Meet Giff Ransom

Horizon's Senior Programmer, Giff Ransom, is a NC native with a lifelong passion for technology and art.  And, he sees the common thread running through both.

As a kid, Giff remembers hearing his dad, a pioneer in telecom, talk about the "Information Superhighway"...a 1990's catchphrase for the internet.  His mom was an artist, and Giff grew up observing the similarities between his parents' two vocations.  He discovered that he had an affinity - and a talent - for each.  In Giff's words, "both art and engineering are creative endeavors that require you to make thousands of small decisions in order to build something that works aesthetically ... or physically."

Giff earned both a BS (NC State) and MS (UNC) in Computer Science, developing an expertise in computer graphics, UI, and rich web development.  He worked at UNC's Institute for Science Learning, where he met two other technology whizzes and future Horizoners:  Jason Cooper and John Andersen.  Afterwards, Giff spent years working on 3D game engine technology for Triangle-based Emergent Game Technologies.

During this time, Giff met and married his wife Ashley and headed toward new adventures in China, where Giff worked for a visual effects company, and he and Ashley both served as development workers with their crew of boys.  Seven years later, the Ransoms have returned to NC.

Horizon has brought Giff onboard to contribute his extraordinary programming skills to our fast-growing VR/AR business.  Giff says he loves helping to give people a type of interactive story-telling experience that has never before been possible!  Speaking of storytelling, Giff also has mad skills as an illustrator, with a children's book, The Song of Gideon Roland, already published.

At Horizon, we understand that digital story-telling requires a healthy dose of creativity, backed by deep technical expertise.  Giff Ransom brings us an abundance of both!