Dreamy Place, previously Brighton Digital Festival, announces new programme of inclusive arts events

Dreamy Place, formerly Brighton Digital Festival (BDF), today announces its evolution and rebrand to mark the launch of a new seven-day programme this October in Brighton & Hove and Crawley.

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, Dreamy Place takes place in Brighton from 19 to 22 October and, for the first time in BDF’s 12-year history, has expanded to Crawley from 12 to 14 October.

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 Wyld, director of Dreamy Place and videoclub who also helped establish Brighton Digital Festival in 2010, said: “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 an exciting launch programme bringing together past creators of BDF along with some amazing, 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.”

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.

Promoting youth creativity

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 and Crawley, to showcase young people’s talent.

Supporting inclusivity

Dreamy Place will host an interactive and diverse art and technology programme of accessible exhibitions, performances and talks that are available to all communities. Visitors can experience playable artworks, tech talks, outdoor film screenings, interactive exhibitions, workshops and games.

This stream of events encourages personal exploration to see how new technologies can nurture wellbeing, offer shared experiences, provide inspiration for change or stimulate new creative ambitions. It has been curated by videoclub, in partnership with creative and health technologist Sarah Ticho, gaming expert Jo Summers, Brighton Youth Centre, Oska Bright Film Festival, Carousel, Creative Crawley and Crawley LGBTQU+.

Collaborating with International Artists

One of the highlights of the 2023 programme is the inclusion of several world-renowned artists from China, making their UK premiere. The Cab Road Tunnel in Brighton (beneath Brighton train station) will feature an immersive and dramatic installation of video, light and sound created by Chinese artists in collaboration with Brighton-based artist Thomas Buckley.

Video artwork by CHILLCHILL, LazyBackHome, Uan and Zhu Jinkun will be shown at Lighthouse in Brighton on 21 and 22 October, with performances by Chinese artists GUAN and LimboLimbs taking place at Fabrica on 19 October.

Working with Martin Goya Business, several UK-based artists will also take part in an international exchange to Hangzhou, China for a Dreamy Place exhibition in December 2023.

Pete Davison, Relationship Manager, Creative Media at Arts Council England, who are supporting Dreamy Place said: “We’re delighted to have been able to support the first Dreamy Place Festival, thanks to National Lottery players. Immersive and videogame technologies can offer a really powerful way for audiences who may not see themselves represented in traditional artforms to engage with creativity – such as young people – and that is really exciting for us. We’re particularly pleased that the festival will be delivering a programme of work in Crawley, one of our Priority Places, as well as Brighton – giving more people the opportunity to experience a wealth of interactive artworks by leading artists from across the UK and internationally.”

Jamie Wyld, Dreamy Place Festival Director, added: “Dreamy Place is a platform to celebrate and explore the work of talent from local creatives in Brighton & Hove and Crawley to international artists. It’s an incredibly exciting opportunity and will help shine a spotlight on the South East as a global stage for digital culture and creativity, as well as addressing the big questions about how technology informs our lives and how we can inform its future.”

Dreamy Place has been curated and produced by artists’ film and digital culture agency, videoclub. The programme has been created in partnership with arts, culture, technology and community partners from across Brighton & Hove, Crawley, the UK and internationally. Partners include Brighton & Hove Museums, Brighton Youth Centre, Carousel / Oska Bright Film Festival, Crawley Community Youth Service, Crawley LGBTQU+, Crawley Library, Crawley Museum, eott, Exploring Senses, Fabrica, Gallery Lock In, Lighthouse, Martin Goya Business, South East Dance and The Old Market.

The 2023 programme has been made possible thanks to funders, sponsors and supporters including Arts Council England, Brandwatch, British Council, CCiXR University of Portsmouth, Chalk Hill Trust, Crawley Borough Council, Creative Crawley, Govia Thameslink, HTC, Jubilee Square / Brighton Fringe, Plus Accounting and Visual Elements.

To keep up to date with event information and find out about the full programme from Dreamy Place, visit the dreamy-place.com website or follow them on social media here:

Facebook: facebook.com/DreamyPlaceInternational

Instagram: @DreamyPlaceUK

Twitter: @DreamyPlace_UK

#DreamyPlace23