by Stacy Jackson
November 14, 2024
Black Public Media’s BPMplus fellows will share their creative process and unveil finished works during its Art & Tech Showcases at Torrents.
Black Public Media’s immersive BPMplus program will hold two showcases for creative technology productions at “Torrents: New Links to Black Futures” on Saturday, Nov. 16.
Based in Harlem, New York, Black Public Media is a national media arts nonprofit that supports the development and distribution of Black film, television, and immersive projects by Black creators who use technology to produce content relating to the global Black experience.
Starting at 12 p.m. Saturday, filmmakers and artists will converge at Songbyrd Music House to discuss the art of creating artificial intelligence, augmented reality, projection, and video projects. Moderated by BPM Emerging Media Director Lisa Osborne, the 2024 presenting artists will connect with attendees as they share their workflow and creative processes, reveal intentions behind their projects, dive into concept art, and unveil clips of finished works.
Launched in 2018, BPMplus offers producers and technologists access to grants, fellowships, workshops, showcases,and networking opportunities as they create projects using augmented reality, motion capture, artificial intelligence, and other technologies.
“As AI and other new technologies become more embedded in our daily lives, it is important that access to these tools is available for everyone during their liminal or pre-commercial phases,” Osbourne said in a press release.
Creators also have access to artists-in-residence programs and the national PitchBLACK Immersive Forum.
CulturalDC has welcomed BPMplus back for its annual showcase at Torrents as the interdisciplinary series celebrates the innovative future of visual arts, technology, music, film and performance.
“For decades, tech training, grants and other opportunities have been funneled into the hands of a few, essentially imprinting biases that exist in old or traditional media onto new storytelling tools long before they gain mass adoption,” Osbourne said. “Our BPMplus programs strive to counter that larger tendency in the tech, film, arts and philanthropic worlds by giving our immersive filmmakers and artists a seat at the table to ensure a future where all communities are represented.”
Sponsored by Shutterstock and Rolling Out, the BPMplus Art & Tech Showcases will feature Baff Akoto, Collateral Echoes (2025); Ethel-Ruth Tawe, Image Frequency Modulation (2025), 2024 PitchBLACK Immersive Forum winner; LaJuné McMillian, The Portal’s Keeper (2024), 2023 PitchBLACK Immersive Forum winner; MaryAnn Talavera, The ORIXA Project: Planet Aris (2024); Georgiana Wright, Synthetic Ferality (2024); and Andrea Walls, Variance: Ritual for a Home (2024), 2024 PitchBLACK Immersive Forum winner.
“Torrents: New Links to Black Futures” runs from Nov. 14-17. The BPMplus Art & Tech Showcase I starts at noon on the final day; Showcase II follows at 2 p.m. ET. A networking mixer featuring a cash bar will follow from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.
Registration is recommended to attend the free events.
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