Anita Fontaine

Anita Fontaine (born September 24, 1979) is an Australian artist, director, creative director, speaker, content creator, and entrepreneur.
Fontaine is best known for cofounding digital agency Champagne Valentine and future lab Department of New Realities. Her work has helped redefine the pop culture landscape by merging technical innovations into film, fashion, design, gaming and the senses. Fontaine works as a commercial film director and has recently co-founded We Have Seen The Future, a consulting company which merges Wellness and the Metaverse.
She’s appeared as a speaker at various international conferences, including Semi Permanent, OFFF, SXSW, and her interviews have been featured in press like Nowness, It’s Nice That, Communication Arts, Dazed Digital.
She has been voted as one of the "most fascinating creatives" by Adweek and one of "50 Creative Leaders to watch" by Creative Review.
==Early life and education==
Fontaine was born on September 24, 1979, she grew up in Queensland, Australia. In 2000, at the age of 21, after completing her Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art / Photography from Griffith University, Brisbane Fontaine went on to complete studies at Qantm video game school. In 2002 she received an art residency at The Banff for the Arts, Canada, after which she permanently relocated to work as a research fellow and artist at the Banff New Media Institute.
==Career==
Fontaine started her career in the year 2001 with Krome Studios as a texture and 3d artist and worked on various PS2, Nintendo titles, and Xbox. In 2003, she joined Banff New Media Institute as a research fellow and artist. While there, she created educational video games and immersive location based mobile cinema experiences. During this time she continued creating “video game art hacks” and exhibiting as an artist. In Banff, Fontaine met net artist Geoffrey Lilllemon (Oculart) who would continue to be her creative collaborator for the next 15 years.
In 2005, she created the first installment of her video game art hack series “Cute X Doom”. Fontaine also started working with Nickelodeon, New York as a 3d designer and created video game graphics for virtual character themed chat rooms. In 2006 she joined Boston based advertising agency Modernista as an Interactive Art Director. In 2007 she installed location based experience Ghostgarden at the Sydney Festival.
In 2008, she relocated to Amsterdam where she co-founded digital creative agency Champagne Valentine with Geoffrey Lillemon. They created award winning interactive installations, films, apps and websites for clients like The Tate Modern, Comedy Central, Diesel and Versace. In 2009, Fontaine also completed the second installment of her video game series and installation “Cute X Doom II” which was exhibited widely in international galleries and museums.
Fontaine was also a guest lecturer at the Willem de Kooning Academy Rotterdam, Netherlands during 2010/ 11 creating coursework for final year students combining art, fashion, design and new technology.
In 2012, Fontaine also started directing experiences and content for clients like Louis Vuitton and collaborated with Nicole McDonald on the award winning Google Chrome Experiment x Cirque du Soleil project Movi Kanti Revo.
In 2013, she moved to San Francisco to work as a Creative Director at the creative agency and startup incubator West. She continued to direct content, creating work for the likes of Dua Lipa.
In 2016, she co-founded The Department of New Realities, a future lab inside Wieden & Kennedy Amsterdam focusing on combing new technology with the senses to create unimaginable experiences - bringing together clients and consumers. While at DPTNR Fontaine created original content like the award winning VR game installation Bitmap Banshees as well as experiences for brands like Moncler and Corona - most notably the VR installation Paraiso Secreto in Mexico City.
In 2019, Fontaine relocated to New Zealand. In 2021 she joined Good Oil Films as a film director and in 2022 she founded a metaverse consulting group We Have Seen The Future, which focuses on the liminal space between wellness and the Metaverse. She created the world's first Augmented Reality boat tour The Blue Violet River exhibited in Liverpool UK in June 2021.
She is known for her work creating hyper real tactility, blurring the lines between the physical and virtual. Her artistic perspective is seen in games, films, and virtual reality experiences that she has worked for her clients. Fontaine is known for her understanding of new and emerging technologies, and ability to expand a client’s imagination with her unique vision of speculative future realities.
==Awards==
* Voted as one of Adweek’s “most fascinating creatives” 
* Creative Review’s One of “50 Creative Leaders to watch” in 2018
==References==
==External links==
* Personal website
* Company website
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Category:1979 births
Category:People from Nambour, Queensland
Category:Australian Entrepreneurs
Category:Australian artists
Category:Creative directors
Category:Griffith University alumni