Game Business Masterclass with Jason Della Rocca

Interactive Ontario's Indie Superboost Game Business Masterclass is a hybrid day-long masterclass led by industry veteran, Jason Della Rocca, held in Toronto at the Ontario Investment & Trade Center on February 17, 2026.

Why attend in-person?

While online tickets are available, we strongly encourage all who are able to attend in person to join to:

• Network in person with peers, our expert Jason, and the Interactive Ontario team
• Engage in critical conversations and ask real-time questions
• Enjoy complimentary breakfast, lunch, bottomless coffee, and snacks
• Contribute directly to the event’s success with your insights and contributions throughout the day

The masterclass will include five modules:

• Funding Models (project vs venture financing)
• Competitive Analysis (understanding the market)
• Traction (building evidence that success is possible)
• Community Validated Deployment (building launch momentum)
• Pitching to publishers (process and pitch deck template)

Following the masterclass, two hours of personalized mentoring and coaching will be provided to 10 Ontario studios (in-person or online). To apply for personalized coaching, please submit an application .

The personalized mentoring and coaching efforts will be focused on the following key areas:

• Increasing commercial viability of their original IP
• Marketing and community development strategy
• Studio scaffolding and vision setting
• Fundraising timeline and project vs studio funding determination
• Pitch deck refinement

The Games Business Masterclass is exclusively for video game and XR entertainment developers as well as representatives of event sponsors. Interactive Ontario will reimburse ticket holders who do not qualify to participate in the masterclass.

Expert Bio:

This initiative will be led by Jason Della Rocca, who is a game business consultant, investor, funding advisor, and ecosystem strategist. He currently spends the bulk of his time advising game studio founders on funding and product strategy, and advising governments around the world on how to better grow/support the success of their regional game development ecosystem.

As the co-founder of Execution Labs, he was a hands-on early-stage investor to 25 independent game studios from North America and Europe. In parallel Jason helped launch GamePlay Space, a non-profit hub to support indies and guide them toward business success, whose alumni have generated over $300m in game sales and funding. Between 2000-09 he served as the executive director of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) and was honored for his industry-building efforts with the inaugural Ambassador Award at the Game Developers Conference. In 2009, Jason was named to Game Developer Magazine’s “Power50,” a list that profiles 50 of the most important contributors to the state of the game industry. As a sought-after expert on the game industry, Jason has lectured at conferences and universities worldwide.

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Is your studio under two years old? You may be eligible for a FREE IO Build Membership. Contact our team at [email protected]

Interactive Ontario Members and IDM producers that are members of the Canadian Interactive Alliance/l'Alliance Interactive Canadienne (CIAIC) receive discounted admission to the online ticket type. Associations in the CIAIC include DigiBC, Digital Alberta, SaskInteractive, New Media Manitoba, Interactive Ontario, La Guilde du jeu vidéo du Québec, Interactive Society of Nova Scotia or Videogames PEI.

Thank you to Ontario Creates, Canada Media Fund, Nordicity, Xsolla, Insert Coin, XP Gaming, Amar-VR Law, LiVECAST and Ubisoft Toronto for your support of the ISB Game Business Masterclass.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Ontario Investment and Trade Centre, 250 Yonge Street, Toronto, Canada

Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.

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