About Me

I am a Cinematic Designer with a background in film and AAA game development, focused on building immersive, gameplay-driven storytelling. Currently a Senior Cinematic Designer at Blizzard Entertainment, my experience spans major studios including Blizzard Entertainment, Archetype Entertainment, and id Software, alongside AA and independent development, including a self-developed PlayStation release.

Across concept, production, and launch, I specialize in integrating cinematics, storytelling, and gameplay into cohesive interactive experiences. My work spans cinematic design, technical implementation, and creative direction, supported by a strong foundation in gameplay systems and real-time cinematic pipelines. I have also led small multidisciplinary teams, aligning creative vision with production realities.

As an ArtCenter College of Design graduate and award-winning filmmaker, I bring cinematic discipline and storytelling clarity to interactive worlds. My goal is to create emotionally grounded, player-driven experiences that elevate cinematic storytelling within games.

Resume / Game Experience

World of Warcraft / Diablo
Senior Cinematic Designer

Blizzard Entertainment

  • Support the design and development of real-time cinematics across World of Warcraft and Diablo, spanning camera work, character performance, gameplay transitions, environments, lighting, and FX.

  • Build and iterate on 3D storyboards and cinematic sequences, translating creative direction into production-ready experiences that meet Blizzard’s artistic and technical standards.

  • Collaborate with directors, supervisors, leads, and multidisciplinary teams to develop cinematic ideas, incorporate feedback, and solve creative and technical challenges throughout production.

  • Integrate cinematics with gameplay, refining transitions between player-driven and scripted moments to preserve pacing, readability, and immersion.

  • Maintain technical quality throughout implementation and iteration, proactively identifying production concerns while delivering cinematic content against development milestones.

EXODUS
Technical Cinematic Designer
Archetype Entertainment

  • Script and deliver data-driven dialogue scenes and gameplay-embedded narrative moments, building scalable setups that remain cohesive across multiple player paths and states.

  • Partner closely with production, narrative, cinematics, and design to translate story intent into playable sequences that align performance, pacing, and visual language.

  • Implement narrative content directly in Unreal Engine using proprietary tools, supporting real-time conversations, in-world storytelling, and state-driven scene flow.

  • Maintain the narrative vision in-engine, ensuring all content meets cinematic quality targets, gameplay readability standards, and the project’s established aesthetic bar.

  • Operate autonomously within an agile production environment, coordinating with QA, production, and narrative to track implementation, resolve issues, and deliver against time-sensitive milestones.

Doom: The Dark Ages
Technical Cinematic Designer
id Software

  • Implemented in-engine cinematics for DOOM: The Dark Ages, owning the node-based scripting pipeline that drove sequencing, state flow, and gameplay integration.

  • Built and maintained the transition framework between player control and scripted moments to ensure seamless pacing and immersion.

  • Partnered with design, animation, and engineering to bring cinematic content into the engine, resolving integration, timing, and logic issues across gameplay scenarios.

  • Diagnosed and fixed blockers impacting narrative delivery, using targeted testing to stabilize scenes through final implementation.

  • Validated real-time cinematic content in engine, maintaining quality, performance, and gameplay readability at ship level.

Order of the Elements
Lead Narrative and Cinematic Designer
Tigerroll Studios

  • Developed and implemented narrative content, including dialogue trees, quest logs, NPC interactions, and worldbuilding elements for a dark medieval co-op RPG.

  • Crafted immersive storytelling experiences within established lore, ensuring consistency with the game’s dark, realistic, and sarcastic themes.

  • Crafted and polished complex cutscenes and in-game cinematics to deliver a seamless, cinematic experience that enhances player immersion and meets the highest professional standards.

  • Integrated narrative elements directly into gameplay, creating immersive storytelling moments through environmental details, NPC behaviors, and quest progression.

COVENANT
Game & Cinematic Designer
Legion Studios

  • Partnered with design teams to create and refine narrative-driven systems and mechanics that enhance player engagement.

  • Researched and developed tools to seamlessly integrate storytelling elements with gameplay, elevating narrative cohesion.

  • Created and implemented innovative gameplay features, including interactive inventory systems and dynamic environmental mechanics, to enrich the player experience.

  • Recorded numerous cutscenes for marketing and trailers, working with the team to ensure cinematic moments were aligned with the narrative and effectively showcased in promotional materials.

Mark The Headless Chicken
Game Director, Designer, Producer
AppleBomb Games

  • Direct and produce a 3D physics-driven stealth platformer, leading the project from original concept through development, production, and release.

  • Design core gameplay systems, levels, encounters, puzzles, and progression, integrating physics-driven movement, stealth, traversal, and character abilities into a cohesive player experience.

  • Lead a multidisciplinary team across programming, level design, art, animation, and technical art, establishing creative direction while coordinating production priorities, milestones, and deliverables.

  • Develop the game’s cinematic and narrative direction, integrating environmental storytelling, scripted sequences, character moments, and gameplay-driven narrative throughout the experience.

  • Oversee the full production pipeline, including prototyping, playtesting, iteration, contractor coordination, marketing, publishing, and platform strategy, balancing creative ambition with scope and production realities.

Animalistic
Game Director, Producer, Narrative Designer
Self-Published on PlayStation

  • Led a team of freelancers, including artists, programmers, and composers, to create a narrative-driven action game.

  • Coordinated all aspects of development, from concept to release, ensuring timely delivery and high-quality content.

  • Secured a voice actor from God of War to enhance the narrative experience, elevating the game’s storytelling.

  • Oversaw successful publishing on PlayStation, managing the submission process and achieving a major milestone.

Portrait of Keaton Applebaum over a blue background.