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Interview with Gorast Cvetkovski, actor, programmer, gamer
Our famous actor Gorast Cvetkovski, the public knows him, for his gaming. Has his childhood dream come true?
I was born to be a programmer (when I was growing up, it was called a “computer guy”). My father is from that vocation, and everything around me was heading in that direction. I had an average grade of 5.0 at the Secondary Electro-technical School, I passed the entrance exam at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering without any problems, but, along the way,
I realised that my passions for Technology weren’t represented in my country as much, so things like creating websites, 3D Modelling, gaming, programing and of the other subjects that interested me required a lot of Math Skills, Physics and other natural sciences subjects so that further in life I could reach the point I had so long dreamed of!
And so, I took another path. The Faculty of Dramatic Arts was a stop further. I applied, took an exam, they admitted me, and fortunately for me, I got on a roll. I’m now employed as an Actor, at the Macedonian Theatre, but I’m also a proud cofounder of the Macedonian Game Developers Association – MAGDA, and cofounder of the first and, currently, the only gaming podcast in Macedonia, GG.MK. Each is a safety valve for the other.???? Gaming and programming, gave me a genuine picture of what I do, because here, 1 is always 1, while acting, allows me to regenerate my brain, so one is perhaps two… or three…
The telecommunication company Vip is making pioneering steps in this country, in terms of introducing a concept to get users involved in creating new products and services. Do you believe it will be a success?
On the internet, there are a bunch of “memes” about “Design vs. User experience”, and I believe, it reflects the real picture excellently. Very often, users use devices or services the other way around or, at the very least, in a manner that’s wrong when compared to how designers or creators imagined this said devices or services to be. Most illustratively speaking, when there is a path to the closest kiosk, people won’t just use the path that, despite being nicely, aesthetically built, goes around, but rather will take a diagonal shortcut across the grass.
You are a part of the target groups that create together. How does the workshop cycle work exactly?
This is the first time that I’m included in such a programme. At the beginning, the whole process seemed rather loose, and not that serious. Everyone was brainstorming ideas, most of which even sounded stupid. Some people were embarrassed to say something that would be worse than what had been previuosly said by the others. Will everybody laugh at me if I say this? What if someone else says it, and appears smarter than me? May I ask for something to drink? Which is the men’s room and which is the women’s one?
A bunch of questions that seemingly weren’t leading anywhere,… but, there was less and less fog as time went on, and it became clearer to us what our focus was. It was unbelievable how all those 200 ideas that were piled up off the cuff, became a concept for a product that matches the needs of all of us at the team, who’s carrying out is rather realistic, with Vip being capable of that. In addition, the moment of creating something, that millions of users will use while not knowing that we did it, is an incredible feeling.
What’s the atmosphere like, when you enter the creation process?
We didn’t know exactly what lay ahead for us. After we`ve signed a bunch of papers that, I have to admit, it got me thinking a little bit, in terms of where I’m going now, I thought to myself, and it got the others, too, thinking that it was most likely about a focus group, which wasn’t true. It was far, far from a focus group. It was creation, design and a party. All-in-one.
Does the company have a good ear for implementation of recommendations by users?
Vip has been making a very good step for a longer period of time already. It’s been becoming increasingly sophisticated. It’s been tracking users where they are precisely moving. We see technology, achievement, gadgets, devices on the internet, but get veeeery little of that. Not to mention that in order to win them over, we must become almost an all-in-one company-attorney-customs official-banker. Vip keeps up with the trend and technologies.
I remember that the smart home, that is, Vip Smart Home, was one of the ideas that hung about within the teams and BAM! At some point later on, we saw it, as a product. And the greatest thing of all is, that it works. It’s not just a gimmick, it’s not just a flier, but it actually works. It was the same with Vip Game Fast. Vip realised the direction in which the community was moving in, what is currently on the pedestal, and dared to take a huge step. They invested a huge3 amount of effort, people, logistics and technology, in order to achieve that success. The biggest gaming tournament ever in our place. A feeling of epic proportions!
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