{"id":1749,"date":"2025-04-30T23:55:20","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T23:55:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/?p=1749"},"modified":"2025-05-01T00:04:50","modified_gmt":"2025-05-01T00:04:50","slug":"from-bricks-to-pixels-get-to-know-marcel-casarinis-game-changing-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/2025\/04\/30\/from-bricks-to-pixels-get-to-know-marcel-casarinis-game-changing-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"From bricks to pixels: get to know Marcel Casarini\u2019s game-changing journey"},"content":{"rendered":"

From bricks to pixels: get to know Marcel Casarini\u2019s game-changing journey<\/strong><\/h1>\n

\"Marcel<\/p>\n

Featuring: Marcel Casarini – Assistant Professor of Media Arts<\/em><\/p>\n

From Sao Paulo (Brazil) to Vancouver, Marcel Casarini has always been a designer at heart. First, he shaped buildings and urban landscapes as an architect. Now, he crafts immersive worlds and guides the next generation of game designers to do the same.<\/p>\n

Marcel\u2019s path wasn\u2019t the straightest route to game development. With a master\u2019s degree in Architecture and Level Design for Games, Marcel seamlessly merged his architectural knowledge with his passion for play. His curiosity for how people interact with spaces translated beautifully into game environments, and before long, he was co-founding game studios, winning awards, and even penning his own book on the art of level design.<\/p>\n

As an Assistant Professor in the School of Creative Arts at the University of the Fraser Valley (UFV), Marcel continues to shape worlds: both digital and human. In the classroom, he inspires his students to think critically, explore fearlessly, and never stop learning. With each new semester, he watches game enthusiasts being ready to leave their mark on the industry.<\/p>\n

In this conversation, Marcel shares insights from his journey, his philosophy as an educator, and the advice he hopes will resonate long after the last class ends.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

College of Arts: Could you share a bit about your journey as an educator?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Marcel:<\/strong> Since my university days, I\u2019ve always been involved in teaching in some way \u2014 whether as a Teaching Assistant or through research groups. But my formal teaching career truly began after I completed my Master\u2019s degree. I started as a full-time professor in a Game Development program back in 2014, still in Brazil, which is where I\u2019m originally from.<\/p>\n

Over the years, I\u2019ve had the opportunity to teach across different areas: Architecture, Games, and Media Arts. It\u2019s been a wonderful, varied experience. In 2018, I moved to Vancouver with my wife, and soon after, I began teaching at LaSalle College. I even had the chance to serve as the Program Director for Game Design, Game Programming, and Audio programs there, which was incredibly rewarding.<\/p>\n

Since 2023, I\u2019ve been teaching at UFV in the Media Arts program, focusing on courses that really excite me: Unreal Engine, Digital Imaging, and Virtual Reality development. I love working directly with students, watching them grow, and seeing their creativity come to life.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CoA: What first inspired you to specialize in game development and design?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Marcel:<\/strong> That\u2019s a great question! Honestly, my love for games goes way back. My very first gaming memory is with the Atari 2600, around 1990. From that moment, I was hooked \u2014 fascinated by the way games could transport you to other worlds.<\/p>\n

However, when it came time to choose a career path, the gaming industry in Brazil wasn\u2019t really established yet. So, I chose Architecture and Urban Planning. It seemed like the closest way to design and build experiences, just in a different form.<\/p>\n

A few years into working as an architect on construction sites, I felt this pull toward games that never went away. I decided to take a leap of faith. I pursued a postgraduate program and a Master\u2019s degree focused on merging my architectural knowledge with game design. From then on, there was no looking back. I\u2019ve been working with games ever since \u2014 and I truly love it!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CoA: What do you hope your students take away from your classes?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Marcel: <\/strong>More than anything, I hope they develop critical thinking, curiosity, and a strong methodology for lifelong learning.<\/p>\n

The game development field is constantly evolving. New software, hardware, and tools are emerging all the time. If you\u2019re not curious and adaptable, you risk falling behind. So I try to instill in my students not just the technical skills they need today, but the mindset to keep growing, adapting, and enjoying the learning process throughout their careers.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just about mastering one engine or technique \u2014 it\u2019s about understanding how to learn effectively and stay curious about what\u2019s coming next.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CoA: Reflecting on your career so far, what has been the most rewarding aspect of being an educator?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Marcel: <\/strong>There\u2019s honestly nothing like seeing the evolution of my students.<\/p>\n

At the start of a course, many students come in as game enthusiasts \u2014 they love to play, but they haven\u2019t yet seen behind the curtain of game development. By the end of the semester, I watch them transform into budding developers. Their conversations change; they start talking about mechanics, narratives, player experience, and design philosophies. They see games through a whole new lens.<\/p>\n

Every semester feels like a new adventure. Watching that growth \u2014 from curiosity to capability \u2014 is the most rewarding part of my job.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

CoA: If you could leave a lasting message or piece of advice for your students and community, what would it be?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Marcel: <\/strong>Learning is a lifelong commitment \u2014 and it should absolutely be fun!<\/p>\n

As humans, we naturally play to understand our world, our environment, and our social contexts. Learning shouldn\u2019t feel like a chore; it should feel like exploration. Stay curious, stay playful, and never stop seeking out new knowledge. Whether it\u2019s through games or life itself, embrace the joy of discovery.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Marcel Casarini\u2019s journey is a powerful reminder that our paths are rarely linear \u2014 but with passion, curiosity, and an openness to change, we can build bridges between our interests and our careers. Whether in architecture, game design, or the classroom, Marcel continues to shape the spaces where creativity thrives. And for his students, the adventure is just beginning.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From bricks to pixels: get to know Marcel Casarini\u2019s game-changing journey Featuring: Marcel Casarini – Assistant Professor of Media Arts From Sao Paulo (Brazil) to Vancouver, Marcel Casarini has always been a designer at heart. First, he shaped buildings and urban landscapes as an architect. Now, he crafts immersive worlds and guides the next generation … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":275,"featured_media":1750,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[236,188],"tags":[217,234,72],"class_list":["post-1749","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-faculty-impact","category-teaching-and-research","tag-arts-faculty","tag-faculty-story","tag-faculty-success"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1749","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/275"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1749"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1749\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1752,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1749\/revisions\/1752"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1750"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1749"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1749"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1749"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}