Edinburgh Interactive speakers announced

The first round of speakers has been confirmed for 2011's Edinburgh Interactive festival, which will take place on August 11 and 12 this year.

First is a conference session presented by Edward Williams of BMO Capital Markets and Sean Dromgoole of GameVision, who will discuss People and Money, with a particular focus on the relative wisdom of investing in or developing for, the social market.

Also giving a conference presentation, with the somewhat unweildy title of How We Got Benedict Cumberbatch on a Spaceship and How You Could, Too - Games, Story and New Funding Models, is Paul Bennun, who will focus on cross-platform design and the importance of branding.

The first public session to be announced features Kevin Beimers, Art Director at Northern Irish developer Straandlooper Animation, who will be discussing his art and its importance to video game story telling.

Early bird tickets for the event, priced at £175, are available from the website now.