Of Relevance

One of the coolest, most vibrant and funnest events on the conference calendar is SxSW (South by South West), which happens in Austin in March, every year.

The South by Southwest (SXSW) Conferences & Festivals offer the unique convergence of original music, independent films, and emerging technologies. Fostering creative and professional growth alike, SXSW is the premier destination for discovery. Year after year, the event is a launching pad for new creative content. Conference panel discussions present a forum for learning, business activity thrives at the Trade Shows and global networking opportunities abound. Intellectual and creative intermingling among industry leaders continues to spark new ideas and carve the path for the future of each ever-evolving field, long after the events’ conclusion.

I’ve always wanted to go … but who wants to go to an event like this alone? So I am hoping that I can get about 30 South Africans together, and make a serious trip out of it. With the traction of Geekretreat, Silicon Cape and the general growing mood of online innovation in South Africa this is the time to do go.

We also have another excellent opportunity to showcase our South African talent and support: one of our own, Toby Shapshak @shapshak, has been offcially chosen as one of the SxSW speakers!!! So we can cheer him on as he and his panel talk about “Battery Life: The final (mobile) Frontier“.

I have organised 15 rooms at a hotel around the corner from the Austin Convention Centre, at a relative bargain and am getting a group discount from Delta for a flight from Joburg – Atlanta -Austin, return. The SxSW tickets start at $395, if you buy early enough. All in all, the trip will cost between R23,000 and R25,000, including top flights, top accommodation and conference ticket. I am going to be looking for sponsorship to help us cover some of the cost, but if you decide to participate you should expect to pay the full cost, just to be safe. Better still, get your boss to pay for you to go.

I also certainly want to include some people on the trip on a full sponsorship. If anyone can help with that, please let me know.

If you are thinking of going, or simply want to learn more about the event, please read what some other sites/people have to say about it:

If you want to come join the rest of us on this trip, please sign up here, email me on eved AT ideabank.co.za or just post a comment below and I’ll get in touch with you.

Others who have expressed interest in coming are:
Gareth Knight
Paul Jacobson
Justin Spratt
Andy Hadfield
Mike Stopforth
Heather Ford (Will be joining us from US)
Guy Taylor
Richard Frank
Rob Stokes
Brett Haggard
Ismail Dhorat
Craig Rodney
Colin Daniels
Jack Kruger
Justin Hartman
Matthew Buckland
Jarred Cinman
Rob Gilmour
Elan Lohmann

For a full list see here.

The dates of the trip are March 10 – March 17 2010.