For 36 years, South by Southwest has been synonymous with one city: Austin, Texas. But this month the annual music, film and tech festival will launch a new event in Sydney – the first time it has been staged outside the US.
Running 15 to 22 October, the festival is being billed as “the official annual Asia-Pacific instalment of SXSW”. It’s a big win for a city that has faced its share of nightlife challenges in the past decade, especially given the prestige of the brand: the Austin festival is renowned as a breaking ground for new musicians, and a hub for film, tech and TV premieres, and has welcomed high-profile speakers from Prince to the Obamas across its three decades.