When Nick Barbaro got together with a few friends to launch SXSW, he could not have anticipated what it would grow into.
"Maybe a little like Sydney, we started on the coat-tails of an event in New York called New Music Seminar – NMS," Barbaro said.
"And they wanted to do regional seminars. They had that idea and thought we would be a good city to do it in, so they gathered some people up in Austin."
The NMS crew had to back out of the event, but the first SXSW went ahead in Austin, Texas, the following year. It was 1987 and back then the focus was music.
Fast forward to now and SXSW is the destination for hundreds of thousands of creatives from across the world taking in everything from filmmaking to technology.
Then US president Barack Obama spoke at SXSW in 2016. Willie Nelson has given an address. Lady Gaga, Russell Crowe, Charlize Theron, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen – these are just a few of the big names who are SXSW alumni.
The festival is also about discovering emerging talent.
"Artists like Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar, Katy Perry, Post Malone, filmmakers Barry Jenkins, Lee Daniels, tech industry icons Daniel Ek – Spotify and Stewart Butterfield – founder of Slack, and companies like Siri and Twitter were all showcased at SXSW long before they were household names," said Darin Klein, SXSW Partner and Executive Vice President at a Sydney news conference.
And that element of discovery has been happening for a while. Cast your mind back to the 1990s and that ubiquitous MMMBop tune from the band Hanson.
"We turned them down for a musical showcase when they were, I don't know, eight to 12 years old or something like that," Barbaro said.
"And they showed up anyway and walked around and sang acapella to basically anybody who cared to listen to them around the softball field.
"Then I hear they went on and had some success."
Tech giants have also got their start at SXSW. Before the world knew about Facebook, its founder knew about SXSW and according to Barbaro, that's where Mark Zuckerberg chose to launch.
SXSW is also where many films are seen for the first time – including one nominated for an Oscar this year.
"Everything Everywhere All at Once was a South by movie last year," Barbaro said.
'It's almost like six events going at once'
For some creatives living in Australia and other parts of the Asia Pacific region, travelling all the way to Texas for SXSW can be quite the ask. But Colin Daniels has done so 16 times.
Now, the former music industry executive has his dream job as the managing director of SXSW Sydney. This October will mark the first time the event will head outside North America, with Sydney the home of SXSW for the Asia Pacific region.
"A main goal of mine is to make sure that it has the same atmosphere, vibe, and DNA of what South by Southwest is," Mr Daniels said.
"First and foremost, everything is about discovery.
"It could be discovering new colleagues that you're going to be friends with, discovering a band, discovering new tech, or discovering a great speaker that you've never heard of, or discovering a new genre in film that you're now in love with."
Mr Daniels said everyone will see SXSW through a different lens.
"It's almost like six events going on at once," he said.
"You've got the conference. You've got the gaming festival, the music showcase festival, you've got public music events, you've got the screen festival.
"You've got the tech and innovation industry events and then you've got networking events."
He said SXSW Sydney will attract talent from the entire region.
"We want to engage all of the countries and communities throughout the whole region, from the islands in the Pacific, to New Zealand, from China, through to India.
"South Asia, South-East Asia, Northern Asia, Japan."
The NSW government is partnering with SXSW, with the Minister for Tourism and the Arts Ben Franklin telling a press conference that SXSW is expected to attract 27,000 visitors in its first year, injecting more than $24 million dollars into the State's economy.
"South by Southwest will be an unprecedented event for this city," he said.
"Offering discovery, networking and fun all within a walking footprint across the CBD and surrounding areas like Haymarket, Darling Harbour, Ultimo and Chippendale."
It's an annual event with the first five years guaranteed. The minister wouldn't reveal how much the state government is spending on the event and when asked about Western Sydney, organisers stressed having everything within walking distance was key.
Attending won't be cheap either with early bird registration badges ranging from $895 if you're interested in tech and innovation, gaming, music or screen through to $1,295 for a platinum badge.
SXSW Sydney has unveiled some of its featured speakers with American futurist Amy Webb announced as the first keynote.
"Amy was one of our most requested speakers," Mr Daniels said.
"Amy is a futurist. Amy consults to some of the Fortune 500 companies all around the world.
"Amy was talking about AI a long time before it became a buzzword. Amy gives a glimpse into the future of what's next."
Others announced are Canva's Guy Kawasaki and the director of content at Netflix Que Minh Luu, responsible for bringing shows like Heartbreak High to the streaming service.
Mr Daniels has every intention of putting on a successful event.
"I see my role as part event producer, but very importantly, custodian of a brand and a custodian of an event that will be as exciting as Austin."
SXSW Sydney will take place October 15-22.
