Brighton Digital Festival launches under new name for 2023

The new Dreamy Place festival is produced by Brighton-based videoclub. The dates are Crawley from October 12-14 and Brighton & Hove from October 19-22. The festival’s evolution and rebrand as Dreamy Place mark the launch of the new seven-day programme this October in Brighton & Hove and Crawley.

Jamie Wyld, director of Dreamy Place and videoclub who also helped establish Brighton Digital Festival in 2010, said: “Produced by arts agency videoclub, for the first time, the community-led festival showcases world-renowned artists and installations alongside local creative talent and interactive events, designed to engage people of all ages and backgrounds with the potential of creative technology. The new name, Dreamy Place, aligns with videoclub’s vision to use the celebrated programme to encourage people to think about how new creative technologies can inform, inspire and benefit mental and physical health. It has expanded outside of its original location across Brighton & Hove and will explore how the festival can enable greater inclusion.” Jamie added: “Technology moves quickly. It evolves in response to the needs of its audiences and communities. It’s fun, stimulating, enlivening and inspirational. It supports health and wellbeing, offers career paths and enables inclusivity. Dreamy Place is not tied to one location, one idea, one purpose. We want the festival to inspire the idea that creativity and new technologies can support anyone to initiate and establish their dreams.”

Lighthouse previously ran Brighton Digital Festival (BDF) before it evolved into Dreamy Place. To celebrate, they have curated a launch programme bringing together past creators of BDF along with new artists. Alli Beddoes, CEO at Lighthouse, said: “We see Dreamy Place as a festival not just about technology. It’s about fostering genuine human connection in the digital age. We welcome engagement in interactive performances and collaborative activities to reignite our desire for connection, playfulness and shared experiences.”

Jamie added: “The 2023 programme of events (dreamy-place.com) includes something for everyone, with workshops, conferences, exhibitions, outdoor film screenings and immersive audio, visual and VR experiences. It has been designed to capture the imagination while also tackling key issues surrounding the production, consumption and understanding of art, technology and immersive culture. Dreamy Place asks us to explore ways in which we can narrow the digital gap caused by disadvantage and challenges us to rethink and reimagine how art and gaming can help our wellbeing. In partnership with Exploring Senses, the festival will support young people from Brighton & Hove and Crawley to take part in animation workshops. The workshops will develop young people’s creative tech skill sets, developing animation and digital production expertise. Animations created as part of the workshops will be projected outdoors onto the streets of Brighton & Hove to showcase young people’s talent.“