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The winners of this year’s Women in Games Awards have been revealed.
UKIE’s Dr Jo Twist walked away with the Outstanding Contribution prize, following a video from her industry colleagues praising her many achievements and huge impact on the UK games market.
Meanwhile, the Businesswoman of the Year prize went to Team17’s Debbie Bestwick, and Campaigner was awarded to Kirsty Payne of Special Effect.
Winning the Creative Impact achievement was Siobhan Reddy of LittleBigPlanet and Tearaway studio Media Molecule.
Sony London’s Karen Stanley won the Rising Star Prize, while Unsung Hero went to Tanya Laird, director of Digital Jam.
The event was co-hosted by MCV and the Women in Games (WIGJ) organisation and saw the Top 30 Women in Games honoured, whilst naming the winners of six special awards.
The winners are:-
Rising Star: Karen Stanley, Environment Artist Sony London Studios
Businesswoman of the Year: Debbie Bestwick, CEO, Team17
Creative Impact: Siobhan Reddy, Co-Founder, Media Molecule
Unsung Hero: Tanya Laird, Director, Digital Jam
Campaigner: Kirsty Payne, VP, SpecialEffect
Outstanding Contribution: Dr Jo Twist, CEO, UKIE
In addition, the Top 30 Women in Games were honoured. They are:-
Debbie Bestwick – CEO, Team 17
Katherine Bidwell – Co-Founder, State of Play
Emily Britt – Consumer Marketing Director, Pokemon Company
Noirin Carmody – Co-Founder, Revolution; Chair, UKIE
Cat Channon – Director of PR, WB Games
Jo Cooke – Director of Marketing, Frontier Developments
Jessica Curry – Composer/Studio Head, The Chinese Room
Rosemarie Dalton – International Marketing Manager, Bethesda Softworks
Angela Dickson – Sales Director, Activision
Amanda Farr – Head of Content & Services, Xbox
Gina Jackson – MD, Next Gen Skills Academy
Charlotte Knight – UK Retail MD, GAME
Nina Kristensen – Co-Founder, Ninja Theory
Veronique Lallier – VP European Publishing, Hi-Rez Studios
Roberta Lucca – Co-Founder, Bossa Studios
Keza MacDonald – Editor, Kotaku
Caroline Miller – MD, Indigo Pearl
Kat Osman – MD, Lick PR
Kirsty Payne – VP, Special Effect
Rhianna Pratchett – Scriptwriter
Siobhan Reddy – Co-Founder, Media Molecule
Helena Santos – Lead Programmer, Modern Dream Games
Sarah Seaby – European Marketing & PR Director
Fiona Sperry – Founder, Three Fields Entertainment
Giselle Stewart OBE – Director of Corporate Affairs, Ubisoft
Dr Maria Stukoff – Head of Academic Development, PlayStation
Timea Tabori – Engine Programmer, Rockstar North
Dr Siobhan Thomas – Head of Games Courses, London South Bank University
Dr Jo Twist – CEO, UKIE
Catherine Woolley – Senior Games Designer, Creative Assembly
When I first joined the games industry, women were very much in the minority, particularly in senior positions," saidJenny Richards-Stewart, CEO of Women in Games (WIGJ), and a games industry veteran herself.
"More still needs to be done, but it is really fantastic to see the contribution made to the games industry by women in all disciplines. We’re delighted to be rewarding their work.”
The Women in Games Awards are supported by Facebook and Twitch.
