Thomas Meiertoberens - CEO and Founder

Born in Gütersloh, Germany, where he went to academic high school (Städtisches Gymnasium) with a focus on Math and Physics. At age 17, he developed a line of home office software for the early home computers of the 1980`s. After launching this line successfully in many European countries, Thomas got involved in the gaming industry in 1985 by adding computer games to Rainbow Arts, the company he had co-founded. In 1987, he founded his brand Magic Bytes and started publishing cartoon-based games with licensed characters like Pink Panther or Tom & Jerry. Through his own business, Thomas gained extensive knowledge in executive international business administration and expertise in related distribution, licensing, localization and marketing efforts. After moving to the United States in 1997, he ventured into Real Estate Investment and decided to stay focused in that field. In 2017 he decided to re-launch Magic Bytes.

Motivated by being a parent, he enjoys developing new, state of the art games and educational software together with his son or team members.

Mai Nguyen - US Operations Manager, Education Technology

Born in Denver, Colorado. At the age of 13, Mai joined an elite video production team where she was able to enhance her skills in technology, creative writing and digital art. At the age of 15, she moved to Florida and joined the Television Production Program where she earned the title of Best Director and Best Co-Host. Mai discovered her passion in teaching by joining Future Educators of America. She volunteered hundreds of hours, teaching kids at local Elementary schools. She graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Telecommunications with a concentration in Education. Mai taught in Central Florida for over seven years, while taking courses in Educational Leadership at the University of Central Florida. Mai created the Miss Ways Pen Pal Program for students to excel not just in academics, but also in positive character development. Due to the popularity, she launched the Miss Ways Augmented Reality App in 2018.

Today, Mai continues her community work with Miss Ways and is an Educator at the Orlando Science Center. She is proud to be a part of the team at Magic Bytes, where she can utilize her talent in Education Technology to help create fun and enlightening experiences for users all over the world.

Brian Collins - Visionary & Imagineer

As a former Walt Disney Imagineer, Brian helped create the magic for virtually all of Florida's Disney theme parks, writing scripts and spiels for some of the world’s most beloved attractions. He has deep understanding of emerging technologies and how they apply to business as he enjoys exploring augmented reality, synthetic environments, holograms and exotic Sci-Fi tech. As a sought-after Innovation Consultant, he combines his creativity and design-thinking skills with a strategic business acumen. Brian is an expert in establishing and maintaining relationships with a variety of world-class organizations such as NASA, Apple, Cirque du Soleil, GM, Microsoft and Lockheed-Martin. A passionate Educator, Brian has served on the faculty as a professor of several schools, including the University of Central Florida. He earned his Master’s degree in Marketing from Webster University and his Bachelor of Arts degree in Advertising at Texas Tech University.

He has produced work for Virgin Atlantic Airways, Busch Gardens, SeaWorld, and The Miami Dolphins. He is a Commander in the U.S. Air Force auxiliary, volunteers for the Boy Scouts of America, and has served on the Boards of Directors for Central Florida's STEM Education Council and Children’s Safety Village. Brian is looking forward to driving innovation and business strategy as Magic Bytes continues to create new, exciting and ground-breaking products!

Carmen Simio - Localization Team Leader

Born in Catanzaro, Italy, where she started developing a keen interest for both foreign languages and video games early in life. After graduating at Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza" and obtaining a Postgraduate diploma in Translation and Interpretation, she moved to Glasgow, UK, where she started her career in the localization industry. Carmen spent more than three years working as a Localization and Compliance Tester, proofreading video game-related text, performing certification checks on all the main platforms and occasionally undertaking training of new staff. She also worked for a year as an In-house Translator within the same company, contributing to the translation of a wide variety of games, including AAA titles. She is now pursuing her career as a Freelance Translator, working in the interactive entertainment industry and experimenting with multiple side projects.

Carmen is proud to join the Magic Bytes team and is looking forward to putting her project management abilities, team communication & linguistic skills to good use, helping the company launch new and engaging educational products and games on a global scale.

Nathan Rumsey - Senior Animation & Development Specialist

Born in Orlando, Florida. Nathan is an extremely talented creative dynamic animator, graphic artist, painter, and art educator. He has also mastered the technical aspects of 3D animation and programming. Working with simulation instructional staff and students, Nathan has developed a number of career training simulations used in classroom instructions and industrial environments. With experience in digital asset creation, Nathan has used industry standard tools including Adobe Creative Suite, Autodesk Maya, Maxon Cinema 4D, Substance Designer/Painter, Autodesk Motion Builder, Optitrack Motive, and zBrush. Nathan uses a variety of technologies to achieve production goals including the use of motion capture systems, 3D and laser scanning, 3D printing/prototyping, motion simulators, and game engines (Unity3D, Unreal).

Today, he continues his work as a Research and Development specialist for Orange Technical College in Orlando. Nathan is looking forward to work with Magic Bytes on exciting new projects else well.

Olga Stanachych - Ukraine Operations Manager & Translator

Born in Kyiv, Ukraine, where she resides to this day. From the age of 6 Olga started to learn drawing and painting. Having invested 8 years into art, she got a degree in School of Art in her native city. In 2006 Olga graduated National Pedagogical University n.a. M. Dragomanov with a degree of a Bachelor of Science in Linguistics. Started her career as an editor, interpreter and layout designer at a state newspaper of the Ukrainian government. Had to abondon it to follow her heart and delve into one of her lifetime hobbies – photography and retouch. Olga likes to experience new things and try herself in different occupations, so even working as a photographer she kept pace with the times and tried quite a few professional areas, including law firms and online ad agencies. Her motto has always been ‘Knowledge is no burden’.

Today she works as a freelancer at the comfort of her home, drawing inspiration from her furry babies – cats Django and Chernata, travelling, reading books which she’s fond of and relaxing by casually playing various computer games. Olga is looking forward to provide professional Ukrainian translation service and establish Magic Bytes in the Ukraine.

Alfred Espidol - Augmented Realty & Marketing Specialist

Born in Florida. Alfred's interest in sales and marketing began in West Palm Beach, Florida in 2010. His expertise and talent landed him positions as a Lead Sales Associate and Marketing Manager. As he continued his studies at the University of Central Florida, Alfred became intrigued about Augmented Reality and immediately saw potential in this amazing technology. In 2016, he founded Team Launchable, an Orlando based company eager to revitalize the physical world through the use of this digital technology.

As the rise of online sales and digital media continues, Launchable sets their sights on helping brands differentiate in this new digitally competitive landscape. He leads a diverse team of creatives, developers and tacticians that thrive on innovative solutions. Launchable collaborates with Magic Bytes to continuously improve their technology for various use cases and add value back to their client’s brand. Every project is powered by function-driven design and the ideals of the user’s experience in mind.

Jose Contreras - Senior Software Programmer, Education Technology

Born in Caracas, Venezuela. Jose holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Graphics and Visualization from Texas A&M University. In 2012, he was also an exchange student in Computer Science of the National University of Singapore. Later, he moved to the Orlando area to join Electronic Arts as an Associate Technical Artist where he worked on the Madden NFL video game series as a Maya specialist. In 2017 he worked for Team Launchable to plan and develop Augmented Realty mobile Apps. He later co-founded Lucerna Studios, which helps to make learning fun through the passion for games. He helped to develop an e-learning platform called SproutXR that uses Virtual Reality. Jose is skilled in graphics design, motion graphics, game development and digital photography.

In 2019 he decided to join the team of Magic Bytes and develop the educational game UpAbove, a cooperative space exploration game that links math questions, engineering and programming puzzles with Virtual Realty, tablets and mobile Apps.

Eliza Nguyen - Software Programmer, Animation Specialist

Colleagues describe her as a progressive, creative, down-to-earth and energetic individual and well-accomplished programmer. Interested in collaborating with professionals in her field, as well as technologist and software professionals, she offers superior solutions that deliver results on time. In architecture, she developed an extensive maintenance experience in the technology industry. Eliza has a verifiable history of various complicated projects, helping to increase their effectiveness and reducing their risk. She takes ownership within the environment of a supportive team, building many qualitative applications and enhancing development. She helps to implement necessary system procedures, software compartments and user experience through the application of advanced technical acumen coupled with highly developed interpersonal skills. Additionally, she achieves maximum operational output with minimal resource expenditure. Professional focal points include Game/Software Development Process, Web Development, Mobile Development, Database, Testing, Architecture, Design, Development, Maintenance, Support, and Debugging.

Sophie Lloyd - Sound Engineer & Musician

Born in in Salisbury, England. Sophie Lloyd began composing for full orchestra and ensembles at age 14 before being accepted to study the Flute (Grade 8 Distinction) and Composition at the Junior Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London. There, she has studied the Art of conducting, classical and contemporary compositions and performance. Her skills here have enabled her to conduct the woodwind (flute and oboe) section for the Bournemouth Symphony Amateur Orchestra and her contemporary work has been used to promote the Sound and Music Composition School in Watford, London. Her SoundCloud portfolio has won her commissions from two video production companies in the USA to produce soundtracks whilst being offered a commission to write the soundtrack to Twisted Hair Productions indie film 'Files Full of Lies'. Sophie is regularly mentored by Emmy Award-Winning and BAFTA Nominee Composer Michael Price (composer for the 'Sherlock Holmes' series and the 'Unforgotten' series).

Her talent has received offers to study at numerous places, including the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Sophie will continue her work for a Bachelor of Music Degree in Composition at Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.

Solo de Felipe Mascarenhas
- Creative Writer & Advertiser
- Portuguese Relationship Manager & Translator

Solo has been a Creative Writer, Copywriter and Advertiser since 2004. He holds a Bachelors degree in Social Communication and Advertisement. As of 2015, Solo has joined the Gaming Industry, working for a multinational video game company. He manages multicultural teams of QA and Localization Testers, as well as Costumer Support Agents, in an effort to make video game universes more accessible to millions of people all over the world. Solo is also a Language Owner and Translator, which allows him to keep creating and putting to good use on his ongoing career as a writer.

Being an advertiser for more than a decade has taught him several things, but the most important lesson was how to adapt and overcome, since no client is ever the same and creativity needs movement to keep breathing. From tractors to fine perfumes, degrees to caramel candy, dreams to B2B, Solo has been out and about, creating for all kinds of customers. This gave him the experience and versatility to adapt to whichever businesses he works for whilst also providing a valuable outsider view, beneficial to both the creation and the development of his work.

Jade Le Guay - French Relationship Manager & Translator

Born in France. Jade was introduced to the field of translation during her Bachelor’s degree, where she was studying English linguistics and literature at Paris-Sorbonne University. She immediately decided it was what she wanted to do professionally and in 2015, moved to the United Kingdom to obtain a Master’s Degree in Translation Studies from the University of Aberdeen. The specialization in video games came later, after she was hired by Pole To Win UK Ltd as an in-house translator. During her time there, she worked on a large variety of games for numerous clients across all the main platforms. Having played video games all her life it was a very natural transition for her, and the fast-evolving nature of the gaming industry led her to develop a keen interest in technology as well. Today, she works as a freelance translator in Glasgow, focusing on video games and the technology attached to them.

Jade is grateful to be a part of the Magic Bytes team and is looking forward to new opportunities to work together.

Jen Keatings - Russian Relationship Manager & Translator

Born and raised in Moscow, Russia. Her passion for languages and technology started with video games when she was old enough to operate a PC and to pick up a console's controller. Jen started learning English as she dreamed to be able to play in the original source language. Years after, she went to a University to study linguistic studies and translations. Jen volunteered to work as a translator and guide for an English football team of amputee players (Victory Cup, 2014). She graduated with a Bachelor's degree with honors, then relocated to Scotland where she joined a company that provides outsourced QA localization and functionality testing. Quickly progressing through all stages from a QA Tester, Senior Tester to Project Coordinator (Team Lead), she established herself as an excellent and highly experience QA specialist having received flawless feedback from her clients. Jen has led numerous projects across all modern platforms, performed all possible types of testing and ensured positive submission from the first party companies (Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo) for all her titles.

Today, she is a full-time Localization Project Manager and a proud member of the team at Magic Bytes responsible for Russian translations and representing the company remotely for the Russian audience.

Helena Artal Mora - Spanish Translator

Born in Zaragoza, Spain. Helena always had a passion for languages and literature. After her Bachelor’s degree in English linguistics and literature, she decided to focus on the translation field and studied a Master’s degree in Audio Visual Translation. She moved to the UK in 2015 and found a job at Pole To Win UK Ltd where she discovered the video game world. She worked as a Localization and Compliance Tester for more than a year and it was during her time there that she realized her career would be attached to video game translations. She worked as a Translation Project Manager in the same company for two years, a position where she could get to know first-hand all the details in the translation process. During this time she worked with a variety of clients and vendors and acquired the talent that has led her to work as a self-employed translator.

Helena is very glad to be part of the Magic Bytes team and bring to the company all of her knowledge and skills.