10 Mar Discover South by Southwest Conference & Festivals
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The South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference & Festivals dedicates itself to helping creative people achieve their goals. Founded in 1987 in Austin, Texas, SXSW is best known for its conference and festivals that celebrate the convergence of the interactive, film, and music industries. Surprisingly, the first event, held in March of 1987, saw an expected 150 registrants swell to 700 on opening day. Certainly, Austin’s charm won over the visitors. SXSW took on a life of its own, and growth was steady for the first seven years. For SXSW ’94, often remembered for the Johnny Cash keynote/performance, two new events, Interactive and Film, were introduced. Notably, it would mark a fundamental shift in how the world viewed SXSW.
The event has changed in many surprising and meaningful ways since 1987. However, at its core, SXSW remains a tool for creative people to develop their careers by bringing together people from around the globe to meet, learn, and share ideas and maybe have a few once-in-a-lifetime experiences. The event, an essential destination for global professionals, features sessions, showcases, screenings, exhibitions, and a variety of networking opportunities. SXSW proves that the most unexpected discoveries happen when diverse topics and people come together.
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One unified conference spans 24 tracks of programming, plus SXSW Eco curated Cities Summit includes keynotes, featured speakers, session formats, and programming tracks. SXSW festivals offer a unique opportunity to explore the interactive, film, music, and comedy industries with parties, awards, screenings, and showcases. Many different world-class exhibitions are hosted including the SXSW Trade Show, Spotlights, and Gaming Expo. Exhibitions such as Job Market, Flatstock, SXSW Marketplace, SXSW Wellness Expo, and SouthBites are free. The SXSW Conference & Festival also provides several different forums where registrants can meet and mingle from SX Meet Ups, multi-day lounges, and a variety of parties. Each year SXSW celebrates and honors the individuals and companies that are doing the most innovative, creative, and inspirational work in their respective fields.
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There are four badge types you can purchase, the Platinum Badge, the Interactive Badge, the Film Badge, and the Music Badge. All badges will get you primary entry to all SXSW Conference interactive and convergence tracks and the comedy festival showcases. They will also give you access to a majority of interactive, film, and music programming. An Interactive badge gets you entry to interactive and exhibitions. The Film Badge gets you entry to the film festival screenings. A Music Badge gets you entry to the music festival showcases. Music festival showcases will start on Monday, March 12, and the film festival starts on Friday, March 9. The Platinum Badge remains your best bet with primary access to all of SXSW. All SXSW registrants also receive complimentary access to SXSW Gaming. Currently enrolled high school, college, and university students may apply for the Buy One, Get One Free discount.
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With this in mind, join the discovery March 9-18 in Austin, Texas for SXSW 2018 and be a part of one of the most diverse, collaborative, and inventive communities in the world.
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