“The Architect” of Milwaukee’s Tech + Arts Future is Somebody Worth Listening To
So I had an awesome opportunity to remotely speak with the guy in the photo above, Tarik Moody (a.k.a. “The Architect”), the Director of Digital Strategy over at 88.9 Radio Milwaukee a week or so ago about the game development progress on The Goatman is Nigh and The Lost Pisces.
I initially reached out to Tarik because a connection had suggested speaking with him about my concerns regarding how to move Milwaukee’s more adventurous creative endeavors forward. If you know me, you know I’ve been frustrated for a while now with how it seems difficult or daunting to push forward with creative projects or businesses here in Milwaukee. There’s some sort of force holding the city’s steering wheel, keeping the city’s job opportunities largely headed towards industry and conventional “widget” production.
That’s a bit of a broad statement I understand, and it’s not to say that there aren’t small groups and individuals dreaming big and trying to push beyond a glass-ceiling of sorts, but realistically it DOES seem tough to get creative projects and ideas off the ground with funding here. There aren’t a tremendous amount of grants or investment groups willing to take a chance on ideas… Wisconsin at one point DID have a series of tax-incentive programs in place under the leadership of Gov. Tommy Thompson, which attempted to encourage film-production and development and more “artsy” business to grow… but that disappeared about a decade ago.
The point is that art and design and film and game development and everything in between need more than simple words to support them… they need funding too. Or at least a series of mentor-ship and serious business-minded instruction on how to create art and design-based businesses that can thrive and improve our communities along the way.
The point is that art and design and film and game development and everything in between need more than simple words to support them… they need funding too. Or at least a series of mentor-ship and serious business-minded instruction on how to create art and design-based businesses that can thrive and improve our communities along the way.
No one eats for free, everyone has families to support and rent to pay… even creatives. Just being passionate about projects isn’t enough to finish these projects… which then can turn into businesses with guidance… and can add to the tapestry of what Milwaukee is about. Madison, a city not too far from us, has done it… they have several game-development studios and have an economy reliant on tech-development. So can we…. Milwaukee is literally 1-hour away from Madison.
Beyond that though, Tarik is collecting stories from tech-loving folks around the city, and I think he’s up to something pretty cool… I support this guy 100% and honestly, I really hope what he’s doing changes something. He’s got the beginnings of something that I really believe could bring a new wave of creativity to our home, and anyone who has the chance to talk to him and spread the word or share visions of how to raise up the tech-centered creative force in Milwaukee and support jobs for these fields should do their best to get in touch with him!
We talked a bit about game-development and prospects of turning passion into something tangible here as well, and the discussion might even make its way on the air-waves in the coming weeks… if there’s anything valuable in what I had to say during the interview! More to come soon… but I look forward to talking to Tarik again and helping out however I can with his initiatives.
Listen to Tarik Moody’s Rythm Lab here:
https://radiomilwaukee.org/discover-music/category/rhythm-lab-radio/
And check out The Goatan is Nigh game I’m developing here:
https://thegoatmanisnigh.com/
Spooky fun exploring Old Wisconsin, in 1862.