May 29, 2026

Greetings Hand Eye Society community,

This is Jordan Sparks, Hand Eye Society’s Director Of Technology & Education. I hope all of you are doing well. With a heavy heart, I must tell you all that I am leaving my role at the Hand Eye Society today after proudly serving this community for 7 years; 10 years if you count my time helping out Hand Eye Society before I joined the staff.

I figured I owed it to this great community to announce my departure since I’m not only the longest serving member of the current staff roster, but because I’ve happily interacted with so many of you over the years. I’ve met so many wonderful people here through Hand Eye Society and the indie game community over the past decade. I’ve spoken to countless droves of you who love Hand Eye Society over email and zoom calls. A lot of you have probably even seen me through all our many educational programs/workshops or Twitch streams as one of the organization’s more prominent public faces. I’ve even had way more people than I’d expect recognize me in public as “that guy from Hand Eye” or “Mr Hand Eye” which has led to many fun conversations. I’ve never thought I represented this entire organization, but it’s very heart-warming to have earned the trust & respect of so many of you in this amazing community regarding all things Hand Eye during my time here and I’ve loved pouring my passion into serving you. Thank you to all of you who welcomed me into this space and came to love the Hand Eye Society.

Hand Eye Society has transformed drastically since I joined this historic organization and it’s been a thrilling ride to both be there for such a large chunk of its 17-year history and to be a big part of that change. I’m very proud to have pushed our growth into digital spaces, festivals, workshops, and broadcasts since the earliest days of the pandemic, as well as expanded several of our community, partnership, and educational initiatives to reach both locally and internationally. I’ve loved connecting with so many passionate game developers and studios and doing what I can to help them achieve their dreams and grow into amazing devs! Directing so many different programs & events alongside the team has been a dream opportunity alongside the joy of teaching and overseeing our many educational initiatives, co-building Torontrons, and so much more. It’s been an honour to play my part on the Hand Eye Society team and do untold amounts of game arts coordination and advocacy work behind the scenes. I truly believe in the mission of Hand Eye Society to help anyone make games and celebrate the diversity, weirdness, and creativity of the indie game community across Toronto and beyond and it has been a pleasure to be a part of that.

While my era at Hand Eye is at an end, Hand Eye Society will go on and I’ll still be around the community. The one constant of my career has always been to help and advocate for artists and indie games, even before my time at the Hand Eye Society. You can bet I’ll be continuing to do so in my own way to assist other game developers, artists, the public, and the game curious across the wider community. If you want keep up with me, you can find out more about my work and socials at GrindSpark.com and follow my Shining Spark Entertainment studio at ShiningSparkEnt.com While I no longer work at Hand Eye, I adore this community and am more than happy to help wherever I can. If you think I can help, feel free to reach out. If you see me around, don’t be shy and say hi. I’d love to chat and stay in touch. I’m still going to be proudly making games, teaching people, and supporting the game community in bold new ways.

I have been here a while. I was first inducted into Hand Eye Society a decade ago through my mentor, friend, and predecessor Ken Cho, who would later ask me to succeed him in this role in 2020. He saw a lot in me that I didn’t quite see in myself at the time and entrusted me to watch out for the Hand Eye community. I accepted this position with the mission of helping as many people in this community as I possibly could and it led me to more opportunities, places, and people than I ever imagined. All these years later, I am immensely proud of my time at Hand Eye Society to uplift the organization and grow the diverse community we have all built together. My mentor believed in me and now, as I leave, I express my own passionate belief in you to carry the torch of that mission. I hope you all continue to support, celebrate, and treasure each other in the gaming space, for I see greatness in all of you. Hand Eye Society holds an important place in the games community and my heart and I hope you will continue to support it long after I’m gone. I wish you all the best in achieving your gaming dreams and thanks to each and every one of you in this wonderful community for making my time at the Hand Eye Society such an amazing experience.

Until we meet again, this is your friendly neighbourhood Sparky-Man signing off!

Kind Regards,
Jordan Sparks
Former Director Of Technology & Education (2020 – 2026)