BAFTA has appointed Luke Hebblethwaite to the newly created position of head of games.
Hebblethwaite, who joins the British Academy from U.K. games trade association Ukie, where he was insight and innovation manager, will report to Emma Baehr, BAFTA’s executive director of awards and content.
“It’s fantastic to be joining the excellent team at BAFTA as their new head of games, and I look forward to supporting and championing our industry across the full remit of BAFTA’s activity,” said Hebblethwaite. “Games play an ever more important role at the heart of culture, and I’m determined to build on BAFTA’s excellent work to date in cementing games in their rightful place alongside the best of the creative and screen sectors.”
The appointment comes ahead of the 2022 BAFTA Games Awards on April 7. Nominations will be unveiled March 3.
“I’m delighted to welcome Luke as head of games,” said Baehr. “Luke is highly respected within the industry, and he will bring invaluable experience and knowledge to the team as we pursue our ambitions for BAFTA and games. We can’t wait to start working with him.”
Jo Twist, chair of BAFTA’s games committee and CEO of Ukie, added: “I’m delighted that Luke has chosen the arts charity for the next step in his career. I’ve worked with Luke for five years at Ukie, so I know how passionate he is about creators, about our industry and the wonderful games our talent makes. Ukie’s loss is most certainly BAFTA’s gain, and I have full confidence he will be an incredible addition to BAFTA. I look forward to seeing what we can achieve together in the coming years.”
