Imagine Entertainment’s Brian Grazer, Morgan Spurlock, and comedian/actor Russell Brand are set to appear at next year’s South By Southwest confab, which today announced the first wave of 2015 Convergence speakers. The announcement of over 60 sessions includes panels in the growing SXsports program, TV, and Digital sidebars. The 2015 edition runs from March 13 – 22 in Austin, Texas – scroll down for the rundown:
A Curious Mind: The Inspiration for a Creative Life
Brian Grazer (Imagine Entertainment), Charles Fishman (The Big Thirst)
Russell Brand Interview with Brian Solis
Russell Brand (Comedian), Brian Solis (Altimeter Group)
SXsports
Athletes are Suddenly Funny: The Power of Comedy & Sports
Patrick Starzan (Funny or Die)
Battling Tradition to Re-Invent Youth Sports
Matt Farrell (USA Swimming), Kurt Kamperman (US Tennis Association), Jeff Price (PGA of America)
Beyond the Bar Graph: Insights Over Info
Christopher Glode (Under Armour), Marybeth Thomson (MyFitnessPal)
The Business of Preparing Potential NFL Draftees
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Jason Verrett (San Diego Chargers), Andy Staples (Sports Illustrated), CJ LaBoy (Relativity Sports),
Mark Verstegen (EXOS)
Competitive Advantage: Mental Health in Athletics
Patrick Baillie (Consultant), Scott Goldman (University of Arizona), Doug Hankes (Auburn University),
Carmen Tebbe (Oklahoma University)
The Democratization of Sports Commentary
Mary Pilon (The New York Times), Geoff Reiss (Twitter), Andre Pacheco (Second Mic)
Does Playing Sports = Brain Damage?
Jeffrey Kutcher (University of Michigan), Ben Utecht (Surrender the Game)
Drones & the Texas 500: A Live Broadcast Challenge
Jaime Carlin (Texas Motor Speedway), Benjamin Martin (Arch Aerial), Michael Rocha (Panasonic)
The Evolution of Audio in the 21st Century
Colin Cowherd (ESPN), Stephen A. Smith (ESPN), Traug Keller (ESPN)
Filmmaking Cues from Top Sports Cinematographers
Brian Schulz (Major League Baseball Productions), Skip Clark (FOX SPORTS), Al Francesco (NFL FILMS), John Tipton (HBO Sports)
The Future of Doping and PEDs
Jason Gay (Wall Street Journal), Matt Futterman (Wall Street Journal), Travis Tygart (US Anti-Doping Agency)
His & Hers Live Podcast
Jemele Hill (ESPN), Michael Smith (ESPN)
How the Data Era Will Build High Performing Humans
Cam Newton (Carolina Panthers), Kelly McGonigal (Stanford University), Haile Owusu (Mashable)
Gameday 2025: What’s In Your Living Room?
Holly Anderson (Grantland), Jeff Beckham (Jeff Beckham), Spencer Hall (SB Nation), Mark Kramer (Pac-12 Networks)
The In-Stadium Fan Experience in MLS
Adrian Hanauer (Seattle Sounders), Robb Heineman (Sporting Kansas City), Merritt Paulson (Portland Timbers)
Millennials & Sports: Reaching the Next Generation of Fans
Rich Eisen (NFL Media), Brian Rolapp (National Football League), Perkins Miller (National Football League), Peter Kafka (Re/code)
MLBAM & NASCAR: Sports and Technology Converge
Bob Bowman (MLB Advanced Media), Brent Dewar (NASCAR)
The Near-Future of Sports TV
Marie Donoghue (ESPN), John Ourand (Sports Business Journal), Ron Wechsler (NBC Sports), Dan Shanoff (USA TODAY Sports)
The New Cathedral: Sports Stadiums
Brian Mirakian (Populous)
Old Game, New Tricks: What’s the Future of Golf?
Shane Bacon (Back9Network), Charlie Kautz (TaylorMade-adidas), Andrew Kipper (Excel Sports Management), Ashley Mayo (Golf Digest)
Out on the Field: LGBT Pro Athletes in 2015
Jason Collins (Professional Athlete), Megan Rapinoe (Seattle Reign FC), Mike Foss (USA TODAY)
Social Media Playbook: Activating Fans on Gameday
Brian Cheek (Postano), Pat Donahue (Los Angeles Kings), Grace Hoy (Arizona State University), Meghan Ryan (Boston Red Sox)
The Solid Verbal Live Podcast
Ty Hildenbrandt (Solid Verbal Media), Dan Rubenstein (Solid Verbal Media)
Sports Mega-Events: Do They Have a Future?
Ben Carrington (The University of Texas), Piara Powar (FARE), Lilian Thuram (Former Professional Athlete), Dave Zirin (The Nation)
Tech + Youth Sports = Universal Access
Tom Farrey (Aspen Institute Sports & Society Program)
Tech That’s Changing Sports and Building Empathy
Chris Kluwe (Professional Athlete)
Future of TV
The Art, Joy, & Power of Creating Musical Programs
David Koelle (Charles River Analytics)
Breaking the Fourth Wall in the Digital Age
Saba Hamedy (LA Times), Jon Schnitzer (Brain Factory), Peter Girardi (Warner Bros), Marc Goodchild (Sync Screen), Julian McCrea (Portal Entertainment)
A Drama Nirvana-How to Create a Multiplatform Hit
Beth Hoppe (PBS), David Zucker (Scott Free Productions)
Exploring Storytelling in the Digital Age
Andrew Cochrane (Mirada)
Finding a TV Partner in a Digital World
Jill Burkhart (Epix HD), Cynthia Kane (Al Jazeera America), Jennie Moris (Participant Media), Lois Vossen (PBS)
The Future of Concerts on TV
Evan Haiman (HDNet LLC/AXS TV), Lucia McCalmont (HDNet LLC/AXS TV)
Game of Thrones: Creating Immersive Entertainment
Sabrina Caluori (HBO), Melissa Eccles (Elastic)
Hyper-Reality TV & Online Video Are a Perfect Fit
Morgan Spurlock (Warrior Poets), Ran Harnevo (AOL)
Moving Beyond the Square Screen
Steven Masur (CDAS Venture Law Group), Allen DeBevoise (Machinima), Vivian Rosenthal (Snaps), Josh Gertz (DAQRI)
The New TV Star: How to Build an Audience Online
Kelly Day (AwesomenessTV), Josh Ong (The Next Web), Tyler Oakley (Tyler Oakley), Tom Ryan (Pluto.TV)
Online Success Without Cat Videos or Crotch Hits
Zach Anner (Zach Anner Productions), Chris Demarais (Rooster Teeth Productions), Brandon Farmahini (Rooster Teeth Productions)
Should You Develop Your Film Into a TV Series?
Katie Krentz (Cartoon Network), Julia Pott (Animator/Filmmaker), Hannah Fidell (Filmmaker), Sarah-Violet Bliss (Filmmaker)
Tech My Mind
Ayori Selassie (salesforce.com), Shanice Johnson (Malakai Creative), Bill Duke ( Duke Media), Julie Barrio (Reality SF)
What Serial Digital Fiction is Learning from TV
Jon Nathanson (Self), Jerry Fan (Jukepop Serials), Michelle Miller (The Underwriting), Jennifer Lee (Plympton)
Who’s Going to Fund My Webseries?
Jay Bushman (Independent), Marc Hofstatter (Indiegogo), Amy Dotson (IFP), Karim Ahmad (ITVS)
Digital Domain
19Reinos – A Game of Thrones Immersive Experience
Robert Pratten (Transmedia Storyteller), Purificación González (Canal+), Belen Santa-Olalla (Transmedia Storyteller)
Doing It in Public: BLEs and Modern Storytelling
Lisa Woods (thirteen23), Heath Pecorino (The Short Box), Sam Patteson (Rosetta Stone)
Tool-Kit for Crafting an Interactive Documentary
Cathy Fischer (ITVS), Mike Robbins (Helios Design Labs), Alex Wittholz (Helios Design Labs), Andrew Grace (Moon Winx Films)
Analog & Digital: Synching an Engagement Campaign
Rory Kennedy (Moxie Firecracker Films), Keven McAlester (Standard Pictures), Lauren Prestileo (American Experience — PBS), Molly Jacobs (American Experience — PBS)
Astrophysics Goes Hollywood: Cinematic Science
Frank Summers (Space Telescope Science Institute), Robert Hurt (NASA’s Spitzer Science Center/JPL-Caltech), Donna Cox (National Center for Supercomputing Applications)
Beyond Live, Why the L+3 Social TV Convo Matters
Natan Edelsburg (Sawhorse Media), Don Steele (Comedy Central), Michael Scogin (NBC Universal), Sabrina Caluori (HBO)
Forget Screens: Immersive Content Lives Everywhere
Bill Galusha (Autofuss / Bot & Dolly), Chad Hutson (Leviathan)
Worlds Without Boundaries: Books, Games, Films
James Frey (Full Fathom Five, LLC), John Hanke (Niantic Labs)
Convergence Day
3D Printing in the Movies
David Leigh (Harvest Technologies)
Databenders & Spoonbenders: Hacking Music & Design
Michael Hendrix (IDEO)
Data-Driven Strategy vs. Editorial Gut Instinct
Elizabeth White (Time Inc.), Jessica Novak (Refinery29.com), Mike Hofman (Conde Nast)
Live Music Streaming for Brands: Engagement
Hank Neuberger (Springboard Productions), John Petrocelli (Bulldog Digital Media)
Making Art While Entertaining the Internet
Sean Carney (Social Mal Practice), Molly Soda (MollySoda.Biz), Yung Jake (Adult Swim), Jayson Musson (Salon94), Jillian Mayer (Borscht Corp)
Making Music Physical Again
Kate Stone (Novalia), Charlotte Brimner (Musician)
Music as Personalized Medicine: Experiment at SXSW
Daphne Zohar (PureTech Ventures)
Music UX: Connecting Technology and Experience for Fans
John Paul (Featuring. Me), James Apollo (Possible), Justin Evans (Mix Genius), Alaina Thetford (Train Thetford (Train Case Management)
Online Distribution: Set the trend!
Pierre-Alexandre Labelle (Under The Milky Way), Emmanuel Cocq (European Commission Creative Europe MEDIA Programme), Daniela Elstner (Doc & Film International)
Science of Social Funding: 247 Campaign Patterns
Vann Alexandra Daly (Vann Alexandra), Missy Laney (Sundance Institute), Francis Pollara (KesselsKramer)
Streams, Shuffles and Statutes: Congress & Music
Chris Harrison (Pandora), Greg Barnes (Digital Media Association), Jason Chaffetz (U.S. House of Representatives), Elizabeth Frazee (TwinLogic Strategies)
Web Influence on the Future of Music Documentaries
Leah Horwitz (VH1), Lewis Bogach (CMT), Dave Sirulnick (MTV), Thomas Benski (Pulse Films/Vimeo on Demand)
Why Top Artists Today Need Spy Tools
Nico Sell (Wicker LLC)
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