The South By Southwest Conference

Every major player in the world of music has the South By Southwest music conference at the forefront of his or her frontal lobe.  Started in 1987, the SXSW festival featured only 700 attendees, but now features over 12,000 registrants for just the music portion alone. As of 1994, film, television, and interactive aspects of the SXSW festival have been included into the organizations mission in order to help artistic individuals and companies reach the masses, and other professionals within the entertainment industry. A trade show of this magnitude features over ninety live music venues, two thousand artists, and represents both business and performing talent from over fifty countries.

The main goal of the SXSW film festival, according to Ana Cantu of About.Com is to give filmmakers and cinephiles the opportunity to network and learn about new industry trends and technology. One notable service that is offered by the organization is the Interactive Festival, where consumers wanting to be at the forefront of technology and social networking can take advantage of expert interviews, expert panels, web designers and developers, influential bloggers, and new media experts; just to name a few.

Dates for this festival are March 9^th – 18^th and prices for this type of festival range from $300 - $1200 dollars, depending on which aspects of the event the consumer would like to attend, and for the live music portions, Austin’s famous Sixth Street is where a multitude of global talent can be found showcasing.

Marketing for this type of event is year round. Relying on many different sponsorships and outlets, including: Miller Lite, Sonic Bids, Chevrolet, Pepsi, Doritos, AT&T, and the IFC, just to name a few, drive a large portion of the advertising momentum that generates a portion of the event’s success, but also relies heavily on past experiences and word of mouth advertising.

Perhaps one of the most important aspects of what the SXSW festival has to offer is the ability to learn from a panel of industry professionals, with special demo listening sessions and one on one artist mentoring. These two types of programs, among many others, are designed to get participants direct access to industry professionals that have agreed to dedicate their time to helping improve the artist’s chance of success, through viable advice and career suggestions.

The South By Southwest festival has too many great features and benefits to name in a single blog; however, there is no shortage of opportunity and excitement at this event/ Showcase. There is absolutely no wondering why the growth of this experience is practically unstoppable.