It’s Fun Proving People Wrong. Turn Adversity into Success.

Ashley Callingbull

First Indigenous Woman Crowned Miss Universe Canada | Actress | Model | Host | First Nations Activist

Ashley Callingbull is an actress, model, host and First Nations activist from the Enoch Cree
Nation. She is an actress on Blackstone, Tribal, The Great Salish Heist and was a contestant on
the Amazing Race Canada. Ashley is also an international motivational speaker and has been a
keynote speaker at Harvard University, TED Talks and WE Day.

Ashley’s hard work and charity work was recognized as she received the Top 20 Under 30
Award in Canada and was named as one of Canada’s Top 10 Power Women. Ashley received the
Youth First Nations Award from Indspire which recognizes outstanding achievement across
Turtle Island. Ashley was honoured to be inducted into the Circle of Honour at the Esquao
Awards which recognizes Indigenous female leaders and activists.

For her community work Ashley received the Role Model Award from the United Nations on
Global Dignity Day. On the 70th Anniversary of Her Late Majesty, Ashley was awarded the
Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal for her dedication of public service to family,
community and her country.

This past year Ashley was announced as the first Indigenous First Nations woman to become a
Sports Illustrated Model. Ashley is currently an In Game Host for the Canadian Football League,
the National Lacrosse League and the National Hockey League.

Ashley made history as the first Indigenous woman to win the title of Miss Universe Canada and
represented our nation at the Miss Universe 2024 pageant in Mexico.

Madison Tevlin

Actor, Content Creator, Public Speaker, Model, Host, Advocate

Madison Tevlin is an actress, model, host, content creator, and inclusion advocate breaking barriers and redefining perceptions about Down syndrome. She rose to fame at 13 with a viral cover of John Legend’s “All of Me” and has since starred in Champions with Woody Harrelson, won 7 Cannes Lions for her role in the global campaign “Assume That I Can,” and earned 5 Webby Awards. Madison has landed her own podcast deal, bartended on Watch What Happens Live, walked in New York Fashion Week, and hosted major award shows and red carpets. She believes having Down syndrome is the least interesting thing about her.

Salon D

Who’s Funding the Future—and Who’s Getting Left Out

Thrive or Survive: Why Creativity is the Key to an AI-Future

The Story of Stories—The Million Year History of Storytelling

Skills You’ll Need To Succeed in the Post-AI Age

Through the Noise: The State of Science Storytelling

If you’ve ever been underestimated or overlooked you’ll know that success is the best revenge. Madison Tevlin (a trailblazer with Down syndrome who was told at birth by doctors she wouldn’t amount to much) and Ashley Callingbull (who is a First Nations Activist and the first Indigenous Sports Illustrated Model) will share stories of how they used haters, doubt, and being underestimated as even stronger fuel for chasing their dreams and creating change. This session is for anyone who believes in breaking barriers, redefining limits, and proving the seemingly impossible is in fact possible.

IT?S FUN PROVING PEOPLE WRONG. TURN ADVERSITY INTO SUCCESS.


Why AI Fails Without Better Ways of Working

Molly Sands, PhD

Head of Teamwork Lab

Dr. Molly Sands is the Head of the Teamwork Lab, which designs and validates best practices for distributed work. She’s passionate about using technology to make it easier for people to do meaningful work together. Prior to Atlassian, Molly held leadership positions at Humu and Chadwick Martin Bailey. Her research has been published in top academic journals and featured in The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, and a TED talk with over six million views.

Salon B

Innovating in Science & Tech When Budgets are Tight

How To Meaningfully Connect in a World That Has Gone to Sh*t

It's a Whole Thing: Gen Z Work Relationships in the Age of AI

Better Leadership Starts with Understanding the Stressed Brain

AI use is exploding, but for most teams, the payoff isn’t. Why? Because AI can’t fix broken workflows—it only amplifies the chaos. Backed by new research from Atlassian’s Teamwork Lab, this session reveals why the real unlock isn’t more AI, but better ways of working. Learn how high-performing teams rethink workflows, decision-making, and knowledge sharing to turn AI into a real driver of impact. With real-world examples and actionable takeaways, this session is for anyone ready to stop spinning their wheels and finally make AI work—for their teams and their business.

WHY AI FAILS WITHOUT BETTER WAYS OF WORKING

Workplace track sponsored by University of Cincinnati


Zero-Gravity, Zero Barriers: Future of Inclusive Spaceflight

Sheila Xu

First Female Deaf Astronaut

With dual US and EU citizenship, Sheila specializes in accessible human space exploration, pioneering multimodal communication tools and advocating for missions open to all. Her journey includes analog astronaut training, zero-gravity flights with AstroAccess, a Fulbright in deaf entrepreneurship, and earning distinction as the first deaf Asian female pilot. A Harvard, Wharton, and MIT alumna, she blends lived experience with business and policy insight to break barriers in STEM, science, and space for people with disabilities.

Russ Gautier

Creative Director

Russ Gautier is an Emmy-nominated creative director, designer, animator, and VFX specialist known for his expertise in motion graphics and visual storytelling. He is currently Creative Director at Territory Studio in San Francisco, where he leads major motion graphics projects for film, TV, and games. Russ’s film credits include work on titles such as Black Panther, Thor: Ragnarok, Avengers: Endgame, Doctor Strange, and Spider-Man: Far from Home. He previously served as Associate Creative Director at Perception and has taught motion graphics and design at VCU and SVA. Russ holds a BFA in Graphic Design from Virginia Commonwealth University and is recognized for pushing the boundaries of design and technology in the entertainment industry.

Michael Hess

Founder & Executive Director

Michael Hess is the founder and executive director of the Blind Institute of Technology (BIT), a Denver-based nonprofit dedicated to reducing unemployment among the blind and visually impaired (BVI) community. Legally blind himself, Mike launched BIT in 2013 after a 20-year tech career managing large projects for Fortune 500 companies, determined to break down corporate stigmas and barriers for disabled professionals. Under his leadership, BIT has placed hundreds in rewarding roles, built partnerships with leading firms, and established innovative programs—including the BIT Academy—that train BVIs in tech skills and advocate for equity and accessibility nationwide. Mike is nationally recognized for his visionary leadership, resilience, and relentless pursuit of workforce inclusion.

Eric Ingram

Founder

Eric Ingram is an entrepreneur and systems strategist focused on how humanity navigates its next frontiers. Through his advisory platform, Ingram Insights, he works with founders, investors, and institutions operating at the edge of technology, where capital, regulation, risk, and human capability intersect. His work centers on building resilient systems, reducing hidden failure points, and helping leaders make clearer decisions before consequences force clarity. He is a frequent speaker and has appeared on national television and major media platforms to discuss space, leadership, and accessibility.

He is the founder of Scout Space, where he led the company through its formative years at the intersection of orbital safety, commercial space, and national security. He is also a leader in inclusive spaceflight through his work with AstroAccess, advancing microgravity research and expanding who can participate in space exploration. Outside the boardroom, Eric is a pilot and a competitive wheelchair rugby athlete. Both reinforce his belief that performance and accessibility strengthen each other. Across companies, research, and public forums, his work asks a central question: how do we expand who gets to shape the future while maintaining rigor, safety, and ambition?

Room 203-204

XR Immersive Filmmaking & The Future of Entertainment

From Data to Decisions: Lives, Livelihoods, and the Planet

Portraits Beyond the Frame: Jonathan Yeo & Spectacles

SIMULCAST: Amy Webb Launches 2026 Emerging Tech Trend Report

Beta Testing a City: Startups, Sidewalks & Robotics

Discover what true Space accessibility means at this groundbreaking SXSW panel. Experts—including the first deaf Asian female pilot and aspiring astronaut, the founder of the Blind Institute of Technology, and a Space leader championing disability inclusion—reveal what it will take to make Space open to all. Explore innovations in pilot training, zero-gravity research, AI-assisted interfaces, and adaptive prosthetics. Learn how inclusive Space design inspires broader accessibility on Earth, reshaping our vision of who belongs in the final frontier.

ZERO-GRAVITY, ZERO BARRIERS: FUTURE OF INCLUSIVE SPACEFLIGHT


The Brain Science of Getting and Keeping Attention

Dr. Carmen Simon

Cognitive Neuroscientist & Author

Dr. Carmen Simon is a cognitive neuroscientist, Chief Science Officer at Corporate Visions, and founder of Enhancive, an agency that helps customers create memorable communication based on how the brain works. Her most popular books on customers’ attention and memory are called Impossible to Ignore and Made You Look. Dr. Simon also teaches several courses at Stanford University on how to create messages on memory and decision science. After all, what’s the use of memory if people do nothing with it?

Waterloo Ballroom 3

Hsu Untied: Beyond Numbers: Decision-Making in the Math Classroom

The Learning Geeks: How to Think When Machines Think Faster

Chalk & Gavel: Navigating the Tides of an Education Law Sea Change

Beyond Voting: Defending Truth in Education: AI, Equity, & Power

Forget Moments Marketing: Welcome to Worldbuilding

Attention is everything. It’s the gateway to memory, persuasion, and customer action. But in a hyper-saturated world, even the best content gets ignored. Cognitive neuroscientist Dr. Carmen Simon shares surprising findings from her studies of buyers’ brains, revealing what actually captures and sustains attention. This session busts myths ( attention spans aren’t shrinking!) and reveals four types of attention you must master to create effective campaigns. If you're building a brand, selling an idea, or designing a message, don’t just hope your audience is paying attention, design for it.

BRAIN SCIENCE OF GETTING AND KEEPING ATTENTION

Brand & Marketing track sponsored by Youtube


Bending Reality: Scaling Film Productions with AI Workflows

Tom Thudiyanplackal

Producer

🎬 Creative Executive | Producer | Innovation Strategist

🔁 Bridging Storytelling, Technology, and the Future of Production

I'm Tom Thudiyanplackal — a producer, creative technologist, and former Bollywood development exec (3 Idiots) now leading frontier cinematic R&D at USC's Entertainment Technology Center and School of Cinematic Arts. My work focuses on developing the next generation of storytelling pipelines, including virtual production, AI-assisted workflows, and scalable tools that enhance creative ambition.

At USC, I serve as Executive Producer for Europa, ChikaBOOM!, The Bends, and Pathways — four short-form productions that explore the creative and ethical dimensions of AI, immersive media, and production labor transformation. I also mentor MFA and PhD filmmakers through the Amazon-funded Future Cinema Creators Project, helping shape how new voices engage with disruptive technologies.

My white paper for Fathead (Amazon Stage 15) became a widely referenced guide for studios adopting real-time production. I speak regularly at NAB, SIGGRAPH, and AI on the Lot, and collaborate with innovators like Google, Promise Studios, Asteria, Moon Valley, and Topaz Labs to rethink what filmmaking can be.

💡 My mission: Build systems where story and computation evolve together — ethically, artistically, and exponentially.

🌱 Currently building the future of trust-enabled, values-based, and human-centered entertainment at Forever Halcyon [dot] com.

Sarah Ivy

Producer/AI Filmmaker

Sarah is an award-winning producer and director based in Venice Beach, CA, with a background in both documentary and narrative filmmaking. She began her career in development at Jerry Bruckheimer Films and MTV Films before working on Criminal Minds and serving as VP at Master Key Productions, leading global shoots for Scandal, Covert Affairs, and Royal Pains. Her documentary Do You Dream in Color? earned the NYWIFT Loreen Arbus Disability Awareness Award and the Jacob Bolotin Award. Her latest film, Sk8 Girlz, spotlights an all-female skateboarding team in Orange County.

Khayyam Khan

AI Solutions Architect

Khayyam Khan is an AI Solutions Architect with a passion for merging technology and creativity. Drawing on over a decade of experience in filmmaking and 3D art, Khayyam helps content creators and distributors unlock new levels of efficiency and expression using large language models, AI tools, and cloud-based workflows. His expertise spans motion capture, cinematics, and previsualization, leveraging tools such as Unreal Engine, Blender, and Substance to bring stories to life. At the heart of his work is a mission to reshape how humans interact with AI—transforming not only industries but also the relationships people have with technology and each other. For Khayyam, innovation is a means to deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.

Christina Lee Storm

Co-Founder/Partner

Christina Lee Storm is Co-Founder of PLAYBOOK PLBK and Head of Studio, Long Form at Secret Level. An award-winning producer and accomplished executive, she pioneers storytelling through emerging technologies across film, series, animation, and multi-platform storytelling. She's been instrumental advancing production innovation for franchises, IP and world-building for Netflix, Universal, and DreamWorks Animation.

Christina is Co-Founder of The Creative + Tech Orbit substack. She is the Television Academy's Emerging Media Programming Governor, Advocacy Committee Co-Chair, Responsible AI Working Group Lead, and Innovation Advisory Committee member. She sits on the Producers Guild of America’s Production Innovation Task Force member, Los Angeles Mayor’s Entertainment Industry Council, and Runway’s 100 Film Fund Advisor Panel.

Globally known as a thought leader in the emerging media landscape, Christina was inducted into AWE’s inaugural XR Hall of Fame, received the Lumiere Distinguished Leadership Award in Technology, and is a newly inducted member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences, Class of 2025.

Pennybacker

Busting Myths: Why Virtual Production Isn’t What You Think

Unscripted Gold: Turning Real Life into Global Hits

Audible Dimensions: Expanding Story Through Spatial Audio

From Niche to Noticed: New Paths for Indie Films

Go behind the scenes of groundbreaking short films, The Bends and Pathways, developed under the Entertainment Technology Center, to explore how AI is reshaping the future of filmmaking. The Bends and Pathways both pushed the boundaries of traditional workflows using AI-integrated pipelines. In this panel, filmmakers and tech leads reveal how they reimagined VFX and production processes to deliver ambitious visuals without ballooning resources. This session offers an inside look at what’s possible when artificial intelligence becomes a central creative force in production.

BENDING REALITY: SCALING FILM PRODUCTIONS WITH AI WORKFLOWS

Film & TV track sponsored by Crunchyroll


The Systems We Build: Business Models for Meaningful XR

Sarah Ticho

Director

Sarah is a multidisciplinary artist, creative strategist, and change maker working at the threshold of immersive storytelling, healthcare, and collective healing. Founder of Hatsumi, she created SOUL PAINT (SXSW Special Jury Prize 2024), which has been exhibited at the United Nations, London Film Festival, and 10 Downing Street.

She is the co-director of the XR Health Alliance and co-authored The Growing Value of XR in Healthcare in the United Kingdom, which helped catalyse a £20 million UKRI investment into emerging care technologies.

Described by Forbes as a “Renaissance person”, Sarah's work has been featured in The Hollywood Reporter and the BBC. She has spoken at platforms including YouTube, Games for Change, Stanford University, and the United Nations.

Jonathan Williams

CEO, VR Developer

Jonathan Williams is an award-winning developer, speaker, educator, and producer of immersive content leveraging future technology (VR/AR/360/XR). He has produced content for brands including Google, Meta, Verizon, Samsung, and Disney.

Jonathan is a founding partner at VRX, one of the world's leading immersive media companies, and co-founder of the Intro to VR course at California Public Library. He is the recipient of the prestigiousMeta VR grant and 2x Oculus LaunchPad Fellow for promising future technology creators.

Creator of award-winning VR documentary series Shadows of Society, about homelessness in Los Angeles, Jonathan has been recognized as one of the Top 20 African American Men in VR in Los Angeles. Pending selection his new work Fatherhood Legacy will premiere at SXSW 2026.

Danielle Giroux

Independent (in partnership with Unframed Collection and INREV)

Interdisciplinary Researcher: XR, Storytelling & Community Practice

I'm a Research Artist and Practitioner working at the intersection of storytelling, technology, and in person community programming. Supported by Agog Media Institute, I am researching alternative approaches to VR Facilitation through the development of a framework called Immersive Story Club. This is about the art of the gather and the role of in person leadership in sharing award-winning VR films.

Previously I was part of the Atlas V/ ASTREA team helping spearhead distribution in the XR industry. I enjoy exploring worlds where arts and community exist that are disconnected from institutional support. I'm interested in working with XR Artists, nonprofits, universities, libraries and cultural institutions.

Some of the award-winning projects include: Notes on Blindness (2016), Blind Vaysha (2017), Ayahuasca (2019), Battlescar (2019), Gloomy Eyes (2020), Madrid Noir (2021), The Dawn of Art (2019), On the Morning You Wake (2022), Missing Pictures (2022), Wallace and Gromit: the Grand Getaway (2023), Flow (2023), All I Know About Teacher Li (2024), Inter(Mediate) Spaces (2026), Insider-Outsider (2026) ++.

Anne Rupert

Business Director

Originally from the Netherlands, Anne has lived in the UK for 25 years. With a background in leadership and strategy, Anne has a passion for arts, wellbeing and creativity. She has worked across a range of art forms, from theatre and dance to visual art. As Business Director for pioneering UK artist group Blast Theory she was responsible for taking the world premiere of Proof As If Proof Were Needed to SXSW 2025, winning the XR Competition Special Jury Award.

Salon E

The Creative Economy is Thriving: Why Founders Keep Building for Creators

The Lucky 10%: CPGs Flipping Off the Startup Failure Rate

The Art of Scaling Your Startup Without Venture Capital

Who Owns What: The State of Startups & Top Trends to Watch

Now is Japan's Time: Leading the Future with Deep Tech

XR is booming… Or is it? How secure are business models in the interactive/immersive sector and how well do they support creators to have social impact? And how do you thrive - not just survive - as a creator, producer, developer of this type of work, right now? Acknowledging challenges and uncertainty but also highlighting opportunities, the panel reflect on their own journeys - including successes, challenges and startings-over - to explore alternative models and offer practical advice for creators and producers to make work that matters: including protecting your IP and your wellbeing.

SYSTEMS WE BUILD: BUSINESS MODELS FOR MEANINGFUL XR


r/Health Answers Everywhere: Who to Trust in the Age of AI?

Mary James

President, Analytics and Insights

Mary James is President of Analytics & Insights at Real Chemistry, where she leads the integration of AI, advanced analytics, and human-centered strategy to transform healthcare marketing. With deep expertise in data-driven storytelling and patient engagement, Mary helps life sciences brands navigate the collision of technology, platforms, and human behavior. She is passionate about leveraging AI and emerging digital ecosystems to build trust, improve health outcomes, and redefine how patients and physicians access credible information in an era of information overload.

Jessica Calef

Director of Health, Reddit

Jess serves as Reddit's Pharma + OTC Industry Manager where, since joining in 2020, she has built the vertical from the ground up: onboarding Rx partners and designing policies and ad products exclusively for Pharmaceuticals. Prior to Reddit, she spent 13 years at Google on the Health and Retail teams and worked on influencer marketing at YouTube.

Ania Bilski

Emergency Medicine Physician and VP, Clinical AI

VP, Clinical AI at OpenEvidence,  the most widely used medical AI among U.S. physicians
Emergency Medicine Physician at UCSF and Kaiser

Alex Bell

Patient Advocate and Founder

Alex Bell has served as a moderator of multiple Reddit communities since 2020, including five years with r/breastcancer and as a founder of r/doihavebreastcancer. A stage-three breast cancer survivor herself, Alex transformed her experience into a drive to help others suffering from this disease. With a focus on compassionate, evidence-based discussion and moderator ethics, Alex’s mission is to scale the positive impact of online communities. Outside of Reddit, her career in healthcare analytics and income protection has also provided her opportunities to advocate for patients. In her free time, Alex loves the outdoors and spends as much time as possible wandering in the woods.

Topaz Ballroom 1-3

AI Safety & Trust: Building Responsible Media Tech

AI in Entertainment: Navigating IP, Ethics & Opportunity

Is Brand Dead? The Brand Leader’s Playbook for the AI Era

Capturing Chaos: A Q&A with the DP & CLT of The Pitt

The De-brief: Rethinking the Brand–Creator Relationship

AI, social platforms, and online communities have transformed how patients and doctors seek health information long before they meet at the point of care. But with endless answers comes a critical question: who should we trust? Join Reddit’s pharma lead, a patient advocate and former r/BreastCancer moderator, and Dr. Ania Bilski—an emergency medicine physician and VP of Clinical AI at OpenEvidence—for a candid discussion on trust, safety, and the future of care in an algorithm-driven world.

R/HEALTH ANSWERS EVERYWHERE: WHO TO TRUST IN THE AGE OF AI?


Pitches to Pipelines: Accelerating Circular Water Economy

Tomo Kumahira

Co-Founder & CEO

Tomo is Co-Founder and CEO of Water One, a California-based startup focused on food and water security. Previously, he was Acting CFO at Komaza, Africa's largest sustainable forestry startup, where he raised 50M dollars in climate finance and designed the world's first securitization model for smallholder forestry. He started his career as a private equity investor at Mitsubishi Corporation. An Acumen Fellow and Robert Bosch Foundation Fellow, Tomo has advised the UN FAO. He holds a BA from Brown University and MS-MBA from Stanford as Knight-Hennessy Scholar.

Sonora Hill

Water Positive

Sonora Hill is a sustainability and water-innovation professional currently working at Amazon Web Services (AWS) in the Water Positive program. Previously, Sonora served as Senior Portfolio Innovation Manager at Imagine H2O, a non-profit water innovation accelerator.  In that role, she led Imagine H2O’s global portfolio program, overseeing relationships with and support for over 200 water-tech startups that have raised more than $1 billion in capital since 2009. Sonora holds a Master of Science in Engineering & Technology Management from the Colorado School of Mines, and a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the same institution.

Julie Nahrgang

Executive Director

Julie Nahrgang is the executive director of the Water Environment Association of Texas. She received a Bachelor of Science in economics from Trinity University and received a Lifetime Honorary Studentship to the Student Union at the London School of Economics. As executive director, Julie advocates and educates on a range of issues pertinent to the sector. She’s constantly pushing the sector to embrace its misfit and cutting-edge status and the incredible innovation potential within resource recovery.

Fidan Karimova

Senior Director, Circular Water Economy

Fidan Karimova is the Senior Director of Circular Water Economy at the Water Environment Federation, where she leads initiatives to advance sustainable, climate-resilient water systems. Her work focuses on scaling circular solutions, fostering innovation, and aligning cross-sector collaboration to address global water challenges. With a background in climate risk, ESG strategy, and international policy, Fidan is dedicated to accelerating the transition to a more regenerative water future.

Next Stage (Manchester Ballroom)

Hidden Brilliance Revealed: Reimagining Leadership in a Fragmented World

Exploring the Future of Space and Japan's Deep-Tech

Frontier Firms in Action The Playbook for AI Skills Adoption

The circular water economy is reshaping how we manage water, energy, and resources. This session highlights how innovation, financing, and collaboration drive the shift from linear to circular systems while building the next generation of water leaders. It will also spotlight WEF’s Circular Water Economy 101 course as a model for advancing education and innovation.

PITCHES TO PIPELINES: ACCELERATING CIRCULAR WATER ECONOMY


Danny Madden

Danny Madden is known for directing Beast Beast (Sundance + SXSW 2020), David Gilmour's The Girl in the Yellow Dress (2015), and for his animation work on Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022) and Random Acts of Flyness (2018-2022). His second feature as writer/director is called Downbeat, a film about a bucket drummer on the streets of Boston.

Alamo Lamar 7

Ugly Cry

Health/Disability/Illness
The Arts/Theater
Women

Your Attention Please

Health/Disability/Illness
Politics
Technology
Social Issue

Down-on-his-luck drummer Mauro flees a trail of bad decisions and lands on his sister Isa’s couch in Boston. With no money and nowhere to go, he begins busking as a bucket drummer. As playing on the streets brings small wins, he falls back in love with the freedom and pounding momentum that made him chase music in the first place. But Mauro pushes his luck pursuing a secret relationship that endangers his bond with Isa, and bit by bit draws everyone else into his own feral shortcomings.
Set to the rhythms of the street, DOWNBEAT is a raw, high-energy portrait of an artist using music as escape and the collateral damage left behind when movement replaces growth.

Downbeat

Fleeing mistakes in Atlanta, Mauro crashes on his sister’s couch in Boston. He takes to bucket drumming on the streets for a way out, but can’t stop screwing things up and drawing everyone else into his own feral shortcomings.

Danny Madden
Daniel Rashid
Addie Weyrich
Arkira Chantaratananond

Daniel Rashid, Addie Weyrich, Arkira Chantaratananond, Terence Nance, Will Madden, Francesca Blanchard, Dakota Loesch, Dustin Hahn, Skyler Bible


Adrian Chiarella

Chiarella is an award-winning Australian writer/director/editor. His television credits including Totally Completely Fine (Sundance Now), Erotic Stories (SBS), Five Bedrooms (Paramount Plus) and his short films have screened at numerous international festivals, earning him a AACTA and Australian Directors Guild nominations.

"Leviticus" is the story of Naim and Ryan, two teenage boys living in a conservative Christian community in regional Victoria. When their attraction to each other is identified by the local pastor, the pair are subjected to a disturbing conversion ritual which unknowingly releases a violent entity that terrorizes the town. As Naim and Ryan attempt to survive the bigotry of their fellow town members, they must also defend themselves against the unleashed spiritual being that takes the form of the thing the boys desire most - each other.

Leviticus

Two star-crossed teenage boys must escape a violent entity that takes the form of the person they desire most - each other.

Samantha Jennings
Kristina Ceyton
Hannah Ngo

Joe Bird, Stacy Clausen, Mia Wasikowska, Jeremy Blewitt, Ewen Leslie, Davida McKenzie

Costume Designer: Zohie Castellano, Hair and Makeup Designer: Rebecca Buratto, Prosthetics Designer: Larry Van Duynhoven, Sound Designer: Emma Bortignon, Visual Effects Supervisor: Paul Nelson, Music Supervisor: Andrew Kotatko


Ayden Mayeri

Ayden Mayeri is an Actor and Director from Northern California. She can be seen starring in films like Paul Feig’s Jackpot opposite John Cena and Awkwafina,  Greg Mottola's Confess Fletch opposite John Hamm, and Hannah Pearl Utt's Cora Bora as well as TV shows like I Love That For You, Mr. Throwback, and New Girl. At Tribeca 2025 she starred in the AT&T Untold Stories feature, Honeyjoon.

Alamo Lamar 3

I Got Bombed at Harvey's

Biography
Crime
Documentary
Drama
Thriller

I Got Bombed at Harvey's (aka 1,000 Pounds of Dynamite)

In the summer of 2000, four pre-teen friends formed a band called X-Cetra and burned a homemade album onto a few CD-Rs. The following year, consumed by adolescent concerns of boys and drug store shoplifting, their labor of love was quickly forgotten.... Until 20 years later, when someone uploaded it online. At first, it garnered a small base of outsider-art fans, but soon it was discovered by record labels, sampled by mainstream artists, and eventually the subject of a Rolling Stone article. With their teen dreams of pop stardom coming true decades later, X-Cetra reunites to see if they can rekindle the unselfconscious girlhood they’d captured in the album those many years ago.

Summer 2000: The X-Cetra Story

Four friends reunite when the album they made as pre-teens becomes a cult hit on the internet and scores a record deal twenty years later. Together, they revisit their friendship and early 2000s girlhood.

Ayden Mayeri & Barry Rothbart & Rachael Fung

Grief Party inc. & Handsome Boy Productions & Extra A Productions

Ayden Mayeri
Barry Rothbart
Rachael Fung

Ayden Mayeri, Jessica Hall, Janet Kariuki, Mary Washburn, Robin O'brien


Daisy Rosato

Daisy Rosato (she/her) is a queer, neurodivergent filmmaker who hails from New Orleans. Her “darkly funny and deeply unsettling” (RueMorgue) short film POSSUM (2024, director/co-writer) played at 12+ festivals, including Slamdance, Final Girls Berlin (Audience Award), and streamed on Shudder in partnership with Access:Horror (Best Short). Screenwriting honors: Austin Film Festival, Stowe Story Labs, Studiofest VR. Bafta Scholar at Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema, 2026 MFA in Screenwriting. daisyrosato.com

Nora Kaye

Nora Kaye (she/her) is a queer MA-born, NYC-based filmmaker. Her work has played at Cannes, Seriesfest, and Bentonville, and includes "The Cosmos Sisters" (Gravitas Ventures, Amazon, feature film) and "Hysterical Women" (pilot). She has worked as a development intern with FilmNation (Anora, Promising Young Woman) and is pursuing an MFA in Screenwriting from Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema (FGSC). Her comedy feature-length script," The Head Cases," about warring women in neuroscience just won the Sloan Discovery Student Prize. norakaye.com

Nora is late. Alice unceremoniously brought her partner, whose name no one can remember. Jayae doesn't want to be around "these" people...but came anyway? And Genevieve, the host, has put an unhealthy amount of pressure on this eviction funeral (kinda cringe, right?) to solve all of their problems.

As they barrel through the evening, this disintegrating friend group, delirious from the heat and lack of food, desperately throws Hail Marys, caution to the wind, and lamb against the wall, trying to harness some semblance of what they used to have.

...and then their dead friend shows up.

Sinner Supper Club

An NYC friend group reunites to throw an "eviction funeral" for Genevieve; as the night progresses and a heat wave traps them together, their long-ignored problems boil over. An improvised gay mumblecore ghost story shot on an iPhone in six days.

Ashil Lee, Elise Kibler, Genevieve Simon, Jayae Riley Jr., Nora Kaye, Sophie Sagan-Gutherz, Daisy Rosato

Colorist: Vanessa Castro, Assistant Director: Ari Feldman, Script Supervisor: Katy Early, Production Assistant: Jackie Kosmacki, Julia Freitas-Gordon, Assistant Editor: Gaurav Gawnkar, Closed Captions: StormMiguel Florez


SXSW Innovation Clubhouse

Innovation Clubhouse

Vibrating Music Hammocks

Parker Hertzberger - Multisensory sound installations

The historic Brazos Hall is the official Innovation Clubhouse for 2026. It's the perfect place to connect with attendees looking to gain insights and inspiration from like-minded conference-goers. Each day the Innovation Clubhouse will host meetups and networking events as well as activations.


SXSW Film & TV Clubhouse

The Film & TV Clubhouse is located at 800 Congress Ave, just steps away from the Paramount Theatre, where some of the most exciting screenings of the Festival are set to premiere. It will serve as the home base for the film community to gather, discuss, and network. Each day the Film & TV Clubhouse will host meetups and networking events as well as activations.


SXSW Music Clubhouse

Music Clubhouse

Artist Demo Listening Session (Pop) Part 1 Presented by Discovr Radio

The Music Clubhouse is located at The Downright Austin. Perfect for networking and industry connections, the Clubhouse will also feature live performances at Radio Day Stage and mentor sessions. It’s also the perfect spot to access most of our music venues by foot or a quick rideshare. Each day the Music Clubhouse will host meetups and networking events as well as activations.


High Score Game Arcade presents the Worldwide Tic-Tac-Toe Championship

The Worldwide Tic Tac Toe Championship comes to its final, high-stakes moment at SXSW. After months of play across cities and communities around the world, this activation marks the culmination of a global tournament—bringing finalists, fans, and curious passersby together for live competition, spectacle, and celebration. Simple rules, universal appeal, and unexpected intensity converge in one last showdown where strategy, speed, and bragging rights are decided in real time.

More information here: highscoregamearcade.com

HIGH SCORE GAME ARCADE PRESENTS THE WORLDWIDE TIC-TAC-TOE CHAMPIONSHIP


Vibrating Music Hammocks

The Music Hammock transforms its fabric into a speaker, resonating your body with the frequencies of the music so you feel as if you’re lying inside a sound system.
In our fast-paced society, we often disconnect from our bodies. This installation offers a full-body listening experience, shifting your attention from mental chatter into physical awareness. Experience sound not only through your ears, but through your entire body.
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Music Producers Meet Up

Join us at SXSW for an exclusive Music Producers Meet Up bringing together hitmakers, emerging talent, and industry innovators. Connect with fellow producers, songwriters, and creatives to share ideas, swap techniques, and spark new collaborations. Whether you’re into hip-hop, electronic, pop, or film scoring, this is your space to network, talk gear, and build relationships that move your sound—and your career—forward.


XOT Energy House

Downright Hotel - Creekside Room & Outdoor Patio

XOT Energy House lands at the SXSW Artist Lounge as a dynamic space built to fuel creativity. This experience invites artists and attendees to recharge with XOT Energy while connecting through music, culture, and movement. Blending vibrant fruits and high-energy moments, the XOT Energy House becomes a hub for discovery, expression, and inspiration throughout SXSW.


Keynote: Nature Speaks. Can AI Help Us Listen?

Aza Raskin

Co - Founder

Aza is a National Geographic Explorer and co-founder of Earth Species Project, a nonprofit dedicated to translating animal communication. He is also the co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology, was an architect and subject of the documentary The Social Dilemma, and is the co-host for the popular podcast Your Undivided Attention. Trained as a mathematician and dark matter physicist, he has taken three companies from founding to acquisition, has been a co-chairing member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the Future of Al, briefs heads of state, and helped found Mozilla Labs, in addition to being named FastCompany’s Master of Design, and listed on Forbes and Inc Magazines 30-under-30.

Hilton Grand Ballroom (Salon HJK)

Featured Session: Moonshots that Move the Needle

SXSW Community Service Awards Recognition: The Bell

Featured Session: Strategy in the Times of Chaos: Imagining Futures of Education

Featured Session: How to Support Resilient Youth in an AI World

More than 8 million species share our planet. Until now, we’ve only understood the language of one. In this keynote, Aza Raskin, Co-founder of Earth Species Project, explores how AI is being used to decode the languages of other species—revealing complex, learned communication across the animal kingdom. For the first time in history, we can truly listen. The question isn’t if we’ll break the interspecies barrier. It’s whether we’ll do it in time to change everything.

American Sign Language
Open captioned
Closed captioned

KEYNOTE: NATURE SPEAKS. CAN AI HELP US LISTEN?


German Music Export at SXSW: Day 5 at German Haus

Speakeasy

German DeepTech and AI Innovation Unleashed: Day 1 at German Haus

Future in Focus: Meet Germany’s Top AI Startups

Innovation for Everyone: Day 2 at German Haus

MediaTech Morning: Breakfast, Networking & Beyond Screens – MediaTech as the New Infrastructure

For the final day at the German Haus we go out with a bang. If you are a music industry professional come early for networking between 02:00 - 03:00PM. The daytime showcase starts at 3:00PM featuring Agatha is Dead!'s raw post-punk intensity, Bikini Beach's fuzz-drenched garage psych and t-low's emotional trap. For the evening we’ve curated bold and uncompromising performances: from KUOKO's dreamy indie synth-pop and Rosa Anschütz's experimental soundscapes to Modeselektor's high-energy bass-heavy beats.

For more information please visit: https://www.german-haus.com

GERMAN MUSIC EXPORT AT SXSW: DAY 5 AT GERMAN HAUS

German Haus

The GERMAN HAUS is the main venue of the joint German presentation at SXSW and it features a
variety of curated networking events, roundtables, presentations, and music performances, creating a unique environment for professional exchange, international networking, and the discovery of new creative partnerships.

GERMAN HAUS AT SXSW 2026
March 12 – 16, 2026
SPEAKEASY, 412 Congress Avenue, Austin, TX 78701

Speakeasy, 412 Congress Avenue, Austin, TX 78701

AI that Ships: A Tech Lunch on Moving from Policy to Pilot


Matty Wishnow

Matty Wishnow is a serial entrepreneur, the author of "Listening for Growth" & now a documentary film director. Previously he was the founder of Insound—the internet's first record store—as well as Clearhead, one of Austin's best places to work & fastest growing companies in 2015 & '16. Matty spends his time between Austin, TX & Waitsfield, VT.

Alamo Lamar 8

Dead Deer High

Education
Social Issues
The Arts/Theater
Youth/Teen

Sixty years & a million records ago, Robert Christgau invented Rock music criticism. Anyone who has ever read or written a Pop music review has been influenced by Christgau, who canonized legends from The Ramones to Public Enemy & infuriated icons from Lou Reed to Billy Joel. Now in his eighties, Bob is still at it—amazingly with the same vigor, wit, concision and craft that has defined his expansive career. But in a world where albums are irrelevant, where print is dead & where algorithms have eclipsed critics we are forced to ask: What happens next—for Bob, but also for all music criticism? Is this the end of something? Is Robert Christgau the last critic?

The Last Critic

Robert Christgau, The Dean of American Rock Critics, whose work has inspired & infuriated readers for sixty years, is still at it in his eighties—grading records, interrogating commas & listening to absolutely everything (except Metal & Prog).

Robert Christgau, Carola Dibbell, Thurston Moore, Boots Riley, Randy Newman, Colson Whitehead, Ann Powers, Joe Levy, Amanda Petrusich, Greil Marcus

Producer/Editor: Paul Lovelace, Producer/Director of Photography: Ben Wu


Nick Sweeney

Nick Sweeney’s films have brought social issues to wide audiences. Santa Camp (HBO Max) was praised as “challenging and frequently moving” (LA Times), while AKA Jane Roe (FX) told the story of the woman behind Roe v. Wade. His Channel 4 series on trans kids drew 4 million viewers. He is Bangladeshi-Australian and lives in New York with his husband

As a career-defining chapter propels him into global stardom, musician Noah Kahan stands at a crossroads. In the wake of the breakout success of Stick Season—an album born from the quiet of rural Vermont and embraced around the world—Noah begins work on his follow-up album while facing the mounting pressure of what comes next. Over a whirlwind year of sold-out tours and unprecedented acclaim, he returns to his Vermont roots and family. Buoyed by his uncanny wit, he searches for a sense of home and creative inspiration as he confronts the deeply personal struggles that have left him out of sync with himself.

Noah Kahan: Out of Body

As Stick Season propels Noah Kahan into global stardom, he faces the pressure of what comes next. Buoyed by his uncanny wit, he returns to his Vermont roots and family and confronts the personal struggles that have left him out of sync with himself.

Drew Simmons
Ryan Langlois
Michael Rapino
Jessica James Batista
Michael Yerke
Alex Maxwell
Monte Lipman
Jeffrey Remedios
Ben Adelson
Alex Coslov
Jon Kamen
Karla Zambrano

Samantha Mustari
Dave Sirulnick
Stacey Reiss
Ryan Kroft
Vaughn Trudeau
Anna Keegan
David Blackman
Jeff Ludwig
Devon Libran

Co-Producer: Henry Allison, Co-Producer: Asher Brown, Co-Producer: Daniel Inkeles


Caleb Phillips

Caleb Phillips is a director, whose short “The Other Side of the Box” won the Grand Jury Award for Midnight short at SXSW 2019, the Audience Award at 2019 Bucheon, and was featured as a 2020 Vimeo staff pick and Short of the Week. Currently it has amassed more than 25 million views on YouTube. He loves playing D&D and wants to get a cat soon.

Alamo Lamar 9

Time and Water

Archival Materials Courtesy of Andri Snær Magnason

After a couple’s baby boy is taken, the desperate mother learns of a way to bring him back. However, her husband begins to suspect that what she returned with isn't their son.

Imposters

Jessica Rothe, Charlie Barnett, Yul Vazquez, Bates Wilder, Luisina Quarleri, Thomas Parobek, Ian Lyons, Taylor Karin, Lee Bennett, Declan Bennett

Costume Designer: Glinda Suarez, Unit Production Manager: Kelsey Lorensen, 1st Assistant Director: Samantha Rose Valletta, Propmaster: Jenn Driscoll, Lead Scenic: Julia Garrison


Rollins Theatre at the Long Center

Cornbread Mafia

Addiction/Recovery
Legal
Senior/Aging
Social Issue

Action
Biography
Comedy
Crime
Documentary

African American
Books/Literary
Celebrity

Phoenix Jones: The Rise and Fall of a Real Life Superhero

Exceptional storytelling that captivates, surprises, and excites.

Marga en el DF

"Marga en el DF" is a slice-of-life film set during the aftermath of Selena Quintanilla’s death in 1995. The film captures the experience of Marga Salinas, a Dominican woman whose life unravels at 21 weeks pregnant during a surprise visit to Mexico City.

A Dominican woman's life unravels at 21 weeks pregnant during a surprise visit to Mexico City in the aftermath of Selena Quintanilla's murder.

Gabriela Ortega
Holly Stanton
Elle Keseley
Anna Moskowitz

Karla Luna Cantu
Carlos Lopez Estrada
Natalia Gonzalez
Eugenio Valero
Glenn Kiser
Amanda Schneider

MCO Studios
Camila de Laborde
Carlos Vértiz
Héctor Ruiz
Isaac Soto

Camila Santana, David Palacio, Xabiani Ponce de León, Andrea de Fátima, Diana Valencia

Costume Designer: Maria Molinari, Music Supervisor: Nacho Burgoa, Key Makeup Artist: Karla Dueñas, Colorist: Rudy Pesci, Harbour, Production Coordinator: Gabriela Dorneles, Cá Ordica, Additional Editing: Roberto Mendoza, First Assitant Director: Antonio Arizaga, Unit Production Manager: Augusto Ribeiro, Casting Director: Eugenio Valero, Alan Luna, Still Photography: Jacobo Sas

Can I Put You On Hold

Matthew and his girlfriend Dangmo dream of starting a life together in the U.S., but when her visa is unexpectedly denied, their future is thrown into limbo. Struggling with the cold reality of immigration barriers, Matthew seeks help from his lawyer, only to be left “on hold” as his world unravels. Blending grounded drama with surreal visual storytelling, Can I Put You On Hold explores the pressures of long-distance love, the excessive weight of bureaucracy, and the sacrifices people make to be together.

A man struggles with the crushing bureaucracy of immigration as he waits on hold with his immigration lawyer, trying to keep hope alive for his future with his fiancée, only to face a devastating setback that forces him to reconsider everything.

Matthew Cutler, Dangmo Kanyawee, Jason Cutler, Kindia du Plessis, Soonyoung Cutler

Co-Producer: Johvan Padilla, 1st AC: Landon Thomassen, Gaffer: Ariel Soto, Key Grip: Seth Taylor, Swing: Evan Moore, Production Sound: Jackson Hall, Stunt Support: Gaz Leah, Stunt Coordinators: Matthew Cutler and James Cutler, Stunt Driver: Scott Kyle, Production Assistants: Daniel Kirkham, Rodrigo Gutierrez, and Carson Blikenstaff

I Saw You In The Flood

Kai, a genderqueer Chinese-American, and their mother, Li, deal with the effects of a heavy storm on their basement apartment in Queens. Zhou, Kai’s grandfather, is dying in Northeast China. During this sleepless night, a familiar spirit visits Kai and mistakes them for Li.

As their grandfather's health worsens in Northeast China, Kai, a genderqueer Chinese-American in Queens, is visited by a familiar ghost while helping their mother, Li, deal with a heavy storm.

Shayan Ajmal Farooq
Camila Grimaldi
Kevin Xian Ming Yu

Gaffer: Dan Muller, Gaffer: Hunter Kaufman, 1st AC: Ginny Taglia, 2nd AC: Sofia Voss, Colorist: Zack Chalmers, Art Director: Blair Taller, Production Sound: Jessy Yang

Them That’s Not

Andrea “Drea” Stoney, a down-on-her-luck poet, finds herself at her grandmother’s repass, along with her seditty larger-than-life family. But Drea is sticking out like a sore thumb; she’s introspective, Queer, and proudly Deaf, albeit surrounded by her distant family members who don’t care to know ASL. Her visit is complicated by the arrival of her father Samuel, who’s 20 years into a 25-year prison sentence, released for the day on a furlough to say goodbye to his late mother. The two strangers, bound by blood & their love for the deceased, are forced to reconcile with each other before his inevitable return to prison.

A sudden prison furlough unexpectedly bonds an estranged father with his emotionally avoidant daughter at their matriarch’s repass.

Angel Theory, Biko Eisan Martin, Carrie Compere

2nd AD: Isaiah Forte Rose, Sound Mixer: Maddison Whitfield, 2nd AC: Jenny Desrosiers, Director of Artistic Sign Langauge: Alexandria Wailes, Head of DEI: Mars Rucker, 1st AD: David Sunny Roberts, Prod. Coordinator: Mark Marquez, 1st AC: Amir Rose-Aminfu, Hair/MakeUp: Camille J, On Set Interpreter: Alonso Arevir

Imago

Ana Sanchez and her mother Silvia share a very Latina bond, warm, playful, and steeped in guilt. But Silvia suffers from a rare illness that’s slowly turning her into a giant silverfish. As Ana bends to her mother’s escalating needs, her own life begins to unravel. The longer she avoids setting boundaries, the closer she comes to doing something she'll regret.

When Ana's mom starts transforming into a bug, their codependent relationship reaches its boiling point.

Jordan Peele
Win Rosenfeld
Keisha Senter

Didi Romero, Ada Luz Pla, Josh Plasse, Denise Blasor

Executive Producer: Kate Oh, Executive Producer: Dana Gills, Executive Producer: Kesila Childers, Creature Effects: ChumFX, Stop-Motion Effects: Acho Studio

Buah

In a time and place where abortion is illegal, the newly pregnant Siti finds herself trapped. Although married to a loving husband, she doesn’t want to be a mother. She secretly tries everything to rid herself of the foetus, but nothing works. When she meets a carefree female bus driver who is in fact a spiritual entity, Siti realises that the only way out may be to become one too.

In a time and place where abortion is illegal, a pregnant woman’s repeated attempts to end her pregnancy fail until she crosses paths with a strange bus driver.

Tysha Khan, Hana Nadira, Wan Ahmad, Aloeng Silalahi

Line Producer: Yve Vonn Lee, Assistant Line Producer: Eleanor Teh, Assistant Director (Singapore): Gina Tan, Assistant Director (Malaysia): Han Loong Lim, Script Supervisor: Mickey Lai, Intimacy Coordinator: Rayann Condy, Production Manager: See See Yong, Gaffer: Kwang Sin Chang, Location Sound Recordist/ Mixer: Vivieen Yeo, Colourist: Eugene Seah

We Were Here

Convinced that technology is replacing them, three retired Indian uncles threaten to take over the jobs of household appliances. But when one of their children lands a job at an A.I. company, it rattles their crusade. What happens when the future arrives and no one tells you? And what do you do then, to remind the world that you were here?

In a crumbling Indian town, three retired men stage a protest against machines taking over human jobs, by pretending to be household appliances.

EarlyMan Film
Supavitra Babul
Devaiah Bopannah
Rahul Bharti
Vaibhav Bundhoo

Satish Kashyap, Arindol Bagchi, Dvendra Dodke, Shubham Kujur, Kalpana Gagdekar, Yash Gonsai

Associate Director: Saarth Padmakar, Director's Assistant: Ashwin Karthikeyan, Chief Assistant Director: Niel Modi, Second Assistant Director: Yash Chadotra, Colorist: Yash Soni, Casting Director: Sumit Atri, Workflow Designer, Post Producer: Jay Dantara, Costume Stylist: Nirali Shah, VFX  Producer: Animesh Verma, Creative Consultant: Aashna Sharma

Narrative Short Program 2

English, Malay, Mandarin, Spanish; Castilian


The Great Tech Trivia Break

Join Microsoft for high‑energy trivia. Play from your phone—no sign‑ups, no pressure—just fast rounds, big laughs, and fun prize giveaways. It’s built to spark curiosity and boost your energy in minutes. After the final question, stick around for a quick demo of AI Skills Navigator to see how AI can elevate your learning journey. Come for the trivia, stay for the insight, leave inspired.


Featured Session: Trusted, Valued, Essential: Why PBS is Here to Stay, With or Without Federal Funding

Evan Smith

Managing Director for Events

Evan Smith is managing director of events at The Atlantic, overseeing live journalism and other public programming produced by the award-winning 169-year-old magazine. He’s also a senior advisor at Emerson Collective, working closely with journalists and funders around the country to support local news. Previously he spent more than thirteen years at The Texas Tribune, which he co-founded and led as CEO, and nearly eighteen years at Texas Monthly, including nine years as editor in chief and a year as president. Evan is a professor of practice at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin, where he teaches a graduate-level course on the politics and issues of the moment, and is the host of “Overheard with Evan Smith,” a weekly half-hour interview program that airs on PBS stations from coast to coast.

Paula Kerger

President & CEO

Paula A. Kerger is president and chief executive officer of PBS, the nation’s largest non-commercial media organization representing more than 330 member stations throughout the country. She is the longest-serving president and CEO in PBS history.

Over 19 years, Kerger has led the transformation of PBS from a broadcaster to a multiplatform digital media organization which delivers on public television’s essential mission of education, inspiration and service to the American public. Each year, 58% of U.S. television households watch PBS, and each month, PBS reaches over 36 million adults on linear primetime television, more than 15 million users on PBS-owned streaming platforms, and garners nearly 43 million impressions on social media. Programs on PBS are consistently recognized with the industry's most prestigious honors, including Peabody, Emmy and Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University awards.

Under Kerger’s leadership, PBS has deepened its impact, from providing universal access to early learning resources through the PBS KIDS broadcast and streaming channels, to empowering educators with digital resources through PBS LearningMedia. In the 2023-24 school year, 17 million users visited PBS LearningMedia – averaging 1.7 million users per month. Kerger also serves as president of the PBS Foundation, which provides a significant source of revenue for projects that benefit the entire public television system.

Salon 1-4

Featured Session: Multiplayer Futures: Co-Creating a Vision of SXSW 2030 (live!)

Featured Session: A Conversation with The All-American Rejects

Featured Session: Enough with the Bullsh*T: BuzzFeed Founder Shares His Plan to Make the Internet Fun Again

Featured Session: Why Work Feels So Unfair and How Hard Conversations Help

Featured Session: The Internet After Search

Last summer, Congress went against the will of the American people by taking back dedicated federal funding for public television that helped PBS and member stations provide a unique and vital service to America. It was a big blow for the entire public television system that simultaneously forced PBS and member stations to make stark decisions and led to communities across the country stepping up to support the programming they know and love. For perhaps the first time, Congressional action showed the country that public television could be taken away — something viewers realized they wanted to protect. In this fireside chat, hear directly from Paula Kerger, the longest-serving president and CEO in PBS history, about how PBS offers what the commercial media can’t, and why that means the service is here to stay.

FEATURED SESSION: TRUSTED, VALUED, ESSENTIAL: WHY PBS IS HERE TO STAY, WITH OR WITHOUT FEDERAL FUNDING


The LEGO Futures Imaginarium: Play Your Way to Tomorrow

David Pallash

Director Global Initiatives - Social Responsibility

David has spent much of his professional life working with young people, including the past ten years at the LEGO Group where he has been leveraging the power of play to connect children’s creativity to real-world challenges, developing programs, experiences and content that builds a sense of agency and voice on the topics children care most about. Equally passionate about creativity and the planet outside of work, David is also a wildlife photographer, musician and conservationist.

Joana Lenkova

Futurology Director

Joana Lenkova has spent her career exploring how change shapes people, organisations, and the world around us. As Director of Cultural and Futures Intelligence at the LEGO Group, she focuses on how technology, nature, identity, and societal shifts will define the future of play and childhood - and how the company can respond with purpose. With nearly two decades of experience across brand, strategy, foresight, and innovation, her work weaves futures thinking into decision-making to connect long-term vision with present action. She has shared her work on global stages including the inaugural SXSW London, UNICEF, the Building Hopeful Futures Festival - a UN Summit of the Future side event, Innovation Roundtable, and the Global Innovation Forum.

Brazos I-III

Division Defiance: Building Cross-Racial Solidarity

In Search of Hope: Teaching Climate Emotions Through Story

Beyond Borders: Diverse Alliances for Immigrant Wellbeing

Future-Proof Your Strategy: An AI Test and Learn Lab

Pitch Camp! How To Win Creative Pitches by Being More Human

What if your most imaginative future was already inside you, hidden in your most cherished moment of childhood play? The LEGO Imaginarium is a hands-on foresight workshop where participants use LEGO bricks, storytelling, and memory prompts to reconnect with their inner child and build physical models of possible futures. Guided by futures thinking tools, the LEGO system in play, and inspired by the creativity of kids, this session blends strategic foresight with playful, hands-on exploration to unlock fresh perspectives on what’s next in the future.

LEGO FUTURES IMAGINARIUM: PLAY YOUR WAY TO TOMORROW


How to Not Be Cringey On Camera: Media Insider Secrets

Kim Rittberg

Founder & Video Expert

Kim Rittberg is 6x award-winning digital marketer and video coach who helps professionals and businesses grow their income, leads & credibility through video & podcasts - through her public speaking & video trainings. She spent 15 years as a media executive at Netflix, PEOPLE Magazine, and in TV News and launched the first-ever video unit for Us Weekly magazine.  She's a keynote speaker and a judge for the Emmy Awards & the Webby Awards.

Rio Grande Ballroom 1

You Are STILL the Brand: What AI Can’t Do for You

Sprints for Social Impact: Turn Time Pressure into Purpose

Vibe Coding: From Idea to MVP at Warp Speed

Look What You Made Me Do: Revenge as Creative Catalyst

Artistic Disruption for Business Innovation

Hate being on camera? You're not alone! But nowadays everyone is expected to be confident and camera-ready—for social media, conferences, and even meetings. Award-winning media expert Kim Rittberg, now a public speaking and video coach, spent 15 years in media at Netflix and PEOPLE Magazine and has trained thousands to not just stay calm but shine under the lights. In this lively session, Kim shares insider secrets to help you win over anyone—on stage or on video. You’ll leave with tangible on-camera and speaking tips, more confidence, and a roadmap to becoming a thought leader.

HOW TO NOT BE CRINGEY ON CAMERA: MEDIA INSIDER SECRETS


Featured Session: The Great Flip: Why Every Industry Is Running Backwards

Sam Jordan

Head of Computing and Technology

Sam heads Future Today Strategy Group’s Technology & Computing practice, where she leads research on the future of human-AI interaction, digital ecosystems, next-generation form factors, and the computational infrastructure that will power tomorrow’s experiences. As a senior foresight manager, she turns those insights into actionable strategies for clients across industries – from finance and CPG to health care and space-tech.

Sam previously co-founded TrovBase, a secure data discovery and analysis sharing platform. Before her role at TrovBase, Sam worked at IBM, where she helped large enterprises in the retail and distribution sector modernize their IT stack. Her expertise centered around mainframes, assisting with the integration of new software and modern methodologies to legacy systems.

A Kansas native, Sam holds an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business and an undergraduate degree in economics and data analysis from George Mason University. She is an in-demand speaker on strategic foresight and industry futures, and she currently serves as a guest lecturer and advisor in the strategic foresight class offered at NYU Stern. In her spare time, Sam regularly trains in judo at the Oishi Dojo in Manhattan.

Hilton Grand Ballroom (Salon HJK)

Featured Session: Moonshots that Move the Needle

SXSW Community Service Awards Recognition: The Bell

Featured Session: Strategy in the Times of Chaos: Imagining Futures of Education

Featured Session: How to Support Resilient Youth in an AI World

Technology isn’t just accelerating progress, it's changing the very process of progress itself: product testing can happen virtually before building, clinical trials can be simulated before major lab investment, distribution can dictate where production happens. This session will change how you see every workflow in your business. You'll walk away armed with a practical framework that will help you learn how to identify inversions in your own industry. The future belongs to leaders who think in reverse.

FEATURED SESSION: THE GREAT FLIP: WHY EVERY INDUSTRY IS RUNNING BACKWARDS


The Great Recalibration: Centering Humanity in the Age of AI

Tobias Peyerl

Head Of Strategic Intelligence And Analysis

Tobias Peyerl leads the Strategic Intelligence and Analysis team at OpenAI, safeguarding advanced AI systems from misuse and emerging threats. Since joining in 2024, he has driven risk assessments across global compute infrastructure, geopolitical environments, and national security, while scaling safety capabilities with external partners. His team enables the safe adoption of AI by businesses and governments through tailored intelligence, proactive monitoring, and open-access safety tools and advances a core mission to strengthen a global community of democratic states so AI benefits all of humanity and frontier risks are addressed before they materialize.

Kasley Killam

Author

Kasley Killam is a leading expert in social health and author of The Art and Science of Connection: Why Social Health is the Missing Key to Living Longer, Healthier, and Happier. As a Harvard-trained social scientist, 2X TED speaker, sought-after advisor, and award-winning founder, Killam has been dedicated to improving well-being through human connection for nearly 15 years. Globally recognized for her thought leadership on social health, Killam’s collaborations with top organizations like Google, the US Department of Health and Human Services, and the World Economic Forum contribute to building more socially healthy products, workplaces, and communities. Discover her insights in outlets like The New York Times, Forbes, NPR, CNBC, and The Washington Post and join her newsletter community at www.kasleykillam.com.

Lambert Hogenhout

Chief Data and AI

I work on Data and AI at the United Nations. I have published several books (fiction and non-fiction) and research articles. I am a keynote speaker and advisor on AI strategy, digital ethics and the responsible use of technology.

Dan Burgar

CEO and Co-Founder

Dan Burgar is a global ecosystem builder and innovation leader shaping a more human, connected, and resilient future through technology, capital, and community. Based in Vancouver, he has played a defining role in elevating the region’s frontier technology ecosystem onto the world stage while building durable, cross-border networks spanning North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.

As Founder and CEO of Frontier Collective, Dan leads a global innovation platform that has catalyzed over $900M in economic impact, supported 350+ startups, and convened founders, investors, policymakers, and industry leaders across AI, climate, biotech, mobility, robotics, and frontier technologies. His work focuses on building the physical, social, and institutional infrastructure required for ecosystems to scale responsibly and collaborate across borders, including the vision for a 150,000+ sq ft Innovation Hub designed as a permanent international platform for innovation, creativity, and impact.

Dan is also recognized as an early leader in the global VR, AR, and spatial computing industry. As co-founder of the exited venture Shape Immersive, he helped pioneer early commercial applications of immersive and real-time 3D technologies as the sector evolved from experimentation to scale. Through Shape, he collaborated with global brands including Red Bull, Disney, Sephora, the Olympics, and NIKE, contributing to Emmy Award–nominated work and helping establish Vancouver as a leading global hub for immersive and 3D talent.

Dan is a LinkedIn Top Voice in Technology & Innovation, a BIV Top Forty Under 40 honoree, a Van Mag Power 50 recipient, and a BC500 leader. He has spoken at major global forums including SXSW (Austin, Sydney, and London), Web Summit, Collision, London Tech Week, and TED.

A trusted advisor to founders and institutions globally, Dan believes the next era of innovation must be built not only on technology, but on trust, human connection, and shared prosperity.

Salon E

The Creative Economy is Thriving: Why Founders Keep Building for Creators

The Lucky 10%: CPGs Flipping Off the Startup Failure Rate

The Art of Scaling Your Startup Without Venture Capital

Who Owns What: The State of Startups & Top Trends to Watch

Now is Japan's Time: Leading the Future with Deep Tech

AI is rapidly reshaping how we work, create, and connect—yet at the same time, people are craving the tactile, the real, and the human. As AI-generated content floods our world, a new question emerges: where do we fit?

This panel explores the tension between acceleration and authenticity. How do we design AI that strengthens community instead of replacing it? How do we protect meaning, creativity, and trust in an era of misinformation and automation?

Innovation leaders will examine the cultural shift already underway and share a vision for an AI-powered future where human values and relationships remain at the center.

GREAT RECALIBRATION: CENTERING HUMANITY IN THE AGE OF AI


The Numbers Behind the Hits: How Data is Driving K-pop's Global Domination

Jaime Marconette

VP, Music Insights & Industry Relations

Jaime Marconette is a seasoned music industry marketing professional with extensive experience spanning major labels, indie agencies and music education administration. Based in Nashville, Marconette currently serves as VP, Music Insights and Industry Relations at Luminate, the entertainment data company formerly known as Nielsen Music and MRC Data, which powers the iconic Billboard Charts. Prior to joining Luminate in May 2022, he spent over eight years in Sony Music Nashville’s digital strategy department, where he most recently held the role of Director, Digital Strategy. During his tenure at Sony Music Nashville, Marconette led digital strategy for artists including Kane Brown, Elle King, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley, and Carrie Underwood. Prior to that, he held roles at AristoMedia in Nashville and Stanford University’s Department of Music in Stanford, California. Marconette holds a Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois and completed his undergrad work at The College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Lydia Choi

Senior Director, Label Management

Kyungduk Suhr

K-Pop Industry Advisor, Ex-HYBE, Ex-Disney

"Currently serving as an advisor at Kreatorsnetwork, Kyungduk Suhr was most recently Strategy Department Leader at HYBE Music Group APAC. He has extensive experience across the entertainment industry in both the US and Korea, including at Disney and CJ ENM.

Abigail Raymaker

Head Of Global Partnerships

Abi Raymaker is Head of Global Partnerships at KreatorsNetwork, where she
focuses on international marketing campaigns for Korean artists expanding into
global markets. With a background spanning tour operations, visual content, and
cross-territory strategy, she has worked for artists including Depeche Mode and
Pharrell Williams and supported projects with major partners such as Live Nation
and Marshall.

Capitol Ballroom ABCD

Global Stage @ Downright Austin Backyard

Beyond the Track: Storytelling Across Music, Film & New Visual Frontiers with Vic Mensa

Who Gets Credit When Anyone Can Train a Music AI?

Darkchild On the Record: Music, Legacy, and Change

This exclusive industry panel brings together major Korean music labels and data analytics leaders to reveal the strategies behind K-pop's global dominance—and what Western music can learn from it. Hear how Korean labels leverage data to make decisions about tours, content, and promotion across different regions. We'll talk about the distinctive "superfan" cultivation approach that prioritizes deep engagement through multi-platform content funnels over traditional radio-and-playlist reach, and examine their export-first philosophy: building global audiences from day one with multilingual content and culturally-adaptive campaigns rather than establishing domestic success first.

NUMBERS BEHIND THE HITS: HOW DATA IS DRIVING K-POP'S GLOBAL DOMINATION


Featured Session: The Internet of Value Meets the Internet of Intelligence

Mallun Yen

Founder and Partner

Mallun Yen is an investor, founder, operator, and category creator who has devoted the past 20 years to changing the status quo and shifting industry norms. She founded Operator Collective, the early-stage B2B venture firm that connects founders to world-class enterprise operators, in 2019 and serves as CEO and Partner. Before OpCo, Mallun built up three other category-creating companies, including venture-backed RPX, SaaStr, and ChIPsNetwork.org, and was the VP of Worldwide IP at Cisco. She is also a member of Pure Storage Board of Directors and the US Patent & Trademark Office’s Council for Inclusive Innovation (CI2).

Li Fan

Chief Technology & AI Officer

Salon 6-8

Featured Session: A Conversation With Spotify's New Co-CEO About The Past, Present And Future Of Delivering Creativity To The World

Featured Session: Shaping Brand Relevance for a New Generation

Featured Session: A Waste of Time with Larry David and Jeff Schaffer

Featured Session: Why Saying Yes to the Unthinkable Works

Featured Session: Albuquerque Aftermath: From Breaking Bad to Pluribus with Rhea Seehorn, Vince Gilligan, and Key Creatives

As AI and blockchain mature in parallel, we are witnessing the emergence of two powerful networks: the Internet of Intelligence, where autonomous AI systems reason and act, and the Internet of Value, where tokenized assets and stablecoins move frictionlessly across borders.

This session explores what happens when these two networks converge — when AI agents can hold, send, and earn value — and how this convergence will reshape global commerce, financial systems, and enterprise operations. Drawing from her experience leading AI transformation at Circle, an internet infrastructure company pioneering stablecoins, Li Fan will share both the vision and operational realities of building compliant, intelligent, and scalable financial infrastructure for the AI era.

FEATURED SESSION: THE INTERNET OF VALUE MEETS THE INTERNET OF INTELLIGENCE


Mentor Session: Michelle Aronson (Culture and Strategy Lab)

Michelle Aronson

CEO/CHRO

Michelle Aronson is a recovering Chief People Officer, certified executive coach, and culture strategist. As founder of Culture + Strategy Lab, she helps high-growth teams build measurable people strategies that drive business results. With expertise in strategy, HR, and leadership, she's supported culture development across cleantech, healthcare, and other world-changing (in a good way) companies. She has designed culture and leadership curriculum for the Polsky Center Accelerator and was a mentor with Alchemist Chicago Accelerator. She hosts the True Stories at Work podcast, teaches graduate classes, and travels with conviction.

Room 400-402

Mentor Session: Ali Tager (National Cryptocurrency Association)

Mentor Session: Aniesia Williams (dreambloc)

Mentor Session: Avantika Bagri (Centana Growth Partners)

Mentor Session: Brittan Heller (Stanford Law School)

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in Entrepreneurship, Storytelling, Future of Work.

MENTOR SESSION: MICHELLE ARONSON (CULTURE AND STRATEGY LAB)


Mentor Session: Elizabeth Hogue (The Estée Lauder Companies Inc)

Elizabeth Hogue

Director of Global Product Management

Elizabeth is a passionate beauty industry expert with a proven track record in product leadership, analytics, and ecommerce strategy. She is currently responsible for enhancing the global online experience across a portfolio of Estée Lauder brands, and brings more than a decade of retail expertise to the table.
Elizabeth also has experience as a founder in the fashion industry. In 2020, she launched NativeGood, an ecommerce company dedicated to reducing clothing waste. NativeGood partnered with local thrift stores across America during the pandemic shutdowns by allowing stores to reach audiences online through curated bundles of excess clothing.
As a mentor in the fashion and beauty industry, Elizabeth is dedicated to sharing her wealth of knowledge and experiences, empowering aspiring professionals to navigate the ever-evolving landscape. Her goal is to inspire and foster the next generation of beauty and brand leaders, enabling them to make a meaningful impact in the industry.

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in Fashion/Retail, Product Management/Development, Entrepreneurship.

MENTOR SESSION: ELIZABETH HOGUE (THE ESTEE LAUDER COMPANIES INC)


Mentor Session: Brent Chase (Palbud)

Brent Chase

CEO

Brent Chase is a results-driven Product Manager and social impact entrepreneur with a robust background in neurodiversity-focused innovation. He has co-founded several successful startups, including PALBUD, where he developed a SaaS marketplace for families with autistic children, leading to significant revenue increases and improved well-being for users. Brent excels in leveraging data-driven insights to optimize product features and execute high-impact marketing strategies. With a passion for social impact, he has secured numerous NSF and NIH grants worth millions, driving advancements in medtech and neurodiversity.
Brent also mentors a plethora of social impact and medtech startups, sharing his expertise to foster innovation and positive change. As a mentor, Brent can help you navigate the challenges of startup growth, secure funding, and develop strategies that align with your mission. A natural leader, he thrives in dynamic environments and is committed to making a meaningful impact.

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in MedTech, Product Management/Development, Entrepreneurship.


Mentor Session: Nolan Melson (Apple)

Nolan Melson

Product Manager

Nolan Melson currently serves as a Product Manager at Apple, where he builds AI-powered B2B e-commerce enterprise applications. He brings a unique blend of technical, business, and mission-driven leadership to his work, shaped by his experience across the military, consulting, startups, and big tech.

Prior to Apple, Nolan was a technology consultant at Capgemini, delivering enterprise-scale ERP solutions for Fortune 100 clients. He also co-founded an e-commerce startup, gaining firsthand experience in product development, go-to-market, and early-stage growth. A former U.S. Army Air Defense Artillery Officer, Nolan is committed to supporting veterans and underrepresented groups in their transition into tech.

A longtime contributor to the SXSW community, Nolan has served as a Speaker, Mentor, Advisory Board Member, and Judge for the Innovation Awards and Conference programming. SXSW 2026 marks his 12th year attending the festival.

He holds a B.S. in Systems Engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point and an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin, McCombs School of Business.

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning, Product Management/Development, Entrepreneurship.


Mentor Session: Simone Kliass (XRBR (Brazilian Extended-Reality Association))

Simone Kliass

Co-founder and board member

Simone Kliass works at the intersection of innovation and human connection as a speaker, curator, mentor, voice artist, and immersive media specialist. This year, she returns to SXSW with the session A Guide to the XR Experience, joins the SP House AI & Tech curation team, and serves as an SXSW mentor for the seventh time.

A co-founder and board member of the Brazilian Association of Extended Reality (XRBR), Simone previously served as VP of the Audio and Voice Committee at IAB Brasil and chaired its XR, Games, and Metaverse Committee. She speaks internationally on human-centered innovation and advises global organizations on the cultural and narrative implications of emerging technologies.

A seven-time Voice Arts Award winner, Simone also narrates global campaigns and immersive experiences, including the Portuguese version of a Primetime Emmy-winning production recognized for Outstanding Innovation in Interactive Media.

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in Entrepreneurship, Storytelling, Immersive Technology.

MENTOR SESSION: SIMONE KLIASS (XRBR (BRAZILIAN EXTENDED-REALITY ASSOCIATION))


Mentor Session: Aaron Meola (DISCO)

Aaron Meola

Head of Customer Success

Aaron Meola is a deeply versatile force in the music industry. He’s an expert in sync licensing, artist management, and music tech with a track record that spans underground acclaim to startup leadership. As Head of Customer Success at DISCO, he’s built a reputation for scaling high performing teams, translating complex workflows into elegant SaaS solutions, and driving real results for artists, labels, and music companies. He’s spent the past several years working inside high-growth SaaS startups, bringing customer-centric thinking to product development, partnership building, and team operations.

Prior to DISCO, he worked in Artist Management helping acts like Gossip, Lower Dens, and Natasha Kmeto. As Label Manager for Tender Loving Empire, he released one of NPR’s Top 50 Albums of 2016 and had multiple Billboard charting releases. His work with Y La Bamba earned a A2IM Libera Award for Best Latin Album, and his early 2010s Gem Drops compilations reached #1 on Bandcamp, cementing his role as both curator and connector in the independent music space.

Whether talking shop about licensing in the age of AI or building meaningful partnerships across the creative and tech industries, Aaron brings clarity, empathy, and a deep well of knowledge. He’s the kind of speaker who bridges the gap between innovation and artistry, fluent in both human connection and product strategy. With hands-on experience in everything from indie label operations to SaaS implementation, he offers a rare blend of creative vision and business acumen that resonates across disciplines.

Tannehill

Global Stage @ Downright Austin Backyard

Mentor Session: Arnaecia Alridge (Methix)

Mentor Session: Isabella Uknis (Universal Music Publishing Group)

Mentor Session: Lauren Apolito (The Harry Fox Agency/Rumblefish )

Mentor Session: Max Christensen (Crunchy Frog/Crunchy Tunes)

Mentor Session: Noel Morrison (SiriusXM/Pandora)

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in Sync/Licensing, Music Tech, IP & Copyright.


Mentor Session: Cabrea Casey (Downtown Music Publishing )

Cabrea Casey

Director of A&R

Cabrea Casey is an established sync and A&R rep based in New York, with over a decade of experience working in Music Publishing. Currently, Cabrea works across both the Sync and A&R teams at Downtown Music Publishing. In Sync, she has pitched and licensed music for brands including Apple, Google, Royal Caribbean, and DKNY, and for television shows such as Ginny and Georgia (Netflix) and Gross Pointe Garden Society (NBC). As an A&R, Cabrea has proudly signed publishing deals with Ani DiFranco, Momma, Nation of Language, Pom Pom Squad, Donna Missal, Phony Ppl, and Annie DiRusso to name a few. In parallel to her career in Publishing, Cabrea regularly DJ's around New York City and Brooklyn; as a DJ, she has performed at Soho House, National Sawdust, Baby's All Right, Nicky's Unisex, Knitting Factory and more.

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in A&R, Publishing, Sync/Licensing.

MENTOR SESSION: CABREA CASEY (DOWNTOWN MUSIC PUBLISHING )


Mentor Session: Gabi Kochlani (The Grey Administration)

Gabi Kochlani

Founder, Head of A&R

Gabi Kochlani is an A&R Executive, Music Publisher, and Founder of The Grey Administration, a boutique A&R services and music publishing company. With over 20 years of experience, she has been a key player on numerous A-list music teams, holding A&R roles at EMI Music Publishing and Bump Into Genius/Warner-Chappell Music, where she helped sign and develop multi-platinum talent including Ben Burgess and Mikal Blue.
Early in her career, Gabi gained hands-on experience in management with Crosby, Stills & Nash, toured with Miley Cyrus and The Jonas Brothers, and served as Creative Director for Adam Anders (Executive Music Producer for Fox’s hit show Glee) at his publishing company and label, Bump Into Genius. She later became Senior Director of A&R at Universal Music Group, working across frontline labels and spearheading projects such as A&R for top DJ Alesso and the Blade Runner: Black Lotus soundtrack.
Through her company, The Grey Administration, Gabi continues to champion both commercial and sync-driven music. Her roster includes Fulton Street Media Group (custom music for global brands like Google, NIKE, Honda, and Verizon), producer/songwriter Dawty (French Montana, Janelle Monáe, Illenium), and songwriter Shannon Roc (Avril Lavigne, Kelly Clarkson, Fefe Dobson), among others.
Beyond publishing, Gabi is the Founder & Producer of PopOut LA, the first LGBTQ+ focused music industry conference, which launched in 2024 and just held it's 2nd annual conference in April 2025 hosted by Warner Music Group, LA. Rooted in integrity and driven by a passion for equality in the arts, she continues to use her platform to develop talent, foster community, and shape culture through music.

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in A&R, Songwriting, Management.

MENTOR SESSION: GABI KOCHLANI (THE GREY ADMINISTRATION)


Mentor Session: Wofford Denius (Eisner, LLP)

Wofford Denius

Attorney - Music/Ent

As an attorney in the Music Industry I represent, advise and counsel songwriters, recording artists, producers, managers, publishing and record companies in connection with their respective music business legal matters and careers, including, without limitation, preparing and negotiating contracts and agreements in all facets of the music business.

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in Contracts & Agreements, Distribution, IP & Copyright.

MENTOR SESSION: WOFFORD DENIUS (EISNER, LLP)


Round Table: Screenwriting: Aaron Karo, Aaron B. Koontz, and Cheryl Eagan-Donovan

Cheryl Eagan-Donovan

Writer/Director/Producer

Cheryl Eagan-Donovan MFA is an award-winning writer, director, and producer whose documentary Nothing Is Truer than Truth premiered on Hulu in 2019, is available on Amazon Prime in North America, and aired on SkyArts TV in the U.K. and in New Zealand under the title Shakespeare: The Man Behind the Name. Her debut documentary All Kindsa Girls screened at festivals and art house theaters in London, Toronto and throughout the U.S.

She has teaches screenwriting at Lesley University and serves as a manuscript consultant for screenwriters and producers. She has been a judge for several screenwriting contests and fellowships. She has published articles about Shakespeare, screenwriting, and film, and has appeared on NPR and several podcasts. She is writing a book for screenwriters, Shakespeare Auteur: Creating Authentic Characters for the Screen, and is currently in production for her next film project, All the World’s a Stage: Shakespeare and the Invention of Modern Theater.

Aaron B. Koontz

CEO & Founder

Aaron is the lead writer, co-creator, EP and Showrunner of the hit Peacock and SYFY series REVIVAL. Beyond showrunning Aaron is also an accomplished and Indie Spirit nominated producer, with over 25 Produced films to his name including the SXSW darling The Artifice Girl and NEON’s Shelby Oaks which he produced alongside Mike Flanagan.  Aaron also has written and directed four features of his own including The Pale Door (RLJE Films), Camera Obscura (NBC-Universal) and the two Scare Package films (Shudder).

Aaron Karo

Screenwriter, Comedian, Author, Podcaster

Aaron Karo is a comedian, screenwriter, podcaster, and #1 New York Times bestselling author. His latest feature TICKLE ME ELMO was voted #8 on the 2024 Black List and is being developed by Misher Films with Brendan Fraser attached to star. He recently sold his sitcom script BLANKS to CBS, and the young adult series LEXAPROS AND CONS to Paramount/Awesomeness, based on his novel of the same name. Karo starred in the one-hour Comedy Central stand-up special AARON KARO: THE REST IS HISTORY and in 2024 headlined a sold out performance at the NETFLIX IS A JOKE comedy festival in Los Angeles. He is the author of seven books and the co-author of the #1 New York Times bestseller THE HIDDEN POWER OF F*CKING UP. His latest book – an oral history of the movie ELF – will be published by HarperCollins on Christmas 2026. Karo also co-hosts MAN OF THE YEAR, a podcast dedicated to ending the epidemic of loneliness, which has been featured in The New York Times, on NPR, and the Today Show.

Representative

Round Table: Programming: Landon Zakheim, Monica Garcia Massague, and R.J. LaForce

Round Table: Sales, Acquisitions, and Distribution: Amy Beecroft, Joe Yanick, and Shaked Berenson

Round Table: Producing: Ashleigh Snead, Kelly Williams, and Liz Cardenas

Round Table: Acting: Alexandra Barreto, Alyssa Rodriguez, and Rider Strong

Round Table: Development: Carolina Tamez and Henry Kittredge

An extension of our popular Mentor Sessions, our Round Table Sessions not only allow attendees to learn from the industry experts that sit at each of the three tables in this session but they also allow attendees to learn from the questions and experiences of their peers as well. This Round Table Session will bring together industry experts and SXSW attendees for an enlightening discussion on Screenwriting.

ROUND TABLE: SCREENWRITING: AARON KARO, AARON B. KOONTZ, AND CHERYL EAGAN-DONOVAN


XR Filmmaking Mentor Session: Christina Lee Storm (Playbook PLBK, Inc.)

Christina Lee Storm

Co-Founder/Partner

Christina Lee Storm is Co-Founder of PLAYBOOK PLBK and Head of Studio, Long Form at Secret Level. An award-winning producer and accomplished executive, she pioneers storytelling through emerging technologies across film, series, animation, and multi-platform storytelling. She's been instrumental advancing production innovation for franchises, IP and world-building for Netflix, Universal, and DreamWorks Animation.

Christina is Co-Founder of The Creative + Tech Orbit substack. She is the Television Academy's Emerging Media Programming Governor, Advocacy Committee Co-Chair, Responsible AI Working Group Lead, and Innovation Advisory Committee member. She sits on the Producers Guild of America’s Production Innovation Task Force member, Los Angeles Mayor’s Entertainment Industry Council, and Runway’s 100 Film Fund Advisor Panel.

Globally known as a thought leader in the emerging media landscape, Christina was inducted into AWE’s inaugural XR Hall of Fame, received the Lumiere Distinguished Leadership Award in Technology, and is a newly inducted member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences, Class of 2025.

Executive Room

Publicity and Marketing Mentor Session: Jenny Bloom (Bloomerang PR)

Publicity and Marketing Mentor Session: Lisa Trifone (Bright Iris Film Co.)

Publicity and Marketing Mentor Session: Maddy Bilder (26 Keys Productions)

Programming Mentor Session: Boram Park (Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival)

Programming Mentor Session: Haojie Huang (Kaohsiung Film Festival)

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in VR/XR Filmmaking.

XR FILMMAKING MENTOR SESSION: CHRISTINA LEE STORM (PLAYBOOK PLBK, INC.)


XR Filmmaking Mentor Session: Cassandra Herrman

Cassandra Herrman

Educator, Documentary Filmmaker and Immersive Storyteller

Cassandra Herrman is a documentary filmmaker, immersive storyteller, and journalist based in Oakland, California. Her work seeks to challenge mainstream representations and complicate dominant narratives.

Cassandra’s immersive storytelling work includes After Solitary, a collaboration with Emblematic Group and PBS FRONTLINE. The project brings audiences into the world of Kenny Moore who survived years in solitary confinement and is struggling to navigate life after his release. Through room-scale virtual reality, After Solitary places viewers inside two photorealistic 3D-scanned environments – one of a solitary cell and the other of an ordinary bedroom – alongside Moore. The piece was honored with the Jury Award for Room-Scale VR at SXSW, the top prize at the World VR Forum in Switzerland, and ONA’s Excellence in Immersive Storytelling Award. After Solitary creates a visceral sense of presence, inviting audiences to inhabit spaces and experiences often hidden from public view.

As a Storyteller in Residence at McClatchy’s New Ventures Lab, Cassandra explored Augmented Reality’s potential for journalism, co-directing What They Carried, an episodic AR series for mobile that uses 3D illustrations, animations, and volumetric video to tell the story of migrants crossing the Mexico–U.S. border through the personal belongings they carry with them. The project was honored with ONA’s Excellence and Innovation in Visual Digital Storytelling Award.

She contributed story, research, and concept development for Unsung, an educational AR experience by Kinfolk Tech for New York City middle school students highlighting women singers of color who overcame societal challenges to make their voices heard. She also produced spatial and 360 projects, including When Lighting the Voids, a walk-around audio-driven AR drama based on a Reveal investigation; Ocean to Plate, a collaboration with World Wildlife Fund and Google Daydream Impact; and served as a consulting producer on We Who Remain, a VR documentary filmed in Sudan that premiered at SXSW and won the SIFF 360/VR Award. Cassandra has presented her immersive work at international conferences and forums, including the Global Investigative Journalism Conference in Johannesburg, the Zurich University of the Arts, Digital Hollywood, AFI DOCS, and the Newseum, speaking on panels about VR, AR, and the evolving role of immersive journalism.

Her documentary work includes the recently released independent feature When I Say Africa, which turns the lens on the West's representations of Africa, from the first European adventurers' sketches to pop culture today, and was sparked by her own reckoning as a filmmaker. The film premiered at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM)'s Film Africa series and the New York African Film Festival in May 2025. She is currently directing a short on Lavender Lounge, a queer music and dance party show that aired on San Francisco public access TV in the 1990s. Vibrant and defiant, the show created a stage for LGBTQ+ life and creativity in the wake of the AIDS crisis and amid rising culture wars. Her previous films include the Emmy-nominated Tulia, Texas, co-produced with ITVS and broadcast on PBS Independent Lens. It premiered at SXSW, and examines a town fractured by racial injustice in America’s War on Drugs. She has produced films for Al Jazeera’s investigative series Fault Lines, PBS NewsHour, MSNBC, and The New York Times. For nearly a decade, she was a cinematographer and producer for the PBS series FRONTLINE/World, filming across the African continent, the Middle East, Latin America, and China. She also filmed for United Nations Television and served as a field producer for a National Geographic series. Her documentary work has been recognized with three national Emmy nominations.

Cassandra was part of the Online News Association’s first Visual Journalists Cohort for GenAI for Newsrooms in 2025, was a 2024 Documentary Film Fellow with the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, and serves on the Board of BAVC Media. She teaches visual storytelling at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, where she earned her master’s degree. Cassandra leads courses in advanced documentary filmmaking and the future of visual storytelling, where students explore immersive and interactive media – from VR and AR to visual forensics, interactives, and generative AI. She brings in innovative creators from across the field as guest speakers, connecting students with mentors, platforms, and career opportunities. Mentorship is something she is deeply passionate about, and she offers individualized support to emerging filmmakers well beyond the classroom.

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in VR/XR Filmmaking, Doc Filmmakers, Producers/Production.

XR FILMMAKING MENTOR SESSION: CASSANDRA HERRMAN


XR Filmmaking Mentor Session: Angela Cohen (Charley Bear Productions)

Angela Cohen

Writer/Director/Producer

Angela Cohen is a multi-talented, award-winning writer, director, and producer who serves up an enigmatic blend of humor, heart, and intrigue. She’s produced films that have screened at the Sundance Film Festival, qualified for the Oscars, and her work as an actress includes legends Al Pacino and Ann Dowd. Angela holds a degree in Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology from Emory University and synergizes her skill sets in virtual reality. She was selected by Google to direct a mind-bending VR piece in their inaugural JUMPSTART initiative and presented TRANQUIL WATERS, her new VR film with Grammy-winning musicians Jessy Greene and Rami Jaffee, at the International Virtual Reality and Healthcare Association symposium.

Angela is a sought-after speaker and juror at film festivals and a mentor at SXSW. Notably, she was the producing director of GlowMedia films, a non-profit dedicated to boosting teen mental health literacy. Her witty comedy "Drive Thru Confessionals" premiered on Elizabeth Banks' WHOHAHA, and her short doc "Unimaginable" premiered at the Oscar-qualifying St. Louis International Film Festival. Her haunting short narrative, "There Can Be Light," world premiered at the Oscar-qualifying Hollyshorts Film Festival and was executive produced by Marci Wiseman, former president of Blumhouse Television.

Angela was selected by the Alliance of Women Directors for the Rising Director Fellowship 2024 for her debut feature, NO GOOD CALLS COME IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, recently announced in Variety. She founded Charley Bear Productions to ignite social change through female-fronted stories. When not making movies, Angela can be found bustin’ a move with her two rescue dogs, Charley and Lucky, and mentoring young women in STEM.

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in Acting, Narrative Filmmakers, VR/XR Filmmaking.

XR FILMMAKING MENTOR SESSION: ANGELA COHEN (CHARLEY BEAR PRODUCTIONS)


XR Filmmaking Mentor Session: Nico Casavecchia (Brand New School)

Nico Casavecchia

Director / Partner

Nico Casavecchia is an Emmy Nominated director, screenwriter and illustrator based in Los Angeles. His work has been featured by the BBC, New York Times, Indi Wire and Wired among other media outlets. Nico’s first feature film, Finding Sofía premiered at the Austin Film Festival. BattleScar, his virtual reality film starring Rosario Dawson premiered at Sundance 2018, and his new short film “Border Hopper” was selected by the 2024 Sundance Film Festival for the US Competition & won Best Narrative at Urbanworld. Nico is currently working on Momoguro, a multi-platform franchise developed with award winning studio Baobab.

Liberty

Agents & Managers Mentor Session: Olivia Mascheroni (Verve Talent & Literary Agency)

Legal Mentor Session: Fabio de Sa Cesnik (CQS FV Law Firm)

Publicity and Marketing Mentor Session: RJ Millard (Obscured Pictures)

Publicity and Marketing Mentor Session: Traci Hanlon (Cinergy Entertainment)

Programming Mentor Session: CC Hutten (TED Conferences)

Meeting with this mentor is highly recommended if you're interested in Development, Narrative Filmmakers, Publicity & Marketing, VR/XR Filmmaking.

XR FILMMAKING MENTOR SESSION: NICO CASAVECCHIA (BRAND NEW SCHOOL)


Intergenerational Workplace Culture Meet Up

Danielle Farage

Work Futurist

Danielle Farage is a Gen Z work futurist, marketer, and speaker who has spent her career helping people feel more connected at work. With experience across corporate, startup, and academic worlds, she brings a human lens to the future of work. A LinkedIn Top Voice for Gen Z featured in Harvard Business Review and Forbes, her insights reach 20M+ people a year. Danielle also coined “friendtorship,” a model for building authentic, cross-generational relationships.

Morgan Young

Founder

Morgan Young is a Gen Z entrepreneur, speaker, and technologist with experience across the Fortune 500, startups, and venture capital. A LinkedIn Top Voice for Gen Z and LinkedIn Learning Instructor in Personal Branding, she reaches millions of early-career professionals through her media and speaking. Morgan builds and consults at the intersection of career, culture, and technology, helping emerging talent navigate the future of work.

Room 408

Convene, Collaborate, & Cultivate Connection: Moms Meet Up

The stereotypes between generations at work are old and tired, and they’re getting in the way of real collaboration. This Meet Up creates space for all generations to talk openly about communication, mentorship, and what working together should look like, while also exploring “friendtorship,” a collaborative, cross-generational relationship built on authenticity, shared learning, and mutual support.

INTERGENERATIONAL WORKPLACE CULTURE MEET UP