If you attended Offset conference in 2016, you would have been able to resolve the age-old debate over the pronunciation of “GIF”. Speakers Pamela Reed and Matthew Rader definitively informed conference-goers that it’s “jif” rather than “gif”. But while you may have missed the boat on that opportunity, never fear. The premier conference for the design and creative industries is back and it’s better than ever with a stellar line-up and a schedule rammed full of some of the biggest and brightest names in the industry.
Started in 2009, “Dublin’s Creative Festival” will this year see over 100 speakers take to three stages over three days in March. With speakers from fields as varied as graphic design, film, fashion, industrial design and art, the event is truly a multidisciplinary one and all the richer for it. These speakers, described as “disruptors” and “influencers” by the event’s organisers, are involved in projects little and large, from global campaigns to personal projects.
With doors open from 10am, 9am and 10am on each of its respective days, the conference kicks off on Friday with Offshoots, a series of four 10-minute talks. Four creatives will speak on the main stage, giving a quick snapshot of a pet project or a favourite subject.
Those inspired to reach for the stars (and the golden statue) by the recent Academy Awards would do well to attend the talk on Sunday at 4.10pm. It’s by Cartoon Saloon, the Kilkenny-based animation studio previously nominated for not one but three Academy Awards. Impressive stuff.
Fashion fiends will be all of a flutter at the prospect of hearing from Simone Rocha. The NCAD graduate has been making waves in the industry for years, but it was her 2017 show that used models of different ages that truly established her as a groundbreaking force in an industry that can often seem resistant to change and innovation. Just last year the Irish Times said of her future that “the sky’s the limit”.
It’s not all work, though, as this conference also gives its attendees plenty of time to play. Saturday night is shaping up to be a good one, with the first-ever Dublin Doodle Jam, to be held at HQ Bar at the city-centre location of Grand Canal Square. Jazzy new-wave sounds are promised as the funky background to a night of dancing, drinking – and drawing! A free drink is promised for the early birds so it’s worth beating a hasty path down to the venue after a long day of inspiration and innovation at the conference.
Offset Dublin is taking place at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre this weekend.
