Open call for Design Futures Lab 2022

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This creative economy project, supported by the British Council #SouthernAfricaArts, offers South African content creators an opportunity to develop experiential, provocative and immersive digital narratives about sustainable fashion and design. These narratives will help shape kinder, earth-friendly futures.

The programme will include both a sustainable fashion workshop and a digital lab that will challenge successful candidates to explore and expand their digital production skills in XR (extended reality). Using new creative technologies and software, international distribution channels and exhibition platforms, the lab will facilitate access to new markets for sustained livelihoods.

The lab will take place virtually from 14 – 18 March 2022, and in-person from 23-25 March in Cape Town. Market access feedback will take place virtually from June – November 2022.

Specifics of applying

Applicants must:

• Be 18 years or older.
• Submit in pairs, with one concept (two creatives per concept).
• Be citizens or permanent residents of South Africa.
• Currently live in South Africa and able to travel on the days required.
• Have some form of experience in a creative technology field. Experience in fashion, design, creative technology and game development would be ideal.
• Must be willing to complete a self-directed African Creative Economy course up to Intermediate Level.
• Attend all components of the Design Futures Lab.

Projects ideas must be a digital prototype/proof of concept with experiential and provocative narratives around themes of sustainable fashion practices along the entire value chain (from soil to landfill) and which address issues pertaining to the environment, the climate crisis and to earth-friendly and regenerative solutions.The projects should also use immersive technologies, such as Virtual Reality (VR) or Augmented Reality (AR). This could include 360 filmmaking, volumetric capture, world-building, interactive worlds, avatar creation, animation, artificial intelligence, projection mapping, hybrid forms, and beyond.

To enter, complete and submit this form by 11.59pm SAST on 31 January 2022.

All successful applicants will be notified by 18 February 2022.

Each team must complete their digital prototype/proof of concept by 31 May 2022.

Please contact info@electricsouth.org with any queries you may have.