Department of

INTERACTIVE MEDIA

ABOUT

The Department of Interactive Media offers tomorrow’s visual storytellers and innovators a complete curricular experience in critical understanding and effective creation of contemporary interactive design. Our programs are designed to prepare a new generation in the field of transmedia and interaction design with a mission to explore the creative uses of narrative, documentary, technology, design and human behavior to entertain, impact, augment, and influence how people communicate.

SPECIAL TOPICS COURSES

Please consider the following Special Topics course offerings from the Department of Cinematic Arts. Consult Canelink, the instructor of record, and/or your academic advisor for more information.

CIM 464/664 + JMM 592/692 section 1PVideo Game Spectatorship and Esports:

CIM 489/689 section JBusiness and Legal for Games: Designed for anyone interested in the video game industry, this course focuses on the legal and business issues of game development and distribution, including marketing, the economics of the industry, the essential terms of the primary agreements, and the latest regulatory issues.

About the Instructors: Veda Cruz serves as in-house counsel at Gearbox Entertainment, where she started working immediately after law school. At Gearbox, she works on almost every facet of the business: development and publishing deals, license agreements, asset reviews, intellectual property, privacy, and more. She also does motion capture work at the studio for several projects. Veda received her B.A., J.D., and MBA at the University of Miami. She regularly volunteers at the Game Developers Conference and strives to make legal and business issues in the video game industry digestible and fun for game developers. She is currently working on her own game in Unreal Engine. When not working, Veda spends her time at the dojo training in karate and jiu-jitsu. David Greenspan has been involved in the video game business for over 25 years, working independently and in Business and Legal Affairs at 989 Studios/Sony, THQ, Midway, and Bandai Namco Entertainment America. David was the lead author of the 1st edition of Mastering The Game: Business and  Legal Issues for Video Game Developers and co-author of the 2nd edition released in 2022. The first edition, published by the World Intellectual Property Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, has been downloaded over 200,000 times. Mr. Greenspan was one of the first to teach legal and business classes about the video game industry at the university and postgraduate levels and has been teaching for more than 25 years. When not working, David spends his time getting hurt playing hockey. Combined, both professors have worked on over 100 video games and have been involved in all aspects of video game development, publishing, licensing, distribution, and marketing, and have negotiated hundreds of agreements covering these areas. Many of these deals have involved major game developers, publishers, distributors, motion picture studios, professional sports leagues, music labels, talent, and service vendors. Both professors have spoken at more than 20 worldwide conferences about the game industry, and they continue to find ways to help game developers worldwide be prepared for the legal and business issues of video games.

CIM 489/689 section 1TInternet Culture: Social Media, Image, and Our New Reality: This course will explore the impact of the internet and social media on our culture, identity, and perception of reality. With a historical lens we will examine stan culture, culture-jamming activism, expressions of identity, and more, looking at both pre-internet and current phenomena. We will also look at the history of the internet and social media platforms and discuss how these technologies have shaped our understanding of the world around us. You will have the opportunity to explore these ideas by regularly creating content in the medium and on the platform of your choice. For example, you might create a social media campaign, a video essay, or a work of art.

About the Instructor: Michelle Kempner is the Director of Product Content operations and leads Meta’s global strategy and execution for product content across Facebook, Instagram, and Threads. Her key areas of focus encompass recommender systems, generative AI and LLMs, scaled incentives, and the future landscape of content. Before joining Meta, Michelle played a pivotal role at Buzzfeed, where she spearheaded the creation and leadership of their video product, overseeing publishing and operations. During her tenure, she was instrumental in establishing and expanding numerous properties, contributing to Buzzfeed’s growth from a small team to a workforce of over 1600, making it the leading online media producer. She also helmed various teams, including those in social media, analytics, production, post-production, studio, and research, spanning across more than ten countries.

CIM 489/689 section 5TReligion & Sacred Space in the Era of Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality: Throughout human history, religion has been a significant factor in the formation of human community and the communication of prosocial values and practices.  Digital culture has created new modes of communication–both aural and visual–that may affect and change how religion works and its impact on society.  This course will examine the various impacts that emerging technologies have on religion’s structure and practice in the contemporary world.

Visit the Interactive Media website for the latest updates on faculty and student activities.

Faculty

Ching-Hua
Chuan

c.chuan@miami.edu
(305) 284-5045
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Clay
Ewing

c.ewing@miami.edu
(305) 284-2995
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Lindsay
Grace

lgrace@miami.edu
(305) 284-4661
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Kim
Grinfeder

grinfeder@miami.edu
(305) 284-6253
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Lorena Lopez

Lorena
Lopez

llopez@miami.edu
(305) 284-9289
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Sanne Martens

Sanne
Martens

sxm2632@miami.edu
(305) 284-5616
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Barbara
Millet

b.millet@miami.edu
(305) 284-1074
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Zevensuy
Rodriguez

zevenrodriguez@umiami.edu
(305) 284-4745
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Michelle
Seelig

mseelig@miami.edu
(305) 284-5211
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Vinicius Sueiro

Vinicius
Sueiro

vss43@miami.edu
(305) 284-1783
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