For those who are unfamiliar, can you tell us a bit about yourself and the work that you do?

My background is in architecture and urban design, and from a young age I was also fascinated by LEGO, and later games like Minecraft. This led me to set up BlockWorks – a collective of designers, artists, and developers from around the world with a shared passion for Minecraft. We have grown from an informal group of Minecrafters to a global design studio creating virtual experiences inside Minecraft for a wide range of clients and purposes. Since 2019, I have also been the Chairman of the Block by Block Foundation, a non-profit partnership between UNHabitat, Mojang and Microsoft which uses Minecraft as a community participation tool in urban design, helping those who often have no voice in public projects to design their own city spaces. The Foundation has helped create 134 public spaces around the world, with more than 2.3 million people now enjoying safe access to spaces designed in Minecraft.

What expertise are you bringing as a judge for The Lovie Awards?

My areas of interest are immersive digital experiences, especially with gamified elements, and also technology and gaming for good.

What are you most looking forward to about reviewing this year’s Lovie Awards entries?

Working in such a fast-moving industry, I am excited to see new innovations and applications of virtual worlds that I haven’t seen before!

What piece of creative work on the Internet has recently inspired you, and why? (A campaign, experience, film, social series, etc.)

I was very impressed by The Climate Game from the Financial Times. The perfect balance of entertaining and informative, it managed to take one of the most serious and complex problems of our time and turn it into a fun educational experience.

What emerging trend or technology are you most excited about in your field of work?

It is good to see so much excitement about the Metaverse in virtual worlds and experiences, though we are still yet to see anything resembling a true metaverse. I hope this excitement can highlight the huge opportunities of these connected digital environments, and bring us closer to seeing working metaverses.

The chance to get your work in front of James is NOW! Enter before the Final Entry Deadline on 24th June here.