Since its launch in 2011, Minecraft has stood out from other open-world builders. The use of simple cubes as building blocks, similar to a set of LEGO bricks, means that you are only limited by what your imagination can build. Creatives have built whole towns and countries, recreated lost palaces from old schematics, built a functional Disneyland, and even made a walkable version of the Earth. It is an endlessly customizable world.
The Uncensored Library team recognized the potential and ran with it. They saw a space where they could build a library as a monument to house in 9 sections the writings of journalists whose works were banned in their home countries. In Minecraft, these works will live for as long as the servers do. Tobias Natterer (DDB Berlin) will lead a 45-minute lecture, followed by a post-mortem technical breakdown of the project and how Minecraft can be used beyond its original purposes by James Delaney (Blockworks UK). Afterward, there will be a15-minute Q&A, on The Uncensored Library, where it came from, and how it came to life with help from Reporters Without Borders. They will also discuss how to approach Minecraft and its community to create active and unique projects like The Uncensored Library.
About Your Speakers
Tobias is a German senior copywriter located in Berlin and is currently employed at DDB Germany. Although he studied communication design, he quickly discovered his love for ideation and concepting and kept searching for better ideas. So he did the “BBDO Masterclass” traineeship. 18 month, 4 different cities and one challenge: becoming a copywriter. Since then, Tobias has been working for some renowned agencies and clients, including Audi, Volkswagen and Reporters Without Borders. The search for bigger and better ideas has become somewhat of a passion and his work is being recognized and awarded by multiple international creativity festivals such as the Cannes Lions and the D&AD.
James is the founder and Managing Director of BlockWorks, a collective of designers, artists, and developers from around the world with a shared passion for Minecraft. BlockWorks has grown from an informal group to a global design studio that has pioneered the use of Minecraft as a design tool with film studios, marketing firms, and educational institutions. In 2016, James published Beautiful Minecraft, a compendium of stunning artworks built in the game by the BlockWorks team.
James is also the Chairman of the Block by Block Foundation, a non-profit partnership between UNHabitat, Mojang and Microsoft which uses Minecraft as a community participation tool in urban design, engaging and enabling young people in developing countries to participate in the urban planning process.
James graduated with a degree in Architecture from Cambridge University and pursues a particular interest in the correlation between architecture and video games. He is an elected fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and has given talks at the International Spatial Development Forum, The Bartlett School of Architecture, and the British Library, among others.
Since its launch in 2011, Minecraft has stood out from other open-world builders. The use of simple cubes as building blocks, similar to a set of LEGO bricks, means that you are only limited by what your imagination can build. Creatives have built whole towns and countries, recreated lost palaces from old schematics, built a functional Disneyland, and even made a walkable version of the Earth. It is an endlessly customizable world.
The Uncensored Library team recognized the potential and ran with it. They saw a space where they could build a library as a monument to house in 9 sections the writings of journalists whose works were banned in their home countries. In Minecraft, these works will live for as long as the servers do. Tobias Natterer (DDB Berlin) will lead a 45-minute lecture, followed by a post-mortem technical breakdown of the project and how Minecraft can be used beyond its original purposes by James Delaney (Blockworks UK). Afterward, there will be a15-minute Q&A, on The Uncensored Library, where it came from, and how it came to life with help from Reporters Without Borders. They will also discuss how to approach Minecraft and its community to create active and unique projects like The Uncensored Library.
About Your Speakers
Tobias is a German senior copywriter located in Berlin and is currently employed at DDB Germany. Although he studied communication design, he quickly discovered his love for ideation and concepting and kept searching for better ideas. So he did the “BBDO Masterclass” traineeship. 18 month, 4 different cities and one challenge: becoming a copywriter. Since then, Tobias has been working for some renowned agencies and clients, including Audi, Volkswagen and Reporters Without Borders. The search for bigger and better ideas has become somewhat of a passion and his work is being recognized and awarded by multiple international creativity festivals such as the Cannes Lions and the D&AD.
James is the founder and Managing Director of BlockWorks, a collective of designers, artists, and developers from around the world with a shared passion for Minecraft. BlockWorks has grown from an informal group to a global design studio that has pioneered the use of Minecraft as a design tool with film studios, marketing firms, and educational institutions. In 2016, James published Beautiful Minecraft, a compendium of stunning artworks built in the game by the BlockWorks team.
James is also the Chairman of the Block by Block Foundation, a non-profit partnership between UNHabitat, Mojang and Microsoft which uses Minecraft as a community participation tool in urban design, engaging and enabling young people in developing countries to participate in the urban planning process.
James graduated with a degree in Architecture from Cambridge University and pursues a particular interest in the correlation between architecture and video games. He is an elected fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and has given talks at the International Spatial Development Forum, The Bartlett School of Architecture, and the British Library, among others.
Our Approach
Game-Making Practice
It's for everyone! We believe that game design and thinking is not limited to "the video game industry." It's a creative point of view that any discipline can use.
LEARN FROM Doing
Our workshops are focused on activities with a majority of time spent on making things.
this is only the start
You'll grow from here. We hope that this is a stepping stone for you to permanently work with the material of games.