Late last week Mediaweek’s Greg “Sparrow” Graham flew to the US to head to the return of an in person South by Southwest (SXSW) conference.
Founded in 1987 in Austin, Texas, SXSW is best known for its conference and also festivals that celebrate the convergence of tech, film, music, education, and culture. The event dedicates itself to helping creative people achieve their goals.
Prime Video at SXSW.
Top: Jules Lund, Lindsay Bennett (Global head of Marketing DDB New York, ex AdNews) with Sparrow visiting TikTok at SXSW
Below Sparrow wraps up his week’s activities.
I can’t tell you how awesome it has been to be back at SXSW in Austin Texas live in person! Those special micro-moments that we have missed during the pandemic only happen when we gather together and connect. Human connection and sharing moments are joyful, some of the best conversations have not happened in the Austin Convention Centre but on the ground in queues, elevators, coffee lines, at the breakfast counter, or a bar at an SXSW party.
As an example, a heartfelt conversation with an ex-soldier who suffered from PTSD and found CBD oil helped him, said he was purely at the festival for the new Cannabis track.
Another chat I had was with a current NFL player from Florida who was at the festival to learn about blockchain/NFTs so when he retires in two years, he is equipped to commercialise his brand.
Austin is a wonderful city that embraces weirdness and is alive with great energy and buzz. This place is so welcoming and the city goes out of its way to ensure the festival is a roaring success and inspiration is literally on every corner.
SXSW is a one-of-a-kind experience and no other festival has the combination of interactive, film, and music with the diversity of inspiration and the eclectic mix of content/activations and connections.
The festival highlights the stark contrast of high-tech virtual metaverses and the importance of good old human connection.
Jason Dundas and Jules Lund at Australia House with Scott Tweedie (formerly E , New York, now based in LA.)
Sparrow’s SXSW highlights
I love a list so he’s my list from SXSW 2022:
• Top session: Scott Galloway
• Surprise & delight: Priya Parker on Gathering
• Cultural moment: Definitely Lizzo
• Activation/experiential: Amazon Prime Video
• Best House: Australia House
• Festival Stunt: Giant drone QR code in the sky Paramount+ Halo
• Unexpected Moment: Hanging with Danielle Macdonald (The Tourist) at Australia House opening party
• Everywhere at SXSW: QR codes and streaming services
• Cool but WTF: Fluf World
• Best Party: Australia House opening night (runner up TikTok)
• Best food: Salt Lick Texas BBQ Driftwood
• Only 1 regret: Missing Dolly Parton by 1 day
I’ll be back next year at SXSW 2023 why don’t you join me!
Sparrow at Salt Lick BBQ with some of the Aussies including Lindsay Bennett, Alex Hayes and colleagues from Clear Hayes, Dan Monheit and Brendon Capes from Hardhat, Pixie Weyand from Feed Music
See also:
See also:
• Sparrow at SXSW: Day 1 with Scott Galloway, Bob Odenkirk, Priya Parker & more
Brene Brown introduced her new HBO series Atlas of the Heart
• Sparrow at SXSW: Day 2 Austin showcase ‘houses’ from Twitter, CNN+ to Amazon Prime
Sparrow gets a free hot dog, visits Fluf World and Lizzo’s ultimate fan experience
• Sparrow at SXSW: Day 3 Emerging tech trends and Jules Lund on TikTok addiction
Plus Lizzo Live: ‘She owned the stage and captivated the full house with her realness, talent, empathy’
• Sparrow at SXSW: Day 4 Pfizer CEO, author Rohit Bhargava + visit to Australia House
Sparrow interviews Jason Dundas about brand funded content and what’s next
• Sparrow at SXSW: Day 5 Brisket and beers, then Hollywood powerbrokers
Plus: 400 drones promote Halo series and Andrew Watt on the SXSW experience
More Aussies having more fun…this time some from the Salt Lick crew plus Jules Lund, Hannah Firth from Squinked Records and Billie Calwell from Ravens Nest Consulting