Digital culture festival offers up 120 events for creatives in city

With high profile conferences, small meet-ups, exhibitions, and workshops,  this year’s event – which is the seventh of its kind – offers something for everyone.

Running from September 14 to October 13, we’ve picked out just a some of events to look out for.

A virtual reality tournament is to take place at The Prince Albert, Trafalagar Street on September 24, by Brighton based start-up GOVR.

The tournament will bring players from across the region to compete in The Unspoken, a magic duelling game that utilises Facebook’s Oculus Touch controllers.

SheSays: Save The World! is a networking event at the Sallis Benney Theatre on September 21, with three speakers talking about the impact they are making to change the world.

StoryHack 2017 is a one-day conference at The Old Market on September 26, bringing together artists and technologists to explore how technology continues to disrupt the theatre industry.

 
Radio//Future Sounds at Patterns on October 5, will see Lighthouse, totallyradio and Fugu present a day of inspiring conversation with a focus on next generation radio creators and technologists, as well as sound art and live music.

This year’s full-day event is led by influential grime DJ, radio presenter and promoter Elijah as part of Last Dance – a programme of research and events that examines the creative and social impact of the decline of clubs and live venues. 

And for the first time, Brighton Digital Festival will hold its own conference The Messy Edge, at The Attenborough Centre For The Creative Arts on October 13. It will explore the ‘frontiers of digital culture’, with a mix of speakers, artists’ work and opportunities for discussion.

The University of Brighton at Edward Street will showcase a number of exhibitions, including the work of six finalists in the first stage of a competition for a new piece of public art for the Huxley Building on the university’s Moulsecoomb campus. The work will be on show from September 14 to 24.

Also at the Edward Street campus will be Casting Out the Self by Dominic Hawgood,  a 2K animation which digitally reconstructs a major solo exhibition of his that was recently, and unexpectedly, cancelled. The animation serves as a hallucinogenic window into another world, questioning the role of the gallery, and exploring how light installation can be experienced in the virtual.

And the Lumen Prize, will exhibit the winners of the 2017 prize, celebrating the very best art created digitally. The show will be exhibited at University of Brighton, Edward Street building throughout the festival. 

Wifi Wars at The Old Market on September 18 is the world record-breaking live comedy game show where the entire audience play along with their smartphones or tablets, to compete in a range of games, quizzes and challenges to win the show, and prizes.

WHIST a virtual-reality (VR) dance project at The Old Market on September 19 and 20, is inspired by the work of Sigmund Freud, inviting you on a VR journey into the unconscious mind, through the dreams, fears and desires of a fictional family. The one-hour experience merges physical theatre, interactive (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) technologies and an art installation.

vrLAB returns to The Old Market from September 21 to 14, with the opportunity to explore the depths of the oceans to intergalactic space and every conceivable world in-between. 


Virgin Territory at The Vincent Dance Theatre will explore what effect constantly performing for the camera has on our lives at workshops from September 26 to October 4.

For the full programme, and to book events tickets, visit: brightondigitalfestival.co.uk


Q&A with festival manager Laurence Hill


What is your must-see event at this year’s festival? 

People always ask me this and inevitably my mind goes blank! Seriously though, it’s really impossible for me to pick a highlight because there are many unique events that will appeal to different people for different reasons. My suggestion would be to grab a coffee or a gin, sit down with the guide or visit our website and have a good browse. Of course, if I had to pick one thing, I’d definitely say our new in house conference, the Messy Edge, so maybe read about that one first....


What’s the most unusual event?

I’d have to say the 3D Terrarium workshops being arranged by Miniature and Moss. During the workshop, you get scanned by a 3D printer and a mini you is printed, which you can then put into the terrarium you create. I love that marriage of nature and technology and on similar lines you should also check out an Evening with Primrose, a poetic and beautiful installation and concert tapping into the rhythms of the blooming of an evening primrose flower.


What’s different this year to any previous year?

What’s different this year is our manifesto. You can read it on our site and in the new guide, which is hitting the city this weekend. The manifesto is our statement of purpose, our mission. It’s unusual for a festival like ours to have something public like it and I’m proud of it. What I think that means about growth, which is always an interesting thing to think about, is that our ambition this year and in the next few years is not about making the festival bigger and bigger. Our ambition is deepen its roots into the whole city, making sure that we break out of the digital privilege bubble, refining our purpose and ensuring we deliver every part of our new manifesto.