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I’ll be teaching several short classes at Cabrillo College in Aptos as part of their Cabrillo College Extension program…which are open to anyone! If you will be in the Santa Cruz area this summer, and want to take a class with me, here they are:

Star Wars Crash Course – Original Trilogy Edition

07:00 PM – 09:00 PM on July 10, July 17 and July 24

I first taught a version of this class at Lucasfilm Singapore, and it was incredibly fun! It’s a fast-paced, humorous, multimedia exploration of the cultural and cinematic influences that informed George Lucas’s original blockbuster trilogy, along with behind-the-scenes insights. Includes stories from my time at ILM with some of the artists who worked on the original movies, and my own involvement in the special editions!

• Night One – Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope 
• Night Two – Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back
• Night Three – Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi

Whether you’re completely new to Star Wars or a die-hard fan, register for three Thursday nights of Star Wars deep cuts with Tad, and gain a deeper understanding of the cultural phenomenon that
is the original Star Wars trilogy.

If this one is successful, I’ll do the Prequels (which I also worked on!) in Fall!

Hands-On Game Design and Prototyping

01:00 PM – 04:30 PM on Saturday, July 19 and Saturday, July 26

Explore the foundations of game design by modifying, remixing, designing and playtesting card and board game prototypes. You will apply the same tools and techniques that video game and tabletop game developers use, to learn about game mechanics, probability, player agency, theme, genre and balance. Students will work together to rapidly design, playtest, evaluate and redesign games to learn what works and what doesn’t. Just like storyboarding for animation or film, physical prototyping lets game designers experiment with, and refine their games before spending time and energy writing code or making finished art. A wide variety of prototyping materials will be available including, blank cards, dice, spinners, markers, paper, and tokens, and will leave with at least one playable, tested game concept.

Enter the Dungeon – Demystifying Tabletop Roleplaying Games

01:00 PM – 04:30 PM on Saturday, August 16 and Saturday, August 23

Tabletop roleplaying games are a fantastic way to spend time with your friends and games like Dungeons & Dragons have become a genuine cultural phenomenon. Whether you are new to tabletop roleplaying games, or you’ve played once or twice; whether you are 19 or 99; or whether you haven’t played for a long time and want to come back to the hobby, this will give you the chance to learn and play in this creative environment with a group of like minded folks. You will learn the basic concepts behind roleplaying games and having shared adventures, both as a player and as a Game Master. Unlike other tabletop games, at their heart, roleplaying games are a form of collaborative, improvisational storytelling. You will explore different games, starting with D&D, which will help guide you to find other games that interest you. Tad will discuss how to use published adventure scenarios and also make your own. And, of course, you will play some short sessions in class! You will go home with a renewed or new enthusiasm for roleplaying games, and a set of standard dice common to most games. 

Come on your own or bring a friend (or two). Also bring a notebook and a pen or pencil, drink, some snacks, and wear comfy clothes for this afternoon of community building through creative gameplay.

Drawing from Film – Deconstructing Shot Composition (Fall Session Class)

6:30-9:00pm Thursday, September 4 

Join Tad as he uses sketching as a tool to explore cinematography, framing, and composition. During class, we will screen sequences from multiple films, periodically freezing the frame for you to draw what you see within the frame. We will discuss what you discover through rough sketches, including perspective, aspect ratio, movement, lighting, and the placement of the camera and objects within the frame. This unique approach to analyzing the visual language of film is both relaxing and stimulating. No prior drawing experience is necessary.  

Please bring your own sketchbook, 9”x12” or smaller, and preferred sketching tools (pencil, colored pencil, sharpener, erasers, etc.). Bring whatever you are most comfortable using, but please no paint, water color, etc. Just pencils or pens.

About the Extension Classes

The Star Wars class is just a really fun set of lectures about a thing I love and was lucky enough to work on. It was the most popular talk I gave when I worked at Lucasfilm!

The design class may be more of a refresher for folks who have studies game design, but is a great way to practice and discuss core game design concepts that will improve both your analog and video game designs and playtesting practices. It’s based on a class I taught at Activision|Blizzard in 2024!

The tabletop roleplaying class is perfect for folks who are new to games like D&D, or haven’t played in a while. There is a discount for registering with 2 or more friends, so this also a great way to kickstart that game you and your friends have been meaning to start! 

Drawing From Film is an excellent chance for aspiring filmmakers, movie fans, or anyone interested in sharpening their composition skills to spend a couple of hours examining some great scenes and shots and drawing them and talking about how they are designed and their context. It’s oddly relaxing and meditative, too! This is another class that I taught at both Lucasfilm and Blizzard.

Teaching these types of extension classes is an experiment for both me and for Cabrillo, so please help spread the word! I would love to see lots of UCSC students and alumni there!