Welcome to my corner of the internet
Hello, my name is Jay Harris, and I’m driven by a fascination with how people interact with their surroundings and their inner voice. This journey began during my A-levels while studying Psychology, deepened through my Psychology degree, and has informed every step of my career since.
You can read about my career journey, skills and ambitions below. Click the buttons for a case study on Modern Fables escape rooms, my creative interests, and to call or email me.
Career Journey
After university, I explored various roles, from retail to working within a Local Government Authority. These experiences honed my understanding of diverse human experiences and taught me to just listen to people to enable mutual understanding.
After this I decided to become a freelancer, creating immersive audio environments for children’s theatre and museums. Clients included the National Trust and the Clink Prison Museum. During this period I really got to flex my creative muscle alongside working along very specific briefs.
A fateful city-break to Berlin introduced me to escape rooms, sparking the realisation that I had a unique vision to offer London’s escape room scene. In 2017, with minimal resources and fanatical determination, I launched “The Escapist,” Modern Fables’ first escape room. Its success, punctuated by a 5-star review from Time Out London, was a turning point, proving the market’s appetite for my vision of what an escape room should be. See my case study to find out what this vision was..
The pandemic caused me to pivot my offering so I took my passion and expertise into creating games for others, collaborating with the charity Ministry of Stories and YouTuber MrWhoseTheBoss.
Skills
Creative Direction: Took immersive game design forward, transforming narrative concepts into compelling physical and digital experiences.
Brand Strategy: Developed and executed marketing strategies that elevated brand presence and engaged target demographics.
Project Management & Team Leadership: Led diverse teams under tight deadlines, ensuring project success from conception to launch.
Technical Proficiency: Hands-on experience with UX design, coding, electronics, and adapting to new tech tools swiftly.
Other: I learned to make decent cafetière and moka pot coffee from my brother. It powered our fully-booked days at Modern Fables.
Looking Forward
As I explore new horizons, I carry a wealth of experiences—from project management to creative direction and beyond. I have worked as a part of multi-organisation teams as well as leading my own by example. I’m very excited to apply the lessons I’ve learned and contribute to even more exciting projects. I’m eager to see where my passion for experiential design and storytelling will lead next, ideally in roles that challenge and utilise my diverse skill set to create unforgettable experiences of any kind.
