TAPAS & TECHNOLOGY MEMBERS’S EVENT #1
Experience the pinnacle of Tasmanian creativity and innovation!
Join us for an evening with this inspiring lineup of speakers, including Graeme Paxton from Procreate, Paris Buttfield-Addison from Secret Lab and Yarn Spinner, David Shering from Handbuilt Creative, and Alex Sangston from Screen Tasmania.
We’ll also have live demonstrations of Yarn Spinner and Handbuilt Creative’s VR/AR technologies.
Indulge in the beautiful heritage of the Salamanca Arts Centre and the Peacock Theatre, with drinks and canapés before and after the presentation, for this Tapas & Technology networking with a creative difference!
Be blown away by the latest trends and developments in the creative tech sector of Tasmania who are making a mark around the world with incredible creativity and innovation!
EVENT DETAILS
DATE: Thursday, 13th February 2025
TIME: 5.30pm – 7.30pm
VENUE: Peacock Theatre, Salamanca Arts Centre – Hobart
REGISTRATION: free for all current members and employees of member companies. Members can also bring one guest. ALL attendees must register HERE.
NOTE: registrations will be closed when capacity is reached, and registration at the event will not be possible.
FEATURED AND SUPPORTING CREATIVES
David Shering
Principal + Creative Director
Handbuilt Creative
Handbuilt is one of Australia’s leading XR developers, with a world-wide reputation for advanced photorealistic mixed reality, where it’s work often goes viral – gaining millions of views.
Handbuilt’s main focus is the design and production of some of the world’s largest photorealistic XR experiences, with it’s biggest being an exact replica of NASA’s proposed landing site on Mars – offering astronauts almost 900km2 at millimetre level of detail to explore and train in XR.
The company has also won over 25 international awards, including a 4x Honouree winner at one of the most prestigious digital awards in New York, and their creations have been showcased internationally by tech giants such as Apple.
Paris Buttfield-Addison
Co-founder
Secret Lab
Secret Lab designs and builds video games, cultural technology, and engaging interactive experiences from scratch for console, PC, Mac, web, and mobile. Secret Lab was founded in 2008 by a team of computer scientists, historians, and technologists, and is the longest-running video game studio in lutruwita/Tasmania.
Yarn Spinner was a spin-off from Secret Lab in 2024, and is the premiere narrative technology used in video games around the world, including multi-award winning Dredge, Venba, A Short Hike, and thousands upon thousands more.
Paris Buttfield-Addison is a multifaceted creative technologist, author, and entrepreneur with a PhD in Computing. As co-founder of Secret Lab, he has led teams in creating award-winning games and interactive experiences, including contributions to the BAFTA- and IGF-winning Night in the Woods, as well as projects for clients such as CSIRO, ABC, Qantas, Marvel, and Apple.
Alex Sangston
Executive Manager
Screen Tasmania
Screen Tasmania supports and develops the state’s film, television and multimedia industries. It provides grants and equity investments in the development and production of Tasmanian screen projects including short films, drama, documentaries, feature films, television series, video games and digital media, and provides direct support in the form of industry and professional development.
Screen Tasmania also administers the $500,000 Level Up Tasmania fund that provides a substantial funding uplift for the development of Tasmanian video games. As part of this fund, Screen Tasmania hosted the Level Up Tasmania Video Game Showcase in October 2024, attracting more than 2,500 people through the doors of PW1 to try out Tasmanian video games.
Alex has headed up Screen Tasmania since 2016. From 2008, he ran the Producer Offset and Co-production Programs at Screen Australia, and before that worked in broadcasting film, digital TV and online content policy for the Australian Government in Canberra.
Graeme Paxton
Head of ICT
Procreate
At Procreate we make tools that millions of people use to express their innate human creativity. We’re always working to make them accessible to millions more, because we believe art is for everyone. The launch of the iPad was the spark.
Over the last decade, we’ve worked to build the most powerful, affordable, and intuitive illustration and animation tools available. Our dedication has resulted in three coveted Apple Design Awards and our position as the #1 paid app in the world for seven years running.
Procreate won its first Apple Design Award for outstanding design and innovation in 2013. Nine years later, Procreate received recognition again for making these creative tools accessible to even more artists. Procreate Dreams is our animation app packed with powerful tools that anyone can use. Create rich 2D animations, expressive videos, and breathtaking stories on iPad.
