Bio + CV
Sagan Yee (he/they) is a media artist and organizer formerly based out of Toronto. Their personal practice includes traditional animation, experimental screen-based digital games, alternative controller collaborations, and speculative fiction. They have spoken about inclusivity, community-building, and game-making in places like Montreal, Austin, San Francisco, Berlin, and Johannesburg. From 2016 to 2020, they were Executive Director of Hand Eye Society, a video game arts non-profit. Currently, they are pursuing an MFA in Design Media Arts at UCLA.
April 2023: Information on this page may be outdated or incomplete. Please contact me at hey @ saganyee.com for a recent CV.
Education
Masters of Fine Arts, Design Media Arts
University of California, Los Angeles (2023-2026)
Bachelor of Applied Arts, Classical Animation
Sheridan College (2007-2011)
Art Fundamentals
Sheridan College (2006-2007)
Select Artistic Projects
A Day in the Life of Beacon City (TBR 2023) Video game about gentrification inspired by the works of NFB animator Richard Condie. Funded by Ontario Arts Council.
Fiddlehex (2023) Outdoor light-based installation. I co-designed the project with my collaborators and created vector art that was etched onto 6 acrylic panels.
w. Alex Leitch, Hillary Predko, Lee Wilkins, Dave Proctor
- Lumière: The Art of Light at Ontario Place, 2023
Take Marbles (2022) Parser-based interactive fiction game about stealing from the British Museum. Made during the Banff Centre Computational Writing residency.
L4 Society (2021) Self-published risograph zine anthology of short fiction, essays, and illustrations about life and sustainability on other planets. I contributed art and writing.
w. Little Dada
New Yorker Evangelion Bot (2019) Viral Twitter bot that randomly pairs a screenshot from Neon Genesis Evangelion with a New Yorker cartoon caption. Made with Cheap Bots Done Quick and Tracery.
Aqualith (2018-2019) Interactive LED and concrete installation. Funded by Ontario Place with exhibit assistance by Ontario Arts Council and InterAccess.
w. Alex Leitch and Len Predko
- Winter Lights Outdoor Exhibit, Ontario Place, November 2018 to March 2019
Welcome to New Lux Plaza (2018) Arcade shooter satirizing consumer culture via the pop aesthetic framework of vaporwave. Funded by the Toronto Arts Council and Ontario Arts Council.
- In Space: Reopen Closed Tabs, White House Studio Project, 2018
- Damage Camp, Dames Making Games, 2018
- Vector Festival, Local Host online exhibit + Black Cat Artspace, 2017
Punk Prism Power (2015) A “punk rock Sailor Moon” game featuring laser-cut controllers with embedded accelerometers and LED lights.
w. Alicia Contestabile, Nadine Lessio, Lee Wilkins, Jenn Woodall, Maggie McLean
- Maker Festival, CSI Spadina, 2016
- Vector Game Art Fest, Killer Interfaces 2015
- IndieCade Night Games, Los Angeles CA 2015
PsXXYborg (2013) An experimental dual-screen installation/performance piece inspired by Donna Haraway’s Cyborg Manifesto.
w. Hannah Epstein and Alex Leitch
- Sight & Sound Festival, Montreal QC 2014
- Queer Arcade installation, Videofag 2013
- Toronto Long Winter, The Great Hall 2013
Long Time Coming (2013) A branching narrative game about infidelity and power dynamics in a monogamous relationship, which involved throwing actual knives at the screen as a metaphor for emotional tension.
w. Nadine Lessio
- Dames Making Games, Feb Fatale Jam 2013
- Toronto Long Winter, The Great Hall 2013
- Dames Making Games, FanExpo 2013
Icarus (2011) Modern re-telling of the myth of Icarus in the form of a 2D video game.
- Difference Engine Initiative Showcase, TIFF.nexus 2011
Red Button Day (2011) Sheridan animation thesis film.
- Toronto Animated Arts Festival International, 2013
Professional Experience
Basic Income: A People's Commission
Co-organizer (2929-present)
Game Arts International Network
Board member (2017-present)
York University
Digital Arts course director (2020-2023)
Hand Eye Society
Executive Director (2016-2020)
TAC Leaders Lab
Fellow (2018)
Toronto Arts Council
Juror, Media Arts (2017)
OCAD University
Instructor, Conceptual Game Design (2016)
Ontario Arts Council
Juror, Media Arts (2014, 2020)
Talks and Workshops
Raising the creative technology bar at "Stupid Hackathon Toronto" (2022) Here and Now Toronto on CBC Listen
Keeping It Strange: Experimental Game Design Tools (2022) Vector Festival, Toronto
Reel Ideas Conference - Narrative in Other Mediums (2021) Reel Asian Film Festival, online
Show Them the Money: Commissions as Curation (2021) Game Arts International Network, online
Speculative Fiction for a Wiser City (2019), Power + Resistance, Toronto
Playable Zines: Making and Distributing Bite-sized Video Games (2018), Allied Media Conference, Detroit
Soft-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World keynote (2018) A MAZE Festival, Berlin
Keep Unity Weird workshop(2018) A MAZE Festival, Berlin
Signal Boosting and Curation: Cultural Intermediaries Panel (2017) Indie Interfaces, Montreal
Hand Eye Society: Who We Are and What We Do (2017) A MAZE Festival, Johannesburg
From Glitch Goddess to Vaporwave: Dreams of a Better Dystopia Keynote (2017) Different Games, Toronto
Video Games Are Boring (2017) SXSW, Austin
PsXXYborg Retrospective (2016) Different Games, NYC
Ripple Effect: How Women In Gaming Initiatives Make A Difference (2016) GDC, San Francisco
Arcade curator, panel moderator, workshop coordinator (2016) Kingston Canadian Film Festival
Game Curious, regional perspectives on game development (2015) Different Games, NYC
Videogames for Community Engagement (2014) Allied Media Conference, Detroit
HES initiatives Game Curious and To The Streets (2014) Jane's Walk: Tech & the City, Toronto
Transcending Boundaries – Standing Out and Taking Up Space (2014) Feminist Art Conference, Toronto
w. Team PsXXYborg
Going Beyond Filmmaking Traditions (2013) Reel Asian Industry Series at AGO, Toronto
Promoting Diversity in the Videogame Community (2013) Canzine Symposium, Toronto
Animation in Art & Digital Storytelling Workshop (2013) Allied Media Conference, Detroit
Press A to Jump: Animation in Games Panel (2012) TAAFI, London ON
Women in Film, Games & New Media Panel + Difference Engine Initiative Showcase (2011) TIFF Nexus/WIFT-T, Toronto
Difference Engine Initiative II (2011) TIFF Nexus, Toronto
w. Una Lee