The Digital Technology course at St Andrew’s College was one reason Ben Pointer (OC 2014) joined in Year 12, for what were the ‘best two years’ of his schooling, he says. “The creative freedom in the course allowed me to grow my skill set a lot faster and prepared me well for further study. It also opened up new gateways, as it was teacher, Phil Adams, who told me about the Game Development course at Media Design School in Auckland, where I ended up studying.” During his studies, Ben learnt about game development and programming with PlayStation 4. He is currently creating his own open world Skate game. While in Auckland, he did an internship with customer experience provider, Wax Eye, gaining experience in AR and VR, and after returning to Christchurch following the lockdown, is contracting to loan company, Save my Bacon, writing applications for the company for iPhone and Android platforms. Ben enjoys the flexibility of contract work, which enables him to also focus on his passion – game development. “I’d love to have my own game company one day, creating games for the New Zealand and global market.”