XOXO (festival): Difference between revisions
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''XOXO Story'' was added in 2014 with live performances of popular podcasts like [[Harmontown]], [[John Roderick (musician)|John Roderick]]'s Rendezvous, and [[Song Exploder]] featuring an interview with [[The Thermals]]. A second night of music was also added, including performances from [[Pomplamoose]], [[YACHT (band)|YACHT]], [[Molly Lewis]], [[John Roderick (musician)|John Roderick]] and [[Sean Nelson]] from [[The Long Winters]], [[Mike Doughty]], and [[Nerf Herder]]. XOXO Arcade featured 10 unreleased or exhibition-only games, such as [[Quadrilateral Cowboy]] and the ten-player [[Killer Queen (video game)|Killer Queen]] arcade cabinet, and new work from [[Keita Takahashi]], [[Threes (game)|Threes]] creator [[Asher Vollmer]], and [[QWOP]] creator [[Bennett Foddy]]. |
''XOXO Story'' was added in 2014 with live performances of popular podcasts like [[Harmontown]], [[John Roderick (musician)|John Roderick]]'s Rendezvous, and [[Song Exploder]] featuring an interview with [[The Thermals]]. A second night of music was also added, including performances from [[Pomplamoose]], [[YACHT (band)|YACHT]], [[Molly Lewis]], [[John Roderick (musician)|John Roderick]] and [[Sean Nelson]] from [[The Long Winters]], [[Mike Doughty]], and [[Nerf Herder]]. XOXO Arcade featured 10 unreleased or exhibition-only games, such as [[Quadrilateral Cowboy]] and the ten-player [[Killer Queen (video game)|Killer Queen]] arcade cabinet, and new work from [[Keita Takahashi]], [[Threes (game)|Threes]] creator [[Asher Vollmer]], and [[QWOP]] creator [[Bennett Foddy]]. |
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Ten films and shorts were shown at XOXO Film, including previews of the first two episodes of [[Natasha Allegri]]'s Bee & Puppycat series, new animations from [[David OReilly (artist)|David OReilly]] and [[PES (director)|PES]], and the debut of Empire Uncut, the crowdsourced sequel to [[Star Wars Uncut]].{{cn}} |
Ten films and shorts were shown at XOXO Film, including previews of the first two episodes of [[Natasha Allegri]]'s Bee & Puppycat series, new animations from [[David OReilly (artist)|David OReilly]] and [[PES (director)|PES]], and the debut of Empire Uncut, the crowdsourced sequel to [[Star Wars Uncut]].{{cn|date=February 2021}} |
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=== 2015 === |
=== 2015 === |
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Conference speakers included [[Heather Armstrong]], [[Gimlet Media]]'s [[Alex Blumberg]], [[Veronica Belmont]], [[Kathy Sierra]], [[Spike Trotman]], [[Daniel M. Lavery]], [[Anil Dash]], [[Zoë Quinn]], [[Eric A. Meyer]], [[BoJack Horseman]]'s Lisa Hanawalt, [[Vlambeer]]'s Rami Ismail, and the creators of [[Suck.com]], reuniting on stage for the webzine's 20th anniversary.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2015.xoxofest.com/conference|title=XOXO|website=2015.xoxofest.com|access-date=27 August 2017}}</ref> |
Conference speakers included [[Heather Armstrong]], [[Gimlet Media]]'s [[Alex Blumberg]], [[Veronica Belmont]], [[Kathy Sierra]], [[Spike Trotman]], [[Daniel M. Lavery]], [[Anil Dash]], [[Zoë Quinn]], [[Eric A. Meyer]], [[BoJack Horseman]]'s Lisa Hanawalt, [[Vlambeer]]'s Rami Ismail, and the creators of [[Suck.com]], reuniting on stage for the webzine's 20th anniversary.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2015.xoxofest.com/conference|title=XOXO|website=2015.xoxofest.com|access-date=27 August 2017}}</ref> |
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XOXO Music was held on an outdoor stage for the first time, with evening musical performances by [[Dan Deacon]], [[Kaki King]], [[Vulfpeck]], [[Open Mike Eagle]], [[NIKO IS]], Kawehi, and the first live CVS Bangers by [[Hennessy Youngman]]. Seven films and shorts were shown at XOXO Film & Animation. XOXO Arcade featured 14 unreleased independent games with their designers and developers on-site.{{cn}} |
XOXO Music was held on an outdoor stage for the first time, with evening musical performances by [[Dan Deacon]], [[Kaki King]], [[Vulfpeck]], [[Open Mike Eagle]], [[NIKO IS]], Kawehi, and the first live CVS Bangers by [[Hennessy Youngman]]. Seven films and shorts were shown at XOXO Film & Animation. XOXO Arcade featured 14 unreleased independent games with their designers and developers on-site.{{cn|date=February 2021}} |
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Engadget wrote many talks were "emotionally driven... centered around the difficult issues of being independent."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Lee|first1=Nicole|title=How an independent art and technology festival captured my heart|url=https://www.engadget.com/2015/09/19/xoxofest-2015/|website=Engadget|access-date=22 January 2016}}</ref> The Guardian attributed the festival's popularity to "its gentleness, its emotive undertone and thoughtful curation, but also its commitment to supporting individual artists over businesses and corporates."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Kiss|first1=Jemima|title=Makerbase and the mission to dispel tech's 'founders' myths|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/oct/28/makerbase-and-the-mission-to-dispel-techs-founders-myths|website=The Guardian|access-date=22 January 2016}}</ref> |
Engadget wrote many talks were "emotionally driven... centered around the difficult issues of being independent."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Lee|first1=Nicole|title=How an independent art and technology festival captured my heart|url=https://www.engadget.com/2015/09/19/xoxofest-2015/|website=Engadget|access-date=22 January 2016}}</ref> The Guardian attributed the festival's popularity to "its gentleness, its emotive undertone and thoughtful curation, but also its commitment to supporting individual artists over businesses and corporates."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Kiss|first1=Jemima|title=Makerbase and the mission to dispel tech's 'founders' myths|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/oct/28/makerbase-and-the-mission-to-dispel-techs-founders-myths|website=The Guardian|access-date=22 January 2016}}</ref> |
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Revision as of 00:53, 27 February 2021
 | A major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject. (February 2021) |
| XOXO | |
|---|---|
 One of the speakers at XOXO 2012, Chad Dickerson of Etsy | |
| Status | Active |
| Genre | Art, technology |
| Frequency | Annually |
| Location(s) | Portland, Oregon |
| Country | United States |
| Inaugurated | 2012 |
| Founder | Andy Baio Andy McMillan |
| Website | xoxofest |
XOXO is an annual festival and conference held in Portland, Oregon, that describes itself as "an experimental festival for independent artists who live and work online".[1] XOXO was founded in 2012 by Andy Baio and Andy McMillan with funding from prepaid tickets and other contributions via Kickstarter.
History
2012
The inaugural event was held in Portland's Yale Union Laundry Building in September 2012 with approximately 400 participants.[2] The first day of the conference focused on talks from independent creators from fields such as film, comics, music, art and illustration, video games, hardware design and product design, while the second centered on technology, and those building tools to facilitate and encourage independent creativity through the web. Speakers and performers included Dan Harmon, Adam Savage, MC Frontalot, Chris Poole, Bre Pettis, Julia Nunes, The Kleptones, The Limousines, and the creators of Kickstarter, MetaFilter, VHX, Simple, Diesel Sweeties, Indie Game: The Movie and World of Goo.
Associated events included live music, film screenings, an arcade of independently produced videogames, a market, and food trucks.[3] News media and bloggers noted an "impressive list of speakers" and an "intimate tone" missing from other technology-focused conferences.[2] Ruth Brown wrote "the audience was overwhelmingly white, male, middle class and educated."[4]
2013
The festival returned to the Yale Union Laundry Building with speakers, workshops, films, music shows, game events, and a market.[5] Baio described it as being "about artists and hackers and makers that are using the internet to make a living doing what they love independently without sacrificing creative or financial control".[6] Portland Monthly compared the event to the larger South by Southwest festival, quoting Matthew Haughey saying SXSW speakers are "in the business of selling technologies" and XOXO speakers are "creating things".[7] To handle increased interest while remaining small (500 conference tickets and 200 "fringe event" tickets), it had an application process with questions intended to filter out people who wanted to market to attendees.[6]
Speakers and performers included Tim Schafer, Vi Hart, Evan Williams, Molly Crabapple, Marco Arment, Jack Conte, Erika Moen, Jay Smooth, Adrian Holovaty, and the creators of Cards Against Humanity, Pinboard, and Panic. The editors of Boing Boing—Mark Frauenfelder, Cory Doctorow, David Pescovitz, and Xeni Jardin—appeared together on stage for the first time to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the zine's launch in 1988. Musical performances included Anamanaguchi, Jack Conte, Jonathan Coulton, and Jim Guthrie.[8]
2014
XOXO 2014 was held on September 11–14, 2014 at The Redd, a former metal stamping facility in an industrial area of SE Portland.[citation needed] Conference speakers included Anita Sarkeesian, Hank Green, Gina Trapani, Golan Levin, John Gruber, Leigh Alexander, Kevin Kelly, Justin Hall, Jonathan Mann, Rachel Binx, and Welcome to Night Vale co-creator Joseph Fink. Sarkeesian's appearance was met with controversy from Gamergate supporters, with one protester passing out leaflets.[9]
XOXO Story was added in 2014 with live performances of popular podcasts like Harmontown, John Roderick's Rendezvous, and Song Exploder featuring an interview with The Thermals. A second night of music was also added, including performances from Pomplamoose, YACHT, Molly Lewis, John Roderick and Sean Nelson from The Long Winters, Mike Doughty, and Nerf Herder. XOXO Arcade featured 10 unreleased or exhibition-only games, such as Quadrilateral Cowboy and the ten-player Killer Queen arcade cabinet, and new work from Keita Takahashi, Threes creator Asher Vollmer, and QWOP creator Bennett Foddy.
Ten films and shorts were shown at XOXO Film, including previews of the first two episodes of Natasha Allegri's Bee & Puppycat series, new animations from David OReilly and PES, and the debut of Empire Uncut, the crowdsourced sequel to Star Wars Uncut.[citation needed]
2015
XOXO 2015 was held at the Revolution Hall auditorium of the former Washington High School in Southeast Portland.
Conference speakers included Heather Armstrong, Gimlet Media's Alex Blumberg, Veronica Belmont, Kathy Sierra, Spike Trotman, Daniel M. Lavery, Anil Dash, Zoë Quinn, Eric A. Meyer, BoJack Horseman's Lisa Hanawalt, Vlambeer's Rami Ismail, and the creators of Suck.com, reuniting on stage for the webzine's 20th anniversary.[10]
XOXO Music was held on an outdoor stage for the first time, with evening musical performances by Dan Deacon, Kaki King, Vulfpeck, Open Mike Eagle, NIKO IS, Kawehi, and the first live CVS Bangers by Hennessy Youngman. Seven films and shorts were shown at XOXO Film & Animation. XOXO Arcade featured 14 unreleased independent games with their designers and developers on-site.[citation needed]
Engadget wrote many talks were "emotionally driven... centered around the difficult issues of being independent."[11] The Guardian attributed the festival's popularity to "its gentleness, its emotive undertone and thoughtful curation, but also its commitment to supporting individual artists over businesses and corporates."[12]
2016
XOXO 2016 was held at Revolution Hall and attracted over 1,200 attendees. Conference speakers included Gaby Dunn, Talia Jane, Sammus, Neil Cicierega, Star Simpson, Mystery Show creator Starlee Kine, John Roderick, Lucy Bellwood, Simone Giertz, Jenn Schiffer, David Rees, Itch.io's Leaf Corcoran, Sarah Jeong, Another Round's Heben Nigatu, Majal's Esra'a Al-Shafei, and writer/designer Frank Chimero.[13] Jim Guthrie and Minecraft soundtrack composer C418 performed daytime DJ sets, and the closing party featured a surprise performance by Dan Deacon in the XOXO Outpost building.
Press coverage focused on the hiatus and the festival's impact. The Verge called it "the internet's best festival," and highlighted its attention to detail, focus on diversity, and curation.[14] A follow-up article featured highlights and discoveries from the festival lineup.[15]
2018
After a one-year hiatus in 2017, the sixth XOXO was held on September 6–9, 2018 at a new venue, Veterans Memorial Coliseum.[16] Nearly twice the size of past years, over 2,300 attendees attended XOXO 2018.[17]
The festival opened with a keynote from comedian Cameron Esposito about the production of her "Rape Jokes" standup special.[18] Conference speakers included Jonny Sun, Jean Grae, Jennifer 8. Lee, Open Mike Eagle, Demi Adejuyigbe, Claire L. Evans, Pepe the Frog creator Matt Furie, Ijeoma Oluo, ContraPoints' Natalie Wynn, Adam Ruins Everything's Adam Conover, The New Yorker's Helen Rosner, and the creators of the feminist satire magazine Reductress.[19] Comedian Hari Kondabolu was the final speaker of the conference, talking about representation in media and why he made The Problem with Apu, his 2017 documentary about The Simpsons character.
The festival closed with an unannounced concert by Lizzo on the festival's main stage, who surprised attendees after the show by performing karaoke in the Blue Ox Bar, a dedicated pop-up dive bar created for the event. Other on-site installations included a secret speakeasy, accessible only by solving a series of puzzles accessible via telephone booths around the venue, and Dear Future Me, an interactive installation by illustrator Alice Lee inviting attendees to mail a postcard to their future selves.[20]
2019
After experimenting with a larger event, XOXO returned to its previous size and venue for its seventh year, with 1,200 attendees at Revolution Hall. Organizers cited several reasons for the return to their former venue, namely the desire to return to a more comfortable, accessible, and intimate size.[21]
For the first time, all of XOXO's main programming was held on the same block in Portland's Central Eastside, using a newly opened venue inside Washington High for XOXO Tabletop, a 10,000 square foot tent structure in the park for two nights of Arcade, and Revolution Hall for the Conference, Video, and Story events.
2020
In March 2020, XOXO organizers Andy Baio and Andy McMillan announced that XOXO 2020 was canceled as a result of the escalating COVID-19 pandemic.[22]
Outpost
In June 2015, the organizers of XOXO announced[23] they were opening a shared workspace to "bring some of our favorite people and projects in indie art and tech under one roof" in a 13,000 square foot building in Portland's Central Eastside Industrial District.[24] The Outpost opened in February 2016, and served over 85 members including video game designers, filmmakers, musicians, writers, and artists, until a sharp increase in rent forced it to close on December 30, 2016.[25]
References
- ^ "XOXO Festival". XOXO Festival. XOXO. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- ^ a b Gantz, Ryan (September 19, 2012). "The Dream of the Internet is Alive in Portland: Inside the XOXO Festival". The Verge. Retrieved December 30, 2012.
- ^ Wortham, Jenna; Gallagher, David F. (September 18, 2012). "XOXO: A Festival of Indie Internet Creativity". New York Times Bits Blog. Retrieved December 30, 2012.
- ^ Ruth Brown (2012-09-18). "Reflections on the XOXO Festival". Willamette Week. Retrieved 2014-09-28.
- ^ Larsen, Luke (September 20, 2013). "Technology, creativity cross at XOXO". The Oregonian. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
- ^ a b Edidin, Rachel (September 20, 2013). "The Record-Breaking XOXO Festival Returns to Cross-Pollinate Art and Tech". Wired. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
- ^ Patall, Marty (September 3, 2013). "How the XOXO Festival Charms Cutting-Edge Thinkers". Portland Monthly. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
- ^ "Announcing XOXO Music". XOXOFest Blog. August 14, 2013. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
- ^ Newton, Casey (16 September 2014). "How XOXO Festival is pushing the web forward". The Verge. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
- ^ "XOXO". 2015.xoxofest.com. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
- ^ Lee, Nicole. "How an independent art and technology festival captured my heart". Engadget. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
- ^ Kiss, Jemima. "Makerbase and the mission to dispel tech's 'founders' myths". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
- ^ "XOXO". xoxofest.com. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
- ^ Newton, Casey. "In praise of the internet's best festival, which is going away". The Verge.
- ^ Newton, Casey. "Our favorite discoveries from the internet's best festival". The Verge.
- ^ "Bringing XOXO Back". XOXO Blog. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
- ^ "Patronage at XOXO". XOXO Blog. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
- ^ Smith, Suzette. "XOXO Fest, Day 1: FREE Carly Rae Jepsen Soda, the Albina Vision Project, Cameron Esposito's Rape Jokes". Portland Mercury. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
- ^ "Conference". XOXO 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
- ^ Damewood, Andrea. "Snapshots of the Coolest Things at XOXO Fest 2018". Portland Mercury. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
- ^ "Return to Form". XOXO Blog. XOXO. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
- ^ "XOXO 2020 Is Canceled". XOXO. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- ^ "A New Experiment". XOXO Blog. XOXO. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
- ^ Bell, Jon. "Portland's XOXO Festival lands 13,000-square-foot year-round home in Central Eastside". Portland Business Journal. Portland Business Journal. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
- ^ "XOXO Outpost". XOXO Outpost. XOXO. Retrieved 30 December 2016.