The Government of São Paulo held this Tuesday (3/15) the SP Day at South by Southwest (SXSW), an art, creativity and innovation event that takes place in Austin, Texas (USA), and receives visitors from more than 100 countries.
With a space created especially for debates, lectures and networking, SP Lounge, representatives of the cultural sector of São Paulo promoted the creative economy of the State, which moves US$ 20 billion a year, accounts for 3.9% of the state’s GDP, adds 150 thousand companies and generates 1.5 million jobs.
SP Day brought together 10 speakers, who were divided into four panels. Aimed mainly at entrepreneurs, content producers and potential investors, the event presented the characteristics of the cultural sector in São Paulo and its business opportunities.
“São Paulo was built by indigenous people, Africans, Europeans, Americans, Asians and Brazilians from several other regions of the country. This unique diversity contributes to the state having a high creative potential, which grows even more with the various public policies in the cultural sector, which generate employment, income and development”, said the Secretary of Culture and Creative Economy of the Government of São Paulo Sérgio Sa Leitao.
SXSW is the first of the 10 missions of the CreativeSP/Government of São Paulo’s Creative Economy Internationalization Program, which aims to boost international exchange among São Paulo companies in the sector and attract foreign investment to São Paulo. The initiative is a joint action of the Secretariat of Culture and Creative Economy, InvestSP and the Secretariat of International Relations of the Government of São Paulo.
The opening panel, “Development Driven by Culture”, was led by the CEO of Feira Preta, Adriana Barbosa, by the president of InvestSP, Gustavo Diniz Junqueira, and by the Secretary of Culture and Creative Economy, Sérgio Sá Leitão. “São Paulo is one of the largest innovation hubs in the world, with more investments in startups than countries like Argentina and Mexico, in addition to having an entire ecosystem, with universities and research centers, which promotes innovation without neglecting social issues. and environmental issues”, said Gustavo Diniz Junqueira.
In the second panel, “Innovation in the Creative Economy of São Paulo”, the Secretary of Economic Development of the Government of São Paulo, Patrícia Ellen, highlighted the entrepreneurial vocation of the state, the most technological in Brazil, and the increase in female participation. The panel also had the participation of two representatives of the cultural sector: Roberto Fabri, from Omelete, and Alex Allard, from Cidade Matarazzo.
Marília Bonas, representing the Museum of the Portuguese Language, and Marcello Dantas, curator of the Museum of Favelas and Museum of Indigenous Cultures, the three institutions of the Government of São Paulo, spoke about the diversity and modernization of São Paulo museums in the panel “New Museums, New Directions, New Audiences”. The two also highlighted that these spaces should be used as instruments of social transformation.
Entertainment industry entrepreneur Konrad Dantas, KondZilla, spoke about his entrepreneurial journey, which includes creating a plan for communities to build an economy around music and use the internet to distribute content. Owner of audiovisual content production companies, the entrepreneur, who led the closing panel, “Das Margens ao Palco Central”, is responsible for the largest YouTube channel in Latin America, Canal KondZilla, with 65 million subscribers.
CreativeSP
The first mission of the CreativeSP/São Paulo Government’s Creative Economy Internationalization Program took representatives from 10 companies in the sector to the SXSW: Amplifica (music producer), Barbatuques (body music), Claraluz (audiovisual), DançarMarketing (cultural marketing), Elo (audiovisual), Estúdio Bijari (art, design and technology), Lemme Content (marketing communication), O2 (film distribution), Phonogram.me (musical NFTs marketplace) and Rito (immersive experiences). They were selected from 152 applicants and underwent a training and consulting process. The next mission will be the Cannes Film Festival in France in May.
