Entertainment Software Association President and CEO Stanley Pierre-Louis received the 2021 Black in Gaming (BIG) Image Award in recognition of his contributions to the video game industry during an online ceremony streamed on Saturday, November 13, 2021.
“I’d like to express my deep gratitude to the team at Black in Gaming, not only for this honor, which moves me beyond words, but also for shining a light on Black excellence in our industry,” Pierre-Louis said.
Administered by the Black in Gaming Foundation, the BIG Awards are “designed to educate the game industry and recognize Black game developers to honor outstanding accomplishments and help empower the next generation.”
“People of color have been an integral, and often unrecognized, under-appreciated part of the game industry from the start,” Black in Gaming Executive Director Carl Varnado said in a statement announcing this year’s winners. “This is how we honor the accomplishments of Black game developers and creators, industry-wide.”
Pierre-Louis was recognized alongside eight other honorees, including Davina Mackey, Director, Support Services & Operations, PlayStation Studios QA of Sony Interactive Entertainment, Julian Walshaw-Vaughan, Vice President of Engineering of Roblox and Travis Williams, Head of Third-Party Production, Oculus VR.
Past BIG Award winners include Reggie Fils-Aime, former President/COO of Nintendo of America Inc., and Sarah Bond, Corporate Vice President, Game Creator Experience & Ecosystem at Xbox.
Watch the 2021 Black in Gaming Image award announcement and Pierre-Louis’ acceptance remarks here:
