South West France’s Enjmin students are passionate about everything from comic books and film-making to sound design and game art. Director Stéphane Natkin is keen to recruit more international learners from countries such as the UK to his two-year Masters in Games And Interactive Media to add to that mix. And there’s a short course in French for those drawn to the idea of studying in picturesque Angoulême but concerned about the language barrier. Here, Natkin explains the ethos of an institution ranked the best games educator in France by industry trade union Syndicat National Du Jeu Vidéo.
How do you see the industry that students hope to join?
The world of games is changing very fast. At the last GDC everybody was talking about freemium and free-to-play, but maybe this trend is already over and triple-A is already over. I used to say that we are at the end of the story of games. Not because videogames are disappearing, but because they will be everywhere on every screen.
How does the Masters degree prepare students for a game industry in flux?
Take, for example, a student interested by sound design with a related undergraduate degree. In their first semester they learn some basics about visuals, game design and programming. In their second semester they will learn about sound in games. Then they work in a team on a project to make something interactive and engaging which needs no explanation. In the second year they get advanced courses in their specialism and take a game from pre-production to prototyping. The Masters ends with a six-month internship: 98 per cent of students go to a game studio – a third at Ubisoft – and two per cent go to a lab and then start a PhD.
How much do students pay?
In France, all the universities are public. If you are under 28 and you have not worked for more than two years, the fees are about 450 per year. Otherwise it costs 5,000.
Tell us about student life in Angoulême.
Angoulême is a historical place not far from Bordeaux and Cognac. It has a pleasant climate. It’s not far from the sea and two-and-a-half hours from Paris by high-speed train. It is the comic-book capital of Europe due to a festival in January. There’s an active cultural life with the music and film festivals. But probably the main point is that you can meet and work with around 800 students coming from art, animation and documentary schools. Next year we will have a huge new building with a lot of technology installed in an old paper mill, along the river Charente. And it’s important to mention that the cost of living is low – you can find a studio for 300 a month, for example. Angoulême is a really good place to spend two years and get a Masters.
It sounds like a great place to study; what’s the story about it also being a romantic one?
Ashley Zeldin and John Nesky from Thatgamecompany met each other at the 2012 LA Global Games Jam. This year they were invited to Enjmin. They stayed for the Games Jam and for the anniversary of their meeting designed a love game. The background of this game is a stylised 2D map of Angoulême.
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