How Pixelles Is Breaking Boundaries for Women in Games

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Today we wanted to highlight the great work of Montreal-based, non-profit organization Pixelles. Pixelles' mission is to empower all women in games. Whether it’s through providing grants, hosting free, monthly workshops, or their BIPOC Creator Program, Pixelles devotes itself to uplifting the voices of any woman who may be interested in game development.

The great work that organization like Pixelles does is vital to ensuring the larger 3D industry can continue to combat systemic discrimination, improve the intersectionality of the industry, and help build relationships between fellow creatives.

Are you a Montreal local looking to connect with other game devs? Trying to find the appropriate resources as a game dev? Want to learn more? Luckily, we recently had the pleasure of speaking with Pixelles’ team of directors to learn more about the great work they do for their community and the wider industry as a whole. Pixelles might be exactly what you’re looking for.

Read our full conversation with the Pixelles Montreal team below, only on AREA.

(Left to right) Pixelles director Rebecca Cohen-Palacios, and co-directors Tanya Short and Stephanie Fisher

Who makes up the core team at Pixelles and what do each of you do?

Pixelles is directed by Rebecca Cohen-Palacios, Stephanie Fisher, Tanya Short, and Jennifer Sunahara. We work as a team to oversee administration, logistics, sponsorship/partnerships, social media, and communications, as well as help facilitate all our events and programs. We are supported by a dedicated team of volunteer coordinators, who lead, plan, and execute all aspects of our events and programs.

Rebecca Cohen-Palacios is our primary director, overseeing structure, policy, and workshops. Stephanie Fisher oversees finance, sponsorships, and administration. Tanya Short oversees mentorship and facilitates industry connections. Jennifer Sunahara oversees program development and external relations.

What is Pixelles’ mission statement?

Pixelles is a volunteer-run non-profit organization dedicated to empowering more women to make and change games. While committed to helping women in game development, many of our programs and events are open to the community no matter your age, orientation, gender, or background – no experience or programming knowledge is required. Pixelles organizes various free programs and events such as monthly workshops, game and writing incubators, professional development programs, and networking opportunities.

Tell us a little about Pixelles’ backstory.

Pixelles was originally conceived in 2013 as a one-time Game Incubator program to support a group of 10 women make their first game in six weeks. It was based on the incubator model first developed by The Hand Eye Society’s “Difference Engine Initiative” (in which Rebecca and Stephanie were both participants as first-time game makers) and run by Rebecca and Tanya, with funding support provided by university-researchers Alison Harvey and Tamara Shepherd as part of the Feminists in Games SSHRC Partnership Development grant.

The overwhelming interest in and response to the first Game Incubator highlighted a real need for community-run women-in-games support programs in Montreal, and so Rebecca and Tanya ran a second Game Incubator. The popularity of the incubators led to two more, plus the creation of Teacade (our non-alcoholic arcade social), a mentorship program, and monthly workshops, all funded by the community through an Indiegogo campaign in 2014. Pixelles officially became a non-profit organization in 2015, which is when Stephanie joined the team. We continue to expand our programs based on responding to community needs and coordinator enthusiasm, creating the Writing Group, the GDC Ensemble, the Co-Development Group, and the Creator Fund.

2018 Pixelles Workshop, image courtesy of CTV News

What are Pixelles’ core values? How did you translate these values into actionable strategies to push your mission forward?

Pixelles is committed to helping more people make and change games and stands for inclusivity in games. While committed to helping women in game development, Pixelles recognizes the intersectionality of identities and tries to reflect this in our programs and events.

An example of this is supporting marginalized and underrepresented demographics in our programs, including:

• Helping mid-career moms who are balancing the demands of working in the games industry and raising small humans through our co-development program
• Prioritizing applicants who are from an underrepresented country and/or a parent in our GDC Ensemble program
• Providing targeted seed-funding to Canadian BIPOC game developers through our BIPOC Creator Program

What are some best practices or tools you use to foster inclusion within your initiatives? What advice do you have for others wanting to create inclusive game spaces?

Inclusiveness through safety: Pixelles is committed to leading by example when it comes to creating inclusive spaces. All participants of Pixelles’ events and programs must abide by the Safer Space Policy, which was developed in consultation with our friends at the Mont-Royal Games Society (MRGS). Pixelles is dedicated to providing a harassment-free space for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity + expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, age, language, body size, race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, socioeconomic standing, or otherwise.

A Safer Space policy is only effective if the organization is committed to enforcing it. Trust is built by the organization by protecting its community and Pixelles takes that responsibility very seriously. Pixelles attendees and volunteers are vetted to minimize the risk of harm, and our policy is to believe any reports that are brought to our attention and take appropriate action in line with the wishes of the individual who reports it.

Small improvements: Inclusivity is about welcoming and making comfortable as many kinds of people as possible. In practice, prioritizing the comfort of our marginalized community members is often about taking small but meaningful actions in our event spaces, such as changing washroom signage from “Men/Women” to “Washrooms with Urinals/Washrooms without Urinals”, making pronoun buttons available to attendees, hosting non-alcoholic socials, ensuring spaces are accessible, and providing accommodations such as ‘quiet/no talking spaces’, often as a response to a community suggestion. We are always seeking feedback from attendees, participants, and observers on how to make our events more inclusive.

Image courtesy of Pixelles

What advice do you have for women and non-binary folks wanting to work in game dev?

A lot of people will tell you that game development is a difficult and frequently hostile environment for people who are not cis white men. While this is true, some in the industry are also working to change this status quo. It is slow progress, but it is happening. Find friends and support groups to stay informed about upcoming events and people of interest. You are not in this alone.

What advice do you have for allies who want to support women in game dev?

Be proactive about supporting people of historically excluded demographics. Take action because it is the right thing to do and not because you want to be recognized by the person you are trying to support. For concrete examples of how to show support: ensure they get recognition for the tasks they complete, make sure they know about upcoming opportunities and educate yourself and your peers (so that you and your peers are familiar with the barriers involved).

What are some things game studios can do to be more inclusive?

There are many, many ways studios can work to be more inclusive. Here are 3 examples:

• Zero-tolerance policies must be taken seriously if you want to create a studio culture that actively supports employees from underrepresented groups. It’s no secret that the games industry is rife with harassment and toxic leadership. By permitting abusers to remain in their positions of power and not taking reports seriously, studios reinforce a culture where harassment is okay and, ultimately, your diverse talent will choose to leave.
• Reflect on your studio space and working environment. Here are some questions to get you started: Can people with limited mobility, wheelchairs, and strollers access your studio space (and events)? Do lactating parents have a sanitary and private space to pump? Does your health insurance plan include benefits for trans people? What about beyond minimum coverage for mental health? You can include a wider range of talented game developers by letting folks work remotely!
• Show that you truly value diversity, equity, and inclusion by compensating those doing that work. Don’t put the onus on marginalized employees to do your “diversity work” in their free time. You’re not only giving them another job on top of their everyday work but also tokenizing them. There’s a real danger they will burn out, feel isolated or even leave your studio. Are you hiring cultural consultants to come in at the last minute to advise on game content? Hire people like them as full-time employees from the beginning, especially in senior and director positions. Your studio can also give no-strings-attached sponsorships to local organizations and nonprofits (like Pixelles) who are supporting, raising up, and training marginalized game developers. These funds allow organizations to put resources where they are most needed.

What recent games are you excited about and why?

We’re always most excited to play the games that are being created by the participants of our Game Incubator and Creator Fund programs!

What events do you have coming up?

We’re continuing to do our monthly workshops, and the tenth Pixelles Game Incubator will be starting up this fall and more programs will be announced in the coming months! You can keep up with Pixelles by following us on social media (Twitter, Facebook) and signing up for our newsletter on our website.

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

Pixelles relies on donations and sponsorships to keep our programs and events free for participants. You can support our work by making a donation here or by emailing sponsorship@pixelles.ca.

*This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.