About
Jacob Schwitzer is a First Descendant of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin with a background in storytelling, film work, and game development. Raised on the Menominee Reservation, Jacob’s family fostered his love for storytelling by reading to him at a young age and taking him to the library often, ensuring he always had enough books to read in his spare time. When he received a Nintendo DS at the age of ten, he developed a love for interactive storytelling through his experience with narrative-driven video games. This love eventually expanded to filmmaking, when he attended a high school summer program at the College of Menominee Nation’s Sustainable Development Institute. There he learned to write, direct, and edit documentary and fiction films. Alongside his twin brother Nicholas and another collaborator, Jacob created his first documentary at the age of sixteen. Nama'o – The Ancient Storyteller, details the sacred relationship between the Menominee people and the sturgeon. He would return to the summer program every year until he graduated.
Inspired by his love of games and interactive storytelling, he earned his B.S. Computer Science degree with a concentration in Game Design and Development from the University of Wisconsin – Stout, Wisconsin’s Polytechnic College. In attending UW Stout, he worked with classmates to create video games every year and returned to the College of Menominee Nation every summer as an intern, creating virtual reality applications to help visualize forest futures. Now in his fourth year working for Nebraska Public Media as a Software Developer, Jacob continues to utilize his love of all aspects of game development as works with a diverse team to research and create interactive media in their Emerging Media department.
Jacob enjoys playing games with his friends, banging on his drums like John Bonham, and taking pictures in his spare time.
Professional Background
Software Developer for Nebraska Public Media (Formerly NET): October 26, 2020 - Present
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Works as part of a team to develop elegant solutions that solve software problems related to spatial user experiences.
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Works in Unity and Unreal Engine and writes code for use in the creation of virtual and augmented reality experiences
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Is involved in both the initial development of the spatial experience as well as porting the experience to different apps or XR platforms.
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Demonstrates time management and self-management skills by working remotely due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic.
Virtual Reality App Developer, Sustainable Development Institute, Keshena, WI and Penn State University, State College, PA: Summer 2019 and 2018
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Honed 3D and Virtual Reality app development skills in Unity while producing three Virtual Reality experiences surrounding issues of climate change on the Menominee Indian Reservation of Wisconsin,
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Demonstrated communication and leadership skills to determine user needs of the project while working within an interdisciplinary team as the only programmer.
Gameplay Programmer, Game Design 450 Capstone, Shepherd’s Sky, University of Wisconsin – Stout, Menomonie, WI: Fall 2019
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Refined communication skills while discussing ideas within a diverse team of programmers, artists, and sound designers.
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Improved software development skills while implementing fishing mechanics, target/terrain interaction, and standardizing controller input in Unity.
Senator At-Large, Stout Student Association, University of Wisconsin – Stout, Menominee, WI: Fall 2019
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Applied leadership skills to represent the student body in SSA Senate meetings and worked to create policies/motions to further the success of students.
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Exhibited critical thinking skills to discuss and solve issues regarding UW-Stout students.
Technical Skills
Languages: Java, C++, C, C#, JavaScript, HTML, Python
Software: Eclipse, Visual Studio, Game Maker, Unity, Unreal, Word, PowerPoint, GIMP, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Premiere, Final Cut Pro X