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The National Film and Television School has revealed a hiring coup that brings Microsoft’s Phil Harrision onto the board of governors to advise on the new MA in games design and development.
A veteran of over 25 years in the industry, Harrision worked at Sony and Atari before moving to Microsoft this year, where he serves as corporate vice president of the company’s Interactive entertainment division.
Harrision was also a co-founder of London Venture Partners LLP, served on the advisory board of Gaikai, and currently advises Red Robot Labs.
Combining such an extensive CV with a tremendously charismatic personality, Harrison is ideally suited to help build the school’s gaming courses.
"Developing and nurturing the next generation of creative, production and technical talent is essential for the growth of the games sector and the creative industries in the UK," said Harrison.
"I can’t wait to discover the future stars of game design and interactive story-telling through these courses and it’s great that the NFTS is making such a commitment to the interactive and digital arts."
The NFTS MA in games design and development is the only course in the UK to take place in a film school studio environment, and organisers hope that such surroundings will benefit students hoping to bring interactive worlds to life.
"We are honoured to have Phil Harrison on our Board- he will bring a wealth of knowledge and experience the school," said NFTS director Mike Powell.
"It is also shows the level of commitment that Microsoft has to investing time and expertise into developing the talent of tomorrow for the Games and Entertainment industry."
