Uncovering New Worlds and Experiences With Cirque du Soleil, NASA, and More

We live in a world where just about everyone is glued to their devices. The need for human interaction and connection is vital now more than ever. So how can we get better at discovering and savoring unique experiences?

The Experiential Storytelling Track at the SXSW Conference blends traditional methods of storytelling with technology-enhanced media for exactly this purpose. Investigate how new and experimental strategies are reimagining and redefining the creative methods used to develop cutting-edge narrative structures.

Connecting Communities

In rapidly changing cities around the world, communities are bombarded with visual information and have their data analyzed at every turn. So how can data analytics and visualization be used for good? Local historical and ecological narratives can be bolstered by temporary activations and murals in public space to better engage and empower urban communities. Get a better idea during the Maps, Murals & Meaningful Moments session. Jane Kim, Richard Mullane, Eric Rodenbeck, and Adam Scott combine science and art to tell powerful local stories. Whether engaging communities around the impacts of sea-level rise, the plight of local species, or the tech company takeover of San Francisco, these urban storytelling devices matter.

Shared Experiences

Who better to learn more about the importance of human connection than those who literally connect with people on a daily basis - sometimes mid-air? Cirque du Soleil’s Kristina Heney and Michael Schwandt believe a live entertainment performance is one of the few moments that brings people together to share a common connection/emotion. From the first brainstorm to the live performance on stage, learn how Cirque du Soleil fosters human relatedness and shared experiences through creativity during Are We Still Connecting?.

Discover what it takes to create a successful shared experience in the public realm and at zero gravity. In Funeral for a NASA Robot: Empathy in Storytelling, hear personal stories from the NASA teams who lived with – and helped give life to – robotic explorers.

Browse More Experiential Storytelling Sessions

Explore even more from the Experiential Storytelling Track. This Convergence Track grants primary access to all SXSW Badges.

Across our 22 tracks of Conference programming, browse all confirmed sessions on the SXSW Schedule and add events to your Favorites list to start planning your SX adventure.

Browse Experiential Storytelling Sessions

Join Us for SXSW 2020

Register and book your housing for SXSW 2020 early for the best rates. While you await the 2020 Film Festival lineup (coming mid-January), dive into Conference sessions from Film Tracks and read interviews with Film alumni.

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See you in March!

Featured Session: Shooting Stars: How NASA Works with Film & TV - Photo by Diego Donamaria/Getty Images for SXSW