Ambitious Things: How Big Ideas Become Real

{
  "id": "PP1162277",
  "track": "Culture",
  "focus_area": null,
  "category": "Presentation",
  "event_id": "PP1162277",
  "event_type": "panel",
  "format": "Presentation",
  "genre": null,
  "subgenre": null,
  "name": "Ambitious Things: How Big Ideas Become Real",
  "presented_by": null,
  "publish_at": "2025-11-03T16:30:00.000-06:00",
  "reservable": true,
  "reservable_id": "PP1162277",
  "reserved": false,
  "date": "2026-03-14",
  "end_time": "2026-03-14T12:30:00.000-05:00",
  "start_time": "2026-03-14T11:30:00.000-05:00",
  "message": null,
  "image": {
    "alt_text": "Ambitious Things: How Big Ideas Become Real",
    "credit": null,
    "url": "https://images.sxsw.com/wEhrxmdtXGMqy0A44WOyTakrsJ0=/950x633/images.sxsw.com/187/85ee840f-5d3b-be6c-79ea-4fade34e92a3/pp1162277"
  },
  "credentials": [
    {
      "name": "Platinum Badge",
      "type": "platinum"
    },
    {
      "name": "Innovation Badge",
      "type": "innovation"
    }
  ],
  "contributors": [
    {
      "id": 77925,
      "company": "Studio Farland Inc. + Unit9",
      "credential_types": [
        "innovation"
      ],
      "entity_id": 2238877,
      "name": "Hal Kirkland",
      "speaker_types": [],
      "title": "Director, Creative Director, Speaker",
      "image": {
        "alt_text": "Hal Kirkland",
        "credit": null,
        "url": "https://images.sxsw.com/JHQhPDhYj680FxzJOzPLM5DOG1E=/600x600/images.sxsw.com/48/88019a50-ca04-0524-ee85-f05027fd8ad0/pcid-703582"
      },
      "speaker_type": "Speaker",
      "details": "Hal Kirkland is a writer, director, and creative leader working across film, experience, and emerging forms of storytelling. His work focuses on shaping ambitious ideas into visually precise, emotionally grounded stories.\nHe began his career in design before moving into writing and directing, creating global campaigns for leading agencies and brands including 180 Amsterdam, BBH New York, W+K, R/GA, Coca-Cola, Adidas, MTV, and Google.\n\nHal’s work spans commercial film, music videos, interactive projects, and cultural experiences, with work exhibited internationally and presented at institutions including the Guggenheim and MoMA.\n\nHe is represented by UNIT9 and is currently developing longer-form narrative work through Studio Farland, a director-led creative studio exploring film, experience, and emerging storytelling forms.",
      "links": {},
      "type": "person"
    }
  ],
  "venue": {
    "accessible": false,
    "age_policy": null,
    "floor": "4",
    "id": "V0377",
    "indoor_outdoor": "INDOOR",
    "name": "Salon E",
    "parent_id": "V0365",
    "parent_venue_name": "Hilton Austin Downtown",
    "venue_entry_info": null,
    "formats": null,
    "location": {
      "address": "500 E 4th St.",
      "lat_lon": [
        30.2651364,
        -97.7381904
      ],
      "city": "Austin",
      "postal_code": "78701",
      "state": "TX",
      "name": "Hilton Austin Downtown"
    },
    "root": {
      "accessible": null,
      "age_policy": null,
      "floor": null,
      "id": "V0365",
      "indoor_outdoor": null,
      "name": "Hilton Austin Downtown",
      "parent_id": null,
      "parent_venue_name": null,
      "venue_entry_info": null,
      "formats": null
    },
    "events": "[omitted 5 venue events]"
  },
  "description": "Everyone has that one idea. The big, unruly, “what if?” thing. The idea that feels exciting... and terrifying. Ambitious Things is a creative-philosophical talk about how to turn ambitious ideas into ambitious realities. Drawing on decades of experience leaping into the unknown, writer, director, and Studio Farland founder Hal Kirkland shares the small steps that help us start, keep going, and stay inspired enough to finish, without waiting for permission, certainty, or perfect conditions. A talk for anyone cradling the weight of a wild idea and who need a boost to finally make it real.",
  "experience_level": "Beginner",
  "accessibility": [],
  "accessible_venue": false,
  "add_bcl_url": false,
  "add_slido": false,
  "age_policy": null,
  "american_sign_language": false,
  "apple_url": null,
  "audio_description": false,
  "caption_url": null,
  "closed_captioned": false,
  "cpe_credit": false,
  "has_subtitles": false,
  "hash_tags": [],
  "high_sensory_experience": false,
  "live": false,
  "long_description": "Everyone has that one idea. The big, unruly, “what if?” thing. The idea that feels exciting... and terrifying. Ambitious Things is a creative-philosophical talk about how to turn ambitious ideas into ambitious realities. Drawing on decades of experience leaping into the unknown, writer, director, and Studio Farland founder Hal Kirkland shares the small steps that help us start, keep going, and stay inspired enough to finish, without waiting for permission, certainty, or perfect conditions. A talk for anyone cradling the weight of a wild idea and who need a boost to finally make it real.",
  "meeting_url": null,
  "meeting_url_live": false,
  "mentorly_url": null,
  "mobile_audio_url": null,
  "open_captioned": false,
  "playlist_tag": null,
  "rebroadcast": false,
  "recommended_ids": [],
  "search_conversions": null,
  "short_program": false,
  "slido_url": null,
  "sort": "AMBITIOUS THINGS: HOW BIG IDEAS BECOME REAL",
  "source": "Official",
  "squad_up_url": null,
  "stream_embed": null,
  "stream_id": null,
  "stream_url": null,
  "strobe_warning": false,
  "subdiscipline": null,
  "summit": null,
  "summit_display_name": null,
  "tags": [
    {
      "id": 2111,
      "name": "Career",
      "created_at": "2020-01-17T14:49:05.718-06:00",
      "updated_at": "2022-02-14T12:07:52.748-06:00",
      "sort": "CAREER",
      "alpha": "C"
    },
    {
      "id": 2039,
      "name": "Art",
      "created_at": "2018-02-09T18:41:27.091-06:00",
      "updated_at": "2022-02-14T12:08:03.635-06:00",
      "sort": "ART",
      "alpha": "A"
    },
    {
      "id": 950,
      "name": "Storytelling",
      "created_at": "2016-11-04T11:43:51.305-05:00",
      "updated_at": "2024-02-05T16:58:21.488-06:00",
      "sort": "STORYTELLING",
      "alpha": "S"
    }
  ],
  "talent_attending": null,
  "title_only": false,
  "track_display_name": "Culture",
  "trailer_id": null,
  "trailer_url": null,
  "video_on_demand": null,
  "vimeo_id": null,
  "vod": false,
  "xr_project_type": null,
  "youtube_id": null,
  "related_sales_client": null
}