Creating hybrid experiences at the fringes of video games and performance
Mona Bozdog
maker/ writer/ researcher/ player
Mona is a Lecturer in Immersive Experience Design at Abertay University. She completed her Applied Research Collaborative Studentship PhD: "Playing with Performance/Performing Play. Creating hybrid experiences at the fringes of video games and performance" at Abertay in 2019. Her Research Project was a collaboration between Abertay University, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and The National Theatre of Scotland, funded by RLINCS and The Scottish Funding Council through the Scottish Graduate School for Arts and Humanities.
She has published in Games and Culture (SAGE), Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds (Intellect), The Scottish Journal of Performance and presented work at numerous national and international conferences and events: DiGRA, CHI, ELO, ResFest, BBC Click Live, Future Play at the Edinburgh Fringe, Games Are For Everyone, Arcadia.
She has co-edited The Art of Care, a special issue of the Scottish Journal of Performance.
Her research is practice-based and focuses on the convergence of contemporary performance practices and video games, particularly designing hybrid forms of storytelling, performative games, mixed-reality and immersive experiences and games for public spaces and heritage sites. Mona is currently working on a series of projects that investigate the potential of games for capturing, preserving and sharing lived experience.
Professional History
My Experience
Qualifications
2019 - Abertay University and The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Dundee, UK
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PhD. Connecting Performance and Play. Establishing Interdisciplinary design methods for the development of games and performance.
2013 - University of Glasgow. College of Arts. School of Culture and Creative Arts. Glasgow, UK
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MLitt Playwriting and Dramaturgy
2011 - Babes Bolyai University. Theatre and Television Faculty, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
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MA Theatre and Film Studies
2009 - SNSPA National School of Political and Administrative Sciences, Bucharest, Romania
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BA Communication and PR
Creative Practice
I have disseminated my research at national and international conferences, festivals, venues and industry events (BBC Click Live, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, V&A Dundee, British Academy Showcase, Develop Research, DiGRA – Digital Games Research Association, ELO Conference - Electronic Literature Organisation, Play Away Festival, Play UK – British Council Western Balkans, Arcadia).
I have lent my expertise as a consultant on the BBC Scotland documentary, The Rise and Fall of Timex Dundee. I have also been interviewed on the impact that Timex and its female labour had on the gaming industry by the BBC, The Scotsman, The Courier, The Evening Telegraph and The National.
2020 Life Before Internet is a collaboration with Romanian digital artists and programmers for a series of video games
that looks at how life was when we were disconnected. The project is co-authored with performance artist Ioana
Paun, sound artist Sillyconductor, and over 10 visual artists.
2020 Socially-distanced chalkscape, V&A Dundee Commision, collaboration with Dr. Lynn Love.
2020 Overeactor, Team Smash it Open and See What's Inside, hybrid video and physical game. Created during GGJ 2020.
2019 House on Fire, Team Smash it Open and See What's Inside, hybrid video and physical game. Created during GGJ 2019.
2018 Generation ZX(X), large scale mixed-reality event, Camperdown Park and JTC Furniture Group, Dundee.
2018 An Alternative Guide to St Andrews, game created during the Literature and Video Games, Beyond Stereotypes Game Jam. Leverhulme Trust, University of St Andrews, University of Glasgow, Abertay University.
2018 Tales of Monstrous InTent, Team Smash it Open and See What's Inside, hybrid video and physical game. Created
during GGJ 2018.
2017 Ola De La Vida (The Wave of Life), Team Smash it Open and See What's Inside, hybrid video and physical game.
Created during Global Game Jam 2017.
2016 Inchcolm Project, large scale mixed-reality event, Inchcolm Island, UK.
2015 Lost in Transition. Summerhall Edinburgh Fringe, Edinburgh, UK.
2014 Lost in Transition. The Arches Live, Glasgow, UK.
2014 HeteROgeny or the Mathematics of Immigration (staged reading). High Tide, London, UK.
2014 Bin Bags and Flip-Flops (staged reading). Newsboy, Tron Theatre, Glasgow, UK.
2013 Shortcuts (staged reading). Ankur Festival, CCA, Glasgow, UK.
2011-2012 TV for Dummies. A Performance for 100 Remote Controls. The National Theatre, Iasi, Romania.
2011-2012 Zero Db. The Very Little Theatre, Bucharest, Romania.
Research Experience
My research interests are centred around the convergence of performance and video games and the creative potential they hold for the development of hybrid forms of storytelling, mixed reality and immersive experiences, play in public spaces and heritage sites. Having a background in contemporary performance practice, dramaturgy and playwriting, my research processes are inherently inter- and cross-disciplinary.
THESIS
Bozdog, M (2019) Playing with performance/performing play: creating hybrid experiences at the fringes of video games and performance, PhD Thesis, Abertay University. Available at: https://rke.abertay.ac.uk/en/studentTheses/playing-with-performanceperforming-play
PUBLICATIONS
2020 Bozdog, M. & Galloway, D. (2020) Performing Walking Sims: from Dear Esther to Inchcolm Project. Journal of Gaming and Virtual Worlds, 12(1), 23-47. https://doi.org/10.1386/jgvw_00003_1
2019 Bozdog, M., & Galloway, D. (2019). Worlds at our fingertips: reading (in) What Remains of Edith Finch. Games and
Culture. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412019844631
2018 Love, L. and Bozdog, M., A Three Person Poncho and a Set of Maracas: Designing Ola De La Vida, A Co-Located Social Play Computer Game, DiGRA 2018 Proceedings.
2017 Bozdog, M. and Galloway, D., Play between worlds: Inchcolm Project. Scottish Journal of Performance, 4(1) September.
2016 Bozdog, M. and Galloway, D., I Cried to Dream Again: Discovery and Meaning-Making in Walking Simulators,
DiGRA-FDG 2016 Proceedings.
CONFERENCES, WORKSHOPS AND TALKS
2020 Can our senses help us recapture hidden histories of places? by Emma Bond and Mona Bozdog, British Academy Summer Showcase (June 2020).
Available at: https://www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/blog/summer-showcase-2020-can-our-senses-help-us-recapture-hidden-histories-places/
2020 Sensing Sugaropolis, Emma Bond and Mona Bozdog, Being Human Festival (Nov 2020) – British Academy Festival of Humanities. Available at: https://beinghumanfestival.org/event/sensing-sugaropolis/
2020 RCS Research Exchange Talk, 12 Oct 2020. Available at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7H68Vq6jO1U&feature=youtu.be&ab_channel=RoyalConservatoire
2020 Play UK (British Council Western Balkans), August 2020. Available at:
https://www.britishcouncil.al/en/programmes/arts/playuk2020/digital/mona-bozdog
2020 Res/Fest (Courtauld and V&A), Dundee, UK. Available at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USqgdhBfRUw&ab_channel=CourtauldInstitute
2020 Transnational Scotland, Fisheries Museum, Anstruther, UKK
2019 DEVELOP Research, Brighton, 9 July
2019 Wandering Games, Bangor University, 10-12 July
2019 ELO - Electronic Literature Organization Conference and Media Art Festival, Cork14-17 July
2019 IM/Material Network (University of Glasgow, The Royal Society of Edinburgh) Panel: Virtual Encounters with Material
Worlds, Abertay University, 13 May
2018 DiGRA Conference 2018, The Game is the Message, 25-28 July, University of Turin, Turin, Italy.
2018 Literature and Video Games, Beyond Stereotypes, 20-21 June, University of St Andrews, Abertay University and the University of Glasgow, St Andrews, UK.
2018 Gaming and the Arts of Storytelling Symposium, 9 May, Abertay University Dundee, Dundee, UK.
2018 Spring into Methods (workshop), Co-Design and Co-Creation Methods. 25-27 April. SGSAH and Abertay University, Dundee, UK.
2017 Research in Practice: A Showcase of Creative, Cultural and Social Methodologies, 21 July, The School of Media Culture and Society, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK.
2017 Game Think 2.0 Conference, 3 February, Glasgow University, Glasgow, UK.
2016 Critical Response Process (workshop), Launch of the SGSAH Practice Research Network, 22 November, Hospitalfield, Arbroath, UK.
2016 DiGRA/FDG ‘16 First International Joint Conference of DIGRA and FDG, 1 – 6 June, Abertay University Dundee, Dundee, UK.
2016 SGSAH Summer School. Play as a Research Method (workshop), 22 June, Glasgow, UK.
2016 Audience, Experience, Desire: interactivity and participation in contemporary performance & the cultural industries. University of Exeter. 29-30 January 2016.
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
2020 Judging Panel, InGAME & Story Futures Academy, Immersive Narrative Game Lab Commission.
2019 Reviewer SGSAH Summer Showcase
2018 Sensory Technologies Game Jam organiser, part of Sugaropolis, Edinburgh University, University of St Andrews and Abertay University, Leverhulme Trust Small Research Grants, Abertay University, Dundee.
2018 Generation ZX(X) organiser.
2018 Sugaropolis Formative Session, Edinburgh University, University of St Andrews and Abertay University, Leverhulme Trust Small Research Grants, Greenock, organiser and facilitator.
2018 Global Game Jam Abertay site Organising Committee.
2017-2018 Editor, Scottish Journal of Performance, Special Edition Art of Care.
2017 Weave by Abertay, ‘Platform Talks’ Organising Committee.
2017 Global Game Jam Abertay site Organising Committee.
2016-2017 NEoN Digital Arts Festival Organising Committee.
2016 Inchcolm Project organiser.
2016 DiGRA-FDG Conference, Events Organising Committee.
2016-2018 Scottish Journal of Performance Reviewer.
MEMBERSHIP AND AWARDS
2021 Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
2018 IGDA Community Choice Award, Tales of Monstrous InTent.
2017 Scholarship: Women in Games Ambassador, International Game Developers Association Foundation.
2017 Official Selection FuturePlay, Ola De La Vida. Edinburgh Fringe Festival (2-28th August).
2017 IGDA Community Choice Award, Ola De La Vida.
2015 Studentship: Connecting Performance and Play. Designing interdisciplinary design methods for the development of video games and performance. Funded by The Scottish Funding Council and Abertay University.
2015 Arches and Summerhall Autopsy Award Winner. Lost in Transition. Selected for Summerhall’s Official Edinburgh Fringe Programme, 2015.
2014 Arches Live Selection. Lost in Transition, written and directed by Mona Bozdog.
2014 IdeasTap Winner, Staged reading of HeteROgeny or the mathematics of immigration at HighTide, London.
2012 Official Selection FEST-FDR2012 (the European Festival of Performing Arts Timisoara – New Romanian Drama Festival): Zero Decibels, Timisoara, Romania.
2011 Official Selection, The International Theatre Festival, Bucharest, Theatre of Tomorrow Category. TV for DUMMIES, a performance for 100 remote controls.