Ellen Beeman's first meal as a zombie
Ellen Beeman has been a trailblazer her entire career. It’s an honor to be inviting Ellen to her first meal as a zombie. She is one of my oldest friends in the industry (we met when we worked together at Origin Systems in 1991) and she is also a worldwide respected industry executive. I am just one of the hundreds of people that Ellen has personally advised, befriended, mentored or entertained. Ellen worked with MMN for several years in the late 90s during a sabbatical from product development. Thankfully, she has returned to help us cover the surge of new hire requests. She will be with us for a few weeks before her, yet to be announced, new project begins. I’m so glad to have Ellen helping me out. If you haven’t met her yet, she is just fantastic to know!
ELLEN: Hard to say. I'd still be playing games, that's for sure! I might be a full-time novelist, a diplomat, or an EMT.
MM: Who has been your biggest influence or mentor in the industry?
ELLEN: Too many to list! I've been very fortunate in being able to work with so many talented people. Early in my career, Christy Marx really helped me get started. (I owe Christy for two careers... she helped me start in television writing, too!) Shannon Loftis, Christina DeRosa, Samantha Ryan, Chris Early, Lucy Bradshaw, and Guruka Singh Khalsa were great examples to me of how to be highly-principled and competent managers. My friends Gano Haine, Sheri Graner Ray, and Mary-Margaret (yes, you!) continue to be an inspiration to me.
MM: What is your favorite charity organization?
ELLEN: Can't I have more than one? American Liver Foundation, Lymphoma Research Foundation, American Red Cross, Hopelink (a local food bank), and Girl Scouts of America. I feel especially privileged to be a Girl Scout troop leader. I'm always learning so much from the girls.
MM: What advice would you to give people who want to work in this industry?
ELLEN: Be ready for a rollercoaster ride! It is an amazing industry, with so many talented people, but the challenges are very intense. If you are not passionate about games, you'll be part of that statistic of people leaving the industry after a few years. But working in games is addictive, if you love games. That moment where a game comes together, all the disparate pieces forming into something that is engaging and entertaining, that's truly magic. And hold onto your ethics. It is easy to compromise them in some of the situations that will arise in your career. Once they're gone, it's difficult to get them back.
MM: What's the last book you read?
ELLEN: "Red Tape and White Knuckles" by Lois Pryce.
MM: If you were a zombie who is the first person you would eat?
ELLEN: Bill Gates. During my employment at Microsoft, I heard him speak several times, and he really is an astoundingly brilliant man, intensely focused and articulate. He'd be a great leader of a zombie army.
MM: Who are your heroes in real life?
ELLEN: The people with the not-glorious but essential jobs. Police, firemen, military personnel, my daughters' schoolteachers. I couldn't do what those schoolteachers patiently do, day after day, but their impact on the children is amazing.
MM: What direction do you think the video game industry is going?
ELLEN: I've never been all that successful at predictions! But I'm confident we'll continue to see an industry divided between big console and PC titles, and the very small ad-supported or inexpensive games, such as on iPhone and social media sites. I love that disparity, and the fact that someone with a good idea and the willingness to do the work can still create a game and try to find a market for it.
MM: What are people most surprised to learn about you?
ELLEN: I'm a Celtic fiddler. I don't play often these days, but I've fiddled for several hundred dance shows over the years. My job interview at Sierra included playing a Scottish jig for the entire company.
MM: What is your superpower?
ELLEN: Eternal optimism and enthusiasm! Seriously, every time I think I'm ready to move on from the game industry, there's an exciting new project and a tremendously talented new team to work with. People work in games because they love what they do, and it makes all the difference.
Ellen Beeman describes herself as mom, wife, videogame producer, author, gadget geekette, Celtic fiddler, former TV writer and city commissioner, etc. She began her games career as a project manager at Sierra, then joined Origin to write and direct games in the Wing Commander series. She has also held salaried positions at Electronics Arts, Monolith, and Microsoft. As a freelancer, she worked for Disney, Sega, Leapfrog, Mary-Margaret Network, and other companies. Prior to her games career, Ellen was a children's television writer, and has published four novels and numerous short stories and non-fiction articles. Ellen has been a speaker at the Game Developer Conference, SXSW Interactive, and other game industry events.
