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SouthXSouthWest - new on-site mobile app

zeeBigBang recommends using the new SXSW GO mobile app for getting the most out of attending SXSW 2013.

ZeeBigBang recommande d’utiliser la nouvelle application en vogue : SXSW GO.

This app was created by Vancouver and Europe based Xomo Digital and is available on Google play and on the App store.

Cette application créée à Vancouver et en Europe par Xomo Digital est disponible sur Google play et sur l’App store.

This app helps you schedule the massive number of things you want to do and people you want to see while discovering SXSW news, music, films and events - all at your fingertips.Jeff Sinclair, Co-Founder of Xomo says, “The main goal of the SXSW app is to improve the attendee experience. There are over 5,000 interactive, music and film events taking place across 10 days, so helping attendees answer the question ‘what can I do next’ is key.”

Cette application permet de voir des gens et de faire diverses choses; à titre d’exemple, si vous voulez découvrir de nouveaux morceaux de musique, des films ou des évènements à ne pas manquer, SXSW est l’outil qu’il vous faut. Jeff Sinclair, un co-fondateur de Xomo, explique: le but principal de SXSW est d’augmenter le nombre de participants à un évènement. Pour augmenter le taux de participation, dit-il, on répartit plus de 5000 évènements (music, film, etc …) sur une période 10 jours. Ce large choix permet aux participants de répondre à des questions telles que : “que vais-je faire ensuite ?”

So what makes the SXSW GO app so cool?

Mais pourquoi SXSW est-il si génial?

“You can now Share Your Schedule with your Facebook Friends – so you will always know where to find everybody,” says Sinclair. “We also added SXSW Radar – which lets you see who else is in the room with you at a session. This year we’re also helping showcase more of the 5,000+ official events taking place across Austin with an interactive media wall called Discover.”

Jeff Sinclair répond : “avec cette application, vous pouvez organiser et partager vos activités sur Facebook ou directement avec vos amis. Une fonction radar a été ajoutée; elle permet à chaque participant de savoir qui d’autre participe à la session SXSW. Cette année, nous allons permettre à plus de 5000 évènements officiels se déroulant à Austin d’être visibles grâce à un outil interactif appelé ‘Discover’”.

At such a massive event, attendees have a need for speed. Done. The SXSW Go app provides a good summary of each event and its location - all in 5 seconds.

Les participants à un évènement d’une telle ampleur veulent de la performance; SXSW Go n’a besoin que de 5 secondes pour donner un résumé de chaque évènement et indiquer le lieu où il se déroule.

Stay tuned. Xomo plans to add new functionality to the app every year.

Restez attentifs car Xomo prévoit d’ajouter de nouvelles fonctionnalités chaque année.

All images from SXSW.com

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imagineNATIVE Industry Panel - Music in Film & TV: Guide for Filmmakers and Musicians

The 13th Annual imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival comprises a line up of thought-provoking films, New Media Art exhibits and an Industry series, which celebrate the works of Indigenous peoples who are at the forefront in film and new media.

zeeBigBang attended the Music in Film & Television panel, which connected Indigenous musicians with Indigenous filmmakers and mainstream professionals within the Film, TV and Music industries. The panel discussed the many sides of music licensing.

The panel was moderated by Denise Bolduc the Board Vice-Chair for imagineNATIVE and featured Brent Bain, manager of the Submissions Department at FACTOR; Elizabeth Klinck, Research & Copyright Clearance Specialist at E Klinck Research; Cris Derksen, Aboriginal Composer & Cellist; Paul Still, Account Executive for Film & TV at SOCAN; Jeremy von Hollen, Music Coordinator at Instinct Entertainment, and Geoff Morrison, Producer and Director at FilmCAN.

Here are the top tips we learned from these industry professionals, which can help you as a filmmaker, television producer or musician.

The Year of the Pig

zeeBigBang connected with director and actor Nick Latimer, who recently completed his short film, Hogtown. The film follows Boris Gilmour (played by Latimer), aka Baxi, Hogtown’s lone piggy back taxi whose “pig” passengers drive him from sanity to a life of bloody street justice. Watch Hogtown below and then read Latimer’s personal account of the trials and tribulations of making this short film.

Hogtown - Short Film - 2012 from Chris Wardle on Vimeo.

Latimer lets us inside the filmmaker’s chair.

Hogtown was the first film I made that cost me more than $50. How much time and money did 12 pages of script cost me? One year and $6000 later, I completed Hogtown. To quote myself as Boris Gilmour in the film, ‘I thought it was the best idea I ever had. I’m an idiot.’

Snare - Spotlight on Director Lisa Jackson

The Stolen Sisters Digital Initiative (SSDI) exhibit starts today as part of the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival. SSDI is an artistic commission of four one-minute digital works made by award-winning Canadian Indigenous filmmakers.

The films celebrate and honour Indigenous women and shed light on the hundreds of unsolved cases of missing and murdered Aboriginal women across Canada.

zeeBigBang spoke with director Lisa Jackson about her short film Snare, which can be seen on TTC Subway screens across Toronto starting on Monday, October 15, 2012.

Planet in Focus Industry Series - The Funding Panel

The Planet in Focus Film Festival kicked off on Wednesday, October 10 with a full line-up of environmentally conscious films and an industry series.

zeeBigBang attended The Funding Panel earlier this morning, which gave emerging and veteran filmmakers the opportunity to meet the funders directly, learn about their programs and hear tips on what makes a successful application.

The panel featured Marcia Douglas, Program Manager for Bell New Media Fund, Martin Harbury, Film & Television Consultant for Ontario Media Development Corporation and Melissa Amer, Deputy Director of the English Market for Canadian Media Fund.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind when applying for funding:

Northwords - an Interactive Literary Documentary

Northwords, premiering at this week’s Planet in Focus Film Festival, is a cross-platform documentary that follows five of Canada’s leading authors as they explore the stunning and harsh terrain of Torngat Mountains National Park in Newfoundland.

Trailer courtesy of filmCAN.

The film, a FilmCAN production from the creators of the National Parks Project, was inspired by award-winning journalist and activist Shelagh Rogers, who had the idea of bringing a group of authors to northern Canada to see how their experiences would effect them as writers.

Saglek Bay inukshuk, Torngat Mountains National Park

zeeBigBang sat down with Northwords’ Director, Geoff Morrison, Producer/Writer Joel McConvey and one of the authors from the film, Alissa York to discuss their experiences in northern Canada and what they hope to achieve with the film.

Spotlight on L.A.’s The Acting Center

This week zeeBigBang shines the spotlight on The Acting Center, a renown acting school located in Los Angeles, California.

The Acting Center was founded in 2006 by a group of seasoned stage, television and film actors and teachers. Since then it has quickly become one of the most respected places to study acting in Los Angeles.

We spoke with one of the founders of the centre, Tamra Meskimen and her husband, Jim Meskimen who is a seasoned actor as well as student at the Acting Center. We asked them what makes this school so different from other acting schools.

Experience the Sun during Culture Days

Sun Life Financial will be showcasing a collection of three short films from leading-edge directors from across Asia as part of Culture Days’ three day-long celebration starting on September 28 in Toronto.

As the Founding Visionary Partner of Culture Days, Sun Life Financial walks the talk on supporting the arts. zeeBigBang spoke with Sun Life’s Assistant Vice-President of Corporate Brand and Marketing, Bill Ramsammy, to find out more about Experience the Sun and what culture means to them as a company.

Culture Days 2012 - Spreading Culture Across Canada

Culture Days announces its third year, with thousands of free hands-on activities happening simultaneously across Canada beginning on September 28, 2012.

zeeBigBang attended the Culture Days media preview earlier this week at the new Regent Park Arts and Cultural Centre. Performing at the preview were Regent Park dance artists from COBA and Juno Award-Winning musician Sean Jones.

Andre Castro working on a live graffiti mural at the Culture Days media launch.

zeeBigBang attended the annual WIFT-T TIFF reception last night. The reception honoured the contributions of Canadian women to the international entertainment industry.

The evening also featured a silent auction fundraiser that raised $3,800 to support WIFT program bursaries for women and WIFT-T’s programming initiatives.

Check out some pictures from the event above.

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