Dr Panagiotis Fotaris is Principal Lecturer and Course Leader for BSc (Hons) Digital Games Development and BSc (Hons) Computer Science for Games at the University of Brighton. He is the module leader for Game Design and Development, Narrative Design, Design Thinking, and Working in the Digital and Games Industries.

Dr Fotaris obtained his BSc in Informatics and Telecommunications from National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. He then completed an MSc in Distributed and Multimedia Systems (Heriot-Watt University), an MA in Graphic Arts & Multimedia (Hellenic Open University), a PhD in Applied Informatics (Univesity of Macedonia), and a PgCert in Academic Practice (University of West London).

Prior to joining the University of Brighton, Dr Fotaris held posts at several British and Greek academic institutions, including the University of East London (Course leader for BSc Digital Media Design), University of West London (Lecturer in Computing), King’s College London (Learning Technologist), Hellenic Open University (Visiting Lecturer in MA Graphic Arts and Multimedia), and Abertay University (Lecturer in Computing).

Dr Fotaris is an active researcher in the area of Game-based Learning and User Experience. He chaired the 14th and 15th European Conference on Games-Based Learning (ECGBL 2020, ECGBL2021) and is chairing the 21st European Conference on e-Learning (ECEL 2022).

Dr Fotaris has been a technical committee member for more than 30 international conferences. He has authored or co-authored more than 30 papers in peer-reviewed journals and international conference proceedings (Google Scholar Citations: 780). He is also Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) and Certified Scrum Master (CSM).

On a personal level, Dr Fotaris is immersed in underground culture and is able to speak with authority on underground music, fashion, art and film. Before entering academia, he held a variety of roles in the Creative Industries, including mashup artist (soundcloud.com/bynar, 38 tracks, 600,000+plays), radio producer/podcaster (mixcloud.com/bynar, 400+ music podcasts), DJ, club promoter, blogger, video editor, graphic designer, web developer, and music/videogames journalist. 

Invited talks and keynotes

• "Educational Escape Rooms: design frameworks, techniques, and tools". Invited speaker at the Education and Student Experience Conference, University of Brighton, 8 July 2022, Brighton, UK.
• “The potential of educational escape rooms in a post-pandemic world”, Keynote Talk at the 3^rd Symposium on Games in Learning, 1 June 2022, Trent Institute for Learning and Teaching (TILT), Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK.
• “Escape from the classroom – the potential of educational escape rooms in a post-pandemic world”, Keynote Talk at the “Game it Now!” remote seminar, 12 December 2021, Innokas Network, Finland.
• "A Conceptual Framework for Developing Educational Escape Rooms". Invited speaker at Develop:Brighton, 9 July 2019, Hilton Brighton Metropole, Brighton, UK.
• "Escaping traditional learning: An escape room experience to raise awareness of cybersecurity". Invited speaker at the Resilience Games Workshop, University of Bristol, 19 February 2019, Bristol, UK.
• "Escape room design for learning". Invited speaker at the 2019 HE Pedagogic Research Conference, University of Brighton, 1 February 2019, Brighton, UK.
• "The stories we tell. Exploring how technology helps or hinders us telling stories and how we learn". Invited speaker at the Digital Jam Sessions podcast, Develop:Brighton, 11 July 2018, MakeRealVR, Brighton, UK.
• "A Conceptual Framework for Developing Cyber-Security Serious Games". Invited speaker at Develop:Brighton, 10 July 2018, Hilton Brighton Metropole, Brighton, UK.
• "Game-based learning in the classroom: tips, techniques, and tools". Invited speaker at the Annual Learning and Teaching Conference, University of Brighton, 13 July 2018, Brighton, UK.
• "An introduction to careers in the Digital Industries". Invited speaker at The Future of Employment for Graduates in STEM Conference, University of West London, 6 December 2017, London, UK.
• "Using tablets for teaching and learning – gamification with Kahoot!" Invited speaker at the CELT Learning and Teaching Festival, UEL Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching, 10 June 2016, London, UK.
• "Visual storytelling and current trends in digital design". Invited speaker at the CMA Digital Breakfasts, Content Marketing Association, 10 June 2015, London, UK.
• "Informing design of feedback, assessment and learning through Moodle Analytics". Invited speaker at the MOOT Conference, 18-21 February 2013, Dublin, Ireland.

Workshops

• Educational Escape Room Workshop. Workshop organiser and facilitator for eTeach-Netzwerk Thüringen, 25 March 2022, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Weimar, Germany.
• Educational Escape Room Workshop. Workshop organiser and facilitator at the 15th European Conference on Games Based Learning, 22 September 2021, University of Brighton, Brighton, UK.
• Educational Escape Room Workshop. Workshop organiser and facilitator at the 14th European Conference on Games Based Learning, 23 September 2020, University of Brighton, Brighton, UK.
• Educational Escape Room Workshop. Workshop organiser and facilitator at the 13th European Conference on Games Based Learning, 2 October 2019, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.
• A Picture is worth 1000 words: Teaching with infographics. Workshop organiser and facilitator at the 2014 University of West London Teaching and Learning Conference, 24 June 2014, London, UK.

Peer reviewing

• Computers & Education (Elsevier)
• Virtual Reality (Springer)
• IEEE Transactions on Learning Technologies (TLT) (IEEE Education Society)
• Education Inquiry (Taylor & Francis)
• Higher Education Quarterly (Wiley)
• Psychology Research and Behavior Management (Dove Medical Press)
• Telecom (MDPI)
• Informatics (MDPI)
• OLC Online Learning Journal (Online Learning Consortium)
• Electronic Journal of e-Learning (EJEL) (Academic Publishing International)

Dr Fotaris's research interests focus on the integration of technology in teaching and learning, particularly in the use and pedagogic potential of games, escape rooms, and virtual/augmented environments in educational settings. A representative list of research interests is the following:

• Educational Escape Rooms
• Game-Based Learning / Gamification / Location-based Games / Alternate Reality Games
• Augmented / Virtual Reality
• User Experience (UX)
• Design Thinking
• Cybersecurity

Dr Fotaris's supervisory interests focus on projects exploring the pedagogic potential of games, escape rooms, virtual/augmented environments, and social media in the context of computing and design education. Additionally, he is interested in projects that combine creative computing with arts, music, and fashion. (e.g., projection mapping, data visualisation, wearable technology, immersive media etc.).

Dr Fotaris teaches in the area of Human Computer Interaction and Games Design and Development at Undergraduate and Postgraduate levels. He has supervised more than 100 UG and PG dissertations and degree projects, at BSc, BA, MA, and MSc levels. Currently, he is leading the following PG and UG Modules at the School of Architecture, Technology, and Engineering:

• MSc Module - IDM04 Design Thinking
• MSc Module - IDM05 Independent Portfolio Project
• MSc Module - IDM12 Independent Research Project
• BSc Module – CI540 Interactive Media Development
• BSc Module - CI518 Narrative and Game Asset Design
• BSc Module - CI410 Introduction to Games Design and Development 

Also co-teaching BSc CI465 - Working in the Digital and Games Industries

As a researcher in the field of game-based learning, Dr Fotaris is very passionate about inspiring and engaging students using innovative techniques and technology, such as gamification, escape rooms, peer learning, live coding, MOOCs, social learning, infographics, AR/VR, and flipped classroom. 

Some examples of this approach include 'gamifying' the delivery and assessment of programming modules to strengthen students' programming skills using tools such as Codecademy, Kahoot, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Codingame, Hacknet, and HackerRank. He also uses educational escape rooms for raising awareness on information security, uses collaborative games (e.g., 'Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes') as team-building activities, and incorporates 'choose-your-own-adventure'-style games addressing business problems in employability modules. To help students develop critical skills and keep in line with design industry practices, Dr Fotaris uses in-class critiques on a weekly basis to encourage discussion and peer assessment.

To improve student employability skills, Dr Fotaris has established collaborative relationships with industry partners (Creative Assembly, Unity Technologies, Hangar 13, Mediatonic Games, Studio Gobo, Electric Square, Blippar, Capgemini, JustGiving, Cyber-Duck, Endemol, TT Odyssey, nDreams, CCP, Frontier Developments, Splash Damage, Make Real Ltd.) who have provided live briefs, given guest talks, and offered student internships.

Dr Fotaris organised Brighton’s first GAY(M) JAM in 2019, a collaborative competition celebrating inclusion and diversity within gaming for the next generation of game creators. This was a great opportunity for our students to demonstrate how socially aware and inclusive they were, as well as develop a games hub for people who directly or indirectly identified with the LGBTQ+ community. The event was a big success and helped our institution and students build close ties with local AAA developers Hangar 13, Studio Gobo, and Electric Square who proudly sponsored GAY(M) JAM.