Women in Gaming Awards: Interview with Colin Thompson

Rebecca Liggero
Rebecca Liggero
March 31, 2010
2 Comments

WomenInGamingThumbnailFrikkin’ finally! For the first time ever, the testosterone filled gaming industry will enjoy an event celebrating the exceptional women who have really made a difference within the gaming industry. Welcome to The Women in Gaming Awards my friends!

With over 400 nominations since the event’s unveiling just a few weeks ago, it appears that The Women in Gaming Awards will attract a huge crowd for celebration in London this coming September. There are eight categories available for nomination such as Star of the Future, Affiliate Manager of the Year, and Industry Pride of the Year, and six fabulous female judges to choose the most deserving recipients. You’ve got from now until June 8th to nominate yourself or your favorite female colleagues, depending on your sex of course, so go ahead and fill out that registration form!

On top of it all, the Awards will be supporting two excellent charities, Breakthrough Breast Cancer and Unicef, and as Women in Gaming Awards Judge Sue Schneider claims, “There are a lot of very talented but under recognized women working in the i-gaming industry and it’s good for them to get the recognition that they deserve. I’m always supportive of things which recognize these women- there aren’t enough of us!”

To give you even more reasons to get involved with this event, I spoke directly with one of the event organizers, Colin Thompson, for the specific details. During our interview, Colin explained what made his team decide to put on this event, how the judges are chosen, what the industry’s reaction has been so far, and why you should nominate right now. Enjoy!

RL: How long had you been thinking of arranging a ceremony of this nature before you actually pulled the trigger?

CT: Similar to the International Gaming Awards (IGA), the Women in Gaming Awards had been on our mind and consideration for a few years. However, we wanted to ensure the success of the International Gaming Awards prior to launching a new ceremony. Now that success has certainly been achieved with the IGA, we felt it was time to move on with a new ceremony.

RL: What made you decide to organize this event? What was the “tipping point”?

CT: The decision to go full out to launch this year was the due to the Oscars! When Kathryn Bigelow won Best Director for “The Hurt Locker” we knew the time was right to truly launch the Award ceremony- maybe 2011 will be the year of the Woman…

RL: How did you choose the judges for this event?

CT: The Women in Gaming Awards covers both online and offline gaming, so first of all, we had to ensure that the judges cover both sectors. Choosing judges who are very successful in their own fields was also a must, and looking at some of the ladies who ended up on the board, you can certainly say we succeeded in doing that. Finally, we also wanted an outside perspective from someone not involved in gaming, and that is why we asked Maria Rohloff to join the judges panel. Maria knows PR extensively from her roles throughout her career, and business is business whatever sector it is, so Maria will add that external judgment on our eventual winners.

RL: What is really special and unique about this event?

CT: There is NO other event like this out there- the Women in Gaming Awards celebrates the achievements and contribution women make in the gaming industry at all levels. Women make a huge contribution to many industries in addition to the online and offline gaming industries, however they are often looked over in promotion for men. I do not need to go into the reasons for this, but as a young industry, maybe we should carry the banner for women more than other industries and really show what women contribute to the sector.

RL: Seeing as the gaming industry is male dominated, how is the industry reacting to the announcement of this event? Are you seeing a lot of support?

CT: The Women in Gaming Awards was just launched on the 8th of March (International Ladies week) and we have had a huge amount of nominations already, everything from women nominating themselves to women nominating colleagues and men nominating women. The first week after the official announcement, we also had many telephone calls to the offices congratulating us on the new ceremony and saying it is long overdue.

RL: Why should people take the time nominate women for these awards?

CT: Nominations are free and you can nominate yourself or one of your colleagues or bosses even! Why should you nominate? Women in general have to push themselves in to the limelight and be more forceful and work even harder than men to prove their worth. These awards give both sexes an opportunity to highlight outstanding efforts and achievements of women in the industry, and to truly show how effective these women are in their fields. This is a perfect opportunity for companies to sponsor and recognize the women who help make their businesses a success. So come on men in gaming, stand up and be counted as a supporter of women in gaming!

RL: And now for the real question. During the ceremony, can I swap the Ayre Heads for the Becky Boy Toys? Just this ONE time?

Calvin Ayre: No comment.

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