.

• Louisa Rosenheck, Associate Director of MIT Playful Journey Lab and researcher of educational technology at MIT Education Arcade. Rosenheck has expertise in developing learning games for a diverse audience, including under-resourced communities and international learners.

• Scot Osterweil, Creative Director at MIT Education Arcade and the Game Lab in the MIT Comparative Media Studies Program. Osterweil is a game designer and has been developing educational games for 25 years.

• Dan White, CEO of Filament Games. Filament Games has completed over 160 education-focused projects. White has extensive experience creating games for learning.

August FableFriday: Michael Fogarasi, Producer

“I was drawn to FableVision because of its emphasis on mission-based projects” says Michael Fogarasi, FableVision Producer. “This coupled with working with creative and technical teams here at the studio brings a uniqueness to what might otherwise be a traditional project management role.” As producer, Michael manages not only his own schedule, but those of his team members. He also keeps track of task lists, reviews, and other items to ensure the projects he produces are running efficiently and delivering high quality content.

Michael is also no stranger to stepping up when it comes to a new project. As evidenced by his transition from Associate Producer to Producer and his role as Production Internship Coordinator, Michael not only understands the production process, but is also passionate about guiding and mentoring FableVision interns so that they can understand and become familiar with it.

Although every project is different, Michael welcomes every unique challenge and works hard to keep the team on track to deliver a project that meets both the client’s mission and the studio’s goals. And since we work with like-minded organizations to move the world to a better place, his managing of our teams is seen and felt by staff and partners alike. Let’s jump in and learn more about his process for approaching new projects, what he looks for in a production intern, and where he’s headed on his next vacation!

How did you come to be at FableVision?
I started college around the time when educational technology websites and apps like Quizlet and Duolingo were first coming out. Once I tried them, I was immediately hooked—they not only became an integral part of my learning experience, but also sparked a passion for educational technology. Pursuing this passion, I ended up as an intern in MIT’s video production department, where I helped film and edit courses for MIT OpenCourseWare. Then, a good friend of mine and former FableVision associate producer Katie Tusch, let me know the team was hiring for the associate producer position, and I jumped at the chance.

You have to balance a lot of schedules when producing projects. What does a day in your life look like? And how do you keep your team(s) on track?
My day starts and ends with a variety of productivity tools and schedules. Every morning, I’ll check in on FableVision’s weekly schedule and my own schedules for each of my respective projects. I’ll then make sure that each person on my team knows what they have ahead of them that day—sometimes that’s through project stand-ups, Slack check-ins, or I’ll just head over to their desk. 

For projects that are earlier in the process, we tend to meet fairly frequently, so I’ll gather the team for brainstorming sessions or production meetings to start the problem-solving process. I’ll also frequently meet with clients to present what we’ve been working on, making sure that we capture their feedback.   

All of this information ends up getting organized on my personal Trello board. Anything that comes my way gets immediately noted and categorized—I rely upon it heavily! I probably run through my to-do list 10-20 times a day to determine the next steps that need to be taken. Then, I’ll do one final swoop at the end of the day to ensure we’ve hit all of our deliverables, while also previewing the next day—just to make sure there are no surprises! 

What is your process for approaching a new project, and what advice do you have for new producers starting their first project?
The beginning of a project is an exciting time—it can go a million different ways and it’s the producer’s job to help find its footing. Beyond setting up all the organizational infrastructure, my advice would be to become intimately familiar with the client’s goals and wishes for the project. I like using the project kickoff to explore the client’s background and reasons for coming to FableVision. Those early conversations can set the tone for the entire project—if you’re able to keep these discussions in mind, you can make sure that every decision is made in the project’s best interest. 

What’s the biggest difference in producing animation and game projects?
Animation and games are quite different in the way they are experienced—animation conveys its information to curious viewers, while games need to get their message across through a series of interactions. 

In animation projects, I like to think of the storyboard as the end-product of the ‘plan’ phase. Once the script has been written and the storyboard drawn—both major feats on their own—our team has a pretty good sense of whether the piece is engaging or conveys the intended message. If we’re happy with the piece at this stage, we can be very confident that we’ll similarly be happy with the final piece—and so it just becomes a matter of executing on the storyboard, which requires tracking all the assets to be created, scenes to be animated, and audio to be recorded. 

Meanwhile, an interactive project’s ‘plan’ is typically a game design document, which describes all the interactions a user may encounter throughout the experience. Ultimately, the design process requires careful testing and tweaking of the document’s mechanics over the course of the development cycle to ensure that we create something fun that simultaneously gets the content across. Because of that, our team needs to act much more quickly—constantly meeting, reviewing game builds, and discussing potential improvements—while also figuring out which assets need to be tracked and created. It’s a process that keeps you on your toes!

You’ve produced some pretty large projects during your time here. Can you tell us a little more about one in very recent memory, Project Here Games? What went into getting that project to the finish line?
Project Here Games was a really fun and challenging project to work on. The project was commissioned by the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office (AGO) as part of their Massachusetts-state-wide Project Here initiative to combat substance use through social emotional learning and healthy decision making. As you can imagine, that’s a pretty hefty task to fit into an engaging website for middle schoolers—but none too big for the project’s creative masterminds, Leigh Hallisey (creative director/writer) and Loren Lee-Flynn (user experience designer). Our team devised a series of quizzes and games, which were designed to model real-world situations and reward healthy decision-making. Combined with a really fun art style from our art team, Keith Zulawnik and Christina Kelly, the website was an instant hit. And collaborating with associate producer, Mikaela Johnson, and really dedicated teams at the AGO, Human Resources in Action, and GE, allowed us  to wrap up the project smoothly and successfully. 

You also project managed The Paper Girls Show! What’s your favorite thing about that animated series?
The series Paper Girls Show depicts two friends, Caily and Reese, who are both totally enamored with STEM and use it to solve all sorts of creative challenges. The show aims to break down gender stereotypes around STEM subjects and empower more girls to join those fields. It was inspiring to work with a team of people who were passionate about the mission. This created a fast-paced, creative environment that was amazing to be a part of—we could barely keep up with all the backgrounds, characters, and designs our art team was producing. And at the end of our first season, it was exciting to receive validation for our hard work once we took home animation awards at Cannes, Palm Springs, and KidsScreen!

You’re also the coordinator for the studio production internship. How do you work with the interns to insure they’re getting the most out of their time here, and what do you look for in a production intern?
At the beginning of a student’s internship, we meet to determine what sorts of projects they are interested in and subsequently pair them with a few. While assigned to a project, the interns become part of the team, helping out in a variety of capacities. When I was an intern at various companies, I didn’t always get a sense of the company’s bigger picture beyond the project I was assigned to, so I also started a series of weekly meetings with our interns, in which studio members discuss their roles and backgrounds. Through these meetings, the interns are able to see how all the different pieces of the FableVision puzzle fit together. 

Regarding prospective candidates, I’m most interested in whether they have demonstrated a real interest in either children’s media or educational technology. We’re looking for students who are really passionate about the field and made efforts to contribute to or learn about it. 

What are your favorite ways to unwind after work?
I really enjoy running, biking, or cooking when I get home in the evenings. I don’t have a car in MA, so I’ve been able to get out and explore the area by biking deep into the suburbs and countryside. I also love trying out and perfecting new recipes, particularly with unique ingredients or new flavors I haven’t experienced before. 

You’ve lived in and travelled to a lot of countries. How have your travels influenced you, and what’s your next vacation destination?
I was lucky enough to grow up in a foreign service family, which meant moving to a new country every three to four years. It’s hard not to love travel with that kind of background. So since I moved back to the US about 10 years ago, I’ve been trying to get out as much as possible. I love seeing unique places (especially city skylines), trying new foods, and⁠—though I’m a bit of an introvert⁠—meeting new people. 

In terms of next destinations, one of my good friends is moving to Argentina for a few months and I’m hoping to get down there in the fall. It will be my first South American destination, but I’m hoping to travel throughout the continent at some point. 

More about Michael:

Current show you’re binge-watching: Anything from Bon Appetit’s YouTube channel.

Favorite game: Mario Kart Double Dash.

Any podcast recs? It’s not the cheeriest rec, but I’ve been listening to Slate’s Slow Burn about Bill Clinton’s impeachment. I’ve been trying to revisit political events from my childhood and this fits in perfectly. 

Go-to dish to bring to a potluck: Homemade hummus or a dip with too much garlic.

Favorite book you’ve read recently: Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou.