ACTRA Montreal’s beloved video games workshop is back for its 14^th edition!  

Once again, our top-notch instructors and video game professionals are brought together to deliver our intensive practical video games workshop, where you will learn performance capture, motion capture, voice work and other aspects of the industry.

This is an exclusive – once in a year – opportunity open to active ACTRA members only. With 6 hours of theory and more than 20 hours of practical work in studio, this workshop will give you the know-how and experience you need to work in the video game industry.
Of the 100+ performers who have participated in this workshop, over 60% have gone on to book work in video games and dubbing.

Learning objectives

This workshop is aimed at professional artists wishing to broaden their skills so that they can start working in video games. Through this workshop, artists will:

• Develop good microphone techniques, reading skills, vocal stamina and rapid characterization to make them an asset in the recording studio.
• Become familiar with the specific requirements and techniques of performance capture.
• Have a good knowledge of the industry as a whole, including an understanding of game manufacturing and its development over the years.

Application process

• Submission of your professional resume.
• Submission of a recent headshot.
• Let us know when submitting your application, if there are any additional barriers to access that you would like us to know about for this workshop. This will not affect your eligibility.

Key dates

• Auditions: 09:00 to 17:00 – 24 January 2025, at ACTRA Montreal’s Office
• Introduction to video games: 14:00 to 16:00 – 7 February 2025, at ACTRA Montreal’s Office
• Module 1: Group A, 13:00 to 18:00 – 10 February / Group B, 13:00 to 18:00 – 11 February, at Game On
• Module 2: Group A, 09:00 to 13:00 – 17 February / Group B, 14:00 to 18:00 – 17 February, at Game On
• MoCap Rehearsal: 12:00 to 17:00 – 21 February 2025, at ACTRA Montreal’s Office
• MoCap Shoot: 11:00 to 16:00 – 24 February 2025, at Game On

Cost: $425

Number of participants: 8 participants (2 groups of 4)

Duration: 52 hours (26 hours per group)

Deadline to apply: 6 January 2025 at 09:30

Language: English

Admission criteria: 

• Age range: Over 18
• Proficiency in English
• Must be an active member of ACTRA.

Instructors

• Simon Peacock

Simon started working in video games as an actor over 20 years ago. Although he started as a performer, in 2005 he became a Voice Director, and a few years later started directing motion capture. He has worked in Montreal, LA, New York, London, Madrid, Auckland, and many other production hubs with numerous companies spanning multiple genres.

Simon now has over 100 games under his belt, including 13 Assassin’s Creed titles, The Outer Worlds, Outlast, Guardians of the Galaxy, Gotham Knights, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, and many more. He is a certified AACE instructor and has been teaching acting for video games for over a decade.

• Carlo Mestroni

Carlo is a seasoned industry veteran, who transitions between acting, voice directing, performance capture directing, and casting consulting. His extensive video game repertoire includes roles in Guardians of the Galaxy, Maneater, The Outer Worlds, and Shadow of the Tomb Raider. As a voice director, he has lent his expertise to The Outer Worlds, The Division, Rainbow Six Siege, and numerous Assassin’s Creed titles.

Carlo’s work extends beyond gaming, encompassing TV, film, theatre, and voiceover. He has been recognized with nominations for both video game and animation performances.

• Amber Goldfarb

Amber is a Canadian Screen Award-nominated actor with over 80 credits to her name in film, television and video games.  Her prolific video game work includes such titles As Batman: Arkham Knight, Gotham Knights, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, Far Cry: Primal, Watchdogs I & II, For Honour, Rainbow 6, Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, Vampyr, Shadow Of The Tomb Raider And 9 Of The Assassin’s Creed. Amber has been teaching motion capture performance for the ACTRA Montreal Video Game Workshop since 2014. A proud member of AACE, she is passionate about helping equip actors with the tools to succeed in working in games and to advocate for themselves in our industry.