South by Southwest (SXSW), the creativity festival based in Austin, Texas, has been celebrating innovation across culture, science and tech industries for nearly four decades. Since 2023, the festival has also been hosted in Sydney, Australia. Recently announced, in June 2025, SXSW London will take over dozens of venues, galleries, clubs and spaces in Shoreditch, east London, offering speeches, music, tech, gaming and screen showcases. It will also host arts, design, fashion exhibitions and music concerts, alongside immersive experiences.
The festival’s unique character lies in its decision not to centralise its programming within a single convention centre. Instead, in Austin, the conference centre serves merely as a base, while panels, brand activations, film screenings and music stages spill across the city’s centre, occupying bars, restaurants and even a church. This decentralised approach creates an unparalleled festival environment, fostering meaningful connections and unexpected experiences that shape the world’s future.
“SXSW has been doing this since its beginnings in 1987,” says Arthur Johnson, a London-based designer and Shoreditch resident who has attended SXSW for over two decades. “It’s changed a fair bit, with many activities moving into swanky hotels and conference centres, but official and unofficial events still take over Austin’s main areas. Even though the city has altered quite a bit, it’s still unique, though it’s lost some of that sense of community collaboration.” Johnson is particularly excited about his favourite event arriving in his home neighbourhood, where art galleries, clubs and everyday venues will transform into hubs of creativity and inspiration.
In South America, another festival geared towards the creative and tech industry, HackTown, in Santa Rita do Sapucaí, Brazil, takes this concept to the next level. Often dubbed the “Latin American SXSW,” HackTown blends innovation, technology, wellbeing, music and other creative industries into a festival that sprawls across the entire town. The backdrop is fitting: Santa Rita do Sapucaí, located near São Paulo, has been a tech hub since the 1950s and today boasts over 160 tech companies, research institutes and technical schools.
Festival-goers, including some of the most influential executives and practitioners in the business, wander through the quaint streets, connecting with others while exploring unexpected parts of the town. Local venues like bars, theatres, schools, coffee shops and even regular residents’ houses transform into creative spaces, imbuing the event with a distinctive community vibe and fostering a spirit of discovery and collaboration at every turn. With over 60 simultaneous activities and more than a thousand events packed into four days, ranging from innovation panels to startup showcases and live performances, the festival seamlessly embeds itself into the town’s everyday life.
“Santa Rita is a place full of startups and an interesting cultural routine for a town of its size—only 40,000 inhabitants—but when HackTown starts, the transformation is remarkable,” says Ana Clara Macedo, an advertising professional who has attended HackTown for over five years. “It leaves a legacy. The experience is different from any other event I’ve been to, and the impact on the town is greater than any other format could achieve.”
Anthropologist Dr Fiona Mitchell explains why these festivals have such a profound impact: “When events occupy regular, everyday places rather than artificially created venues, they empower a community by blurring the line between daily life and festival activity. This integration builds a sense of collective ownership, making the festival feel like a community event rather than an external spectacle. The legacy they leave is rooted in the relationships and creativity fostered in spaces where people already feel at home.” Mitchell adds, “Even those not directly involved with the event itself feel part of the festival spirit as they see everyday venues hosting creative initiatives and a mass of imaginative individuals wandering the town, bringing an infectious energy that ripples through the entire community.”
As the excitement from the announcement of SXSW London builds and HackTown 2024 approaches from 1 to 4 August, this seamless integration of daily life and innovation promises an experience that’s both unique and transformative, offering a fresh perspective on how festivals can empower and leave a lasting impact on the communities they inhabit.