Victoria’s most creative, artistic and innovative minds are gearing up to participate in the annual Thinklandia festival this month.
The free seven-day festival is transforming the Yates Street parkade into a hot bed of innovative ideas where creative speakers, artists, CEOs, physicists and storytellers can share their ideas.
“It was a way to give speakers a platform, creative speakers a platform, local entrepreneurs, non-profits a platform to talk about the kind of work that they do and really engage people on a different level,” said Joey MacDonald, creative programming director with Rifflandia.
“We try and create the best possible platform and forum for ideas to be expressed and elevated.”
Each day of programming has a different theme, ranging from illegality, storytelling, and edge of knowledge that focuses on everything including traditional native knowledge, and the idea of public.
This year’s speakers include Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps, Senior Editor of Pitchfork Jessica Hopper, activist and musician Bif Naked and science educator Derek Muller.
Last year, they saw roughly 300 people. But this year, MacDonald estimates there will be anywhere from 750 to 800 people.
“I think it really is the accessibility of the idea, that it’s a creative festival with as many opportunities for engagement as possible and as many access points as possible,” he said. “It’s a proof of concept for next year when we get to try bigger, better things.”
Thinklandia was started by Viatec and Rifflandia three years ago. It runs from Sept. 11 to 17 at the Yates Street parkade. For more information visit thinklandia.ca.