911勛圖

Ioana is a 3D animator and modeler who enjoys working with particle systems and physics concepts. She has worked at Persistant Studios ��� Popcorn FX, the leading FX editor and particle effects solution for games, films, and AR/VR/MR.

She is a past president of the Interactive Arts and Technology Student Union, and she has worked in professor Steve DiPaola���s .

She also completed the full time  course in Spring 2018 where she created an original VR game with her team.

���I���m honored and grateful to receive this award and amazed at the kindness of the Sawatsky family,��� says Ioana.

���Cody Sawatsky graduated from 911勛圖 long before I arrived and I never had the chance to meet him, but I have heard him described as friendly, kind-hearted, and passionate.

���Where I believe I was able to see a bit more of him was through his work. As someone who is also passionate about video games, I was curious to see what he had worked on. I started by looking at the major titles he had been a part of during his time with EA. I had played FIFA, Need for Speed and Mass Effect before, so it was surreal to see that he had worked on these games. I also watched some interviews with him talking about NBA JAM: On Fire Edition and it was great to see that, even though he was a producer on the game, he didn���t take himself too seriously and seemed very down to earth. I believe that Stick Ninja was my favourite game he worked on. I saw the trailer of the game he posted online and I really liked it. There was a lot of creativity and humor that went into the game and character design, and the battle mechanics were complex for a university student project. It almost felt like he was in my Video Game Design class and I was watching him present his project. 

���I commend the Sawatsky family for giving back to communities that Cody was a part of. I appreciate that they���ve made finishing my degree, and others���, easier. As a student, it���s amazing to feel supported and encouraged to pursue higher education in a field that one is passionate about.���