20 Years. 1,000+ Stories. One FIEA.
From our first cohort to today’s cutting-edge students, FIEA has been a launchpad for dreamers, creators, and innovators. Celebrate 20 years of friendships forged, milestones reached, and games that changed lives. Let’s honor the past and power up for the next level—together.
Saturday, October 18, 2025
5:30pm-9:30pm
UCF Downtown at Creative Village
Join us for a block party at UCF Downtown with your fellow FIEA alumni, faculty and staff, and industry friends. Enjoy live music, special swag exclusively for alumni, and more. Food trucks and beer/wine cash bar will be available. RSVP required to attend.
Give Back, Gear Up: FIEA Alumni Giving Competition Starts Now!
FIEA’s 20th Anniversary Giving Campaign: As we celebrate 20 years of FIEA, we’re calling on our alumni, industry partners, and friends to help power the next era of interactive entertainment. But of course, we gamified it for alumni. It’s time to play—and give—like a team.
Join us in giving back to the program that launched hundreds of careers across games, film, AR/VR, simulation, and more. Your support will directly impact past, present and future FIEA students by funding milestone events like the capstone plaque ceremony/graduation party, alumni events that create space for meaningful conversations in our ever-growing network, pizza, and more. Let’s expand opportunities for the next wave of innovators.
Two cohorts will each earn exclusive promo items for participating alumni donors:
- The cohort with the highest total donation amount
- The cohort with the highest % of alumni donors
Anyone can donate to the grand total, but only donations from alumni will count toward their cohort totals. Eligible alumni donors from the top cohorts will get to choose between a FIEA-branded Bluetooth speaker or mobile charging pad. Pick it up or have it shipped. Top cohorts will be announced via social/web and email two weeks after the campaign ends.
Campaign runs until 11:59 p.m. on Oct. 20, 2025. This is your chance to rep your cohort, support the next generation of game changers, and score some exclusive FIEA loot. Let’s see who’s still got that competitive spirit. Whether you’re a proud alum from Cohort 1 or a supporter of where interactive development is headed, now is the time to press start on giving.
FIEA’s 20th Anniversary Schedule of Events
Creating space for meaningful conversations: reconnecting with classmates, sharing the paths we’ve taken, and imagining where we go next as storytellers, technologists, artists, and collaborators. More info to come. Schedule is subject to change.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16
The Tech in Tech Art: FIEA Alumni Guest Speaker Nikki Roth ’10MS
Cohort 6, Tech Art Manager at Reality Lab, Meta
12pm-1:30pm • DPAC 106 (UCF Downtown)
Open to current FIEA students, faculty and staff only
Exclusively for FIEA students: Join us for a talk with Nikki Roth, FIEA alum from Cohort 6! Nikki aims to transform content in innovative ways for innovative applications through real-time technology. Drawing from a background in gymnastics, diving, and climbing, she specializes in capturing creativity and translating movement into immersive experiences. With a career spanning Apple, EA, Lucasfilm, Google, and Meta, she has worked across games, film, VR, AR, Simulation and UX. Nikki actively pushes the boundaries of real-time technology and is dedicated to fostering collaborative, diverse teams through internal and external partnerships.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17
State of Games & Alumni Panel Discussion feat. EA’s Daryl Holt
12pm-1:30pm • DPAC 106 (UCF Downtown)
Open to FIEA students, alumni, faculty/staff, and industry friends. No RSVP required.
Join us for a presentation by Electronic Arts’ Daryl Holt, SVP/Group GM (Tiburon Studios and American Football) on the state of the gaming industry, followed by an alumni panel discussion.
FIEA Executive Director Ben Noel will moderate a panel of experienced alumni:
- Ingrid Aguero (Cohort 4), Environment Director, Madden NFL Football, EA Tiburon
- Brian Rose (Cohort 8), Technical Director, Iron Galaxy Studios
- Christopher Jay Vance (Cohort 13), Senior Engineer, Undead Labs
- Brian DeSanti (Cohort 5), Senior Director of Product Management, Blizzard Entertainment
Tour FIEA: After the talk, we will open the doors to FIEA for tours before the FIEA Alumni Mixer! Walk through the halls, find your capstone plaque, talk to the current students, and see what else is new.
Parking: UCF Parramore Parking Garage PG1 (323 N Parramore Ave, Orlando, FL 32801) for an $8 daily fee, or you can find street parking around Creative Village for an hourly rate. More info on parking at UCF Downtown.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17
FIEA Alumni Mixer
3pm-6pm • Mathers Social Gathering
3 Phoenix Building, 30 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, FL 32801
Open to FIEA students, alumni, faculty/staff, and industry friends. View dress code. No baseball hats. No flip flops.
Join your fellow FIEA alumni for a dapper evening of nostalgia and networking at a prohibition-inspired hideaway with tufted leather and velvet furnishing in a 140-year-old building in Downtown Orlando.
Happy Hour: Mathers is opening one hour early at 3pm and extending Happy Hour specials just for us! Enjoy 50% off signature alcoholic drinks until 7pm. Gratuity included in your total. Check in downstairs.
Getting there from UCF Downtown:
- One-mile walk from UCF Downtown
- Take the Lymmo Orange Line 60 (free bus service) from UCF Downtown to the Orange County Public Library stop (buddy system recommended)
- RideDTO for free or a small fare
- Rideshare (Uber/Lyft)
- Drive and park in a nearby garage/lot
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 18
FIEA’s 20th Anniversary Celebration
5:30pm-9:30pm • Block Party • Bentley Street at UCF Downtown
Open to FIEA students, faculty/staff, alumni, industry friends, and sponsors. RSVP required.
4:30pm-5:30pm VIP Pre-Reception for sponsors, guest speakers and faculty in the Soundstage. Check in at the entrance next to the stage to pick up your credentials.
5:30pm Check-in opens at the entrance next to the stage between the loading dock and DPAC (follow the signs) to grab your name tag and swag ticket.
6:30pm Enjoy live music by the Fly Guys (’90s), a few special announcements, pick up your swag bag, and more. Cash bar (beer, wine, seltzers) and food trucks available on site:
- Dio Santo (Pizza truck)
- Lee’s Famous Cheesesteaks (Wings, tendies, etc. truck)
- Street Treats (Dessert truck)
9:30pm Event ends
Free parking on Saturday only in the UCF Parramore Parking Garage PG1 (323 N Parramore Ave, Orlando, FL 32801). Traffic advisory: The Orlando Come Out with Pride block party and parade will be happening near Lake Eola. The parade runs from 4pm-6pm and fireworks at 9:30pm.
Note: You can still RSVP up until the day of the event, but swag will not be guaranteed. Swag bags are only distributed to FIEAns (students, alumni, and employees), not guests nor industry friends.
Two Decades of Innovation and Collaboration
From cutting-edge VR research to award-winning capstone projects, FIEA has been a catalyst for creativity and experimentation.
In just two decades, FIEA has placed graduates at leading studios around the world, from Electronic Arts and Epic Games to Microsoft, Sony, and Ubisoft. Our alumni are credited on hundreds of major titles—and many now lead teams shaping the future of the industry.
FIEA was founded through a collaboration between UCF and the industry to meet the growing demand for skilled game developers. That spirit still drives us today, bridging the gap between academia and the fast-moving world of interactive media.
Thank You to Our Sponsors
Become a Sponsor: Power the Future of Interactive Entertainment
This celebration isn’t just a party—it’s a powerful gathering of talent, leadership, and opportunity.
Reach hundreds of industry leaders, talented alumni, and rising stars when you become a sponsor of FIEA’s 20th Anniversary event. Sponsorship gives your brand premium visibility throughout the night, including a special VIP pre-reception for your guests, and access to tomorrow’s top talent. Make your mark on one of gaming’s most respected graduate programs.
$2,500 Sponsorship package includes:
- Company logo on stage banner
- Company logo on event web page
- Company logo on displays/TVs during the event
- 10 Tickets
- Verbal recognition on stage during the event
- VIP Pre-Reception for your guests before the start of the event
GET STARTED
UCF Downtown & Creative Village
An Innovation District in Downtown Orlando
Orlando’s Creative Village was born in 2005 when the doors opened for 12 students to the Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy, a unique graduate program established in partnership between the State of Florida, City of Orlando and University of Central Florida with a mission to create high-wage talent for the growing video game development industry.
Accommodations
Stay in Creative Village! Our neighbors at the Marriott Orlando Downtown (connected to Starbucks) have offered a discounted rate of $149 per night just for our event.
400 West Livingston Street Orlando, Florida, USA, 32801
Parking
Attendees can park directly on campus at UCF Downtown. There will be free parking available for the block party only in the UCF Parramore Parking Garage (PG1).