South by Southwest – the annual, 10-day event bringing creatives from all over the world to Austin – returned to an in-person event this year, and SJMC students were there to help conference organizers cover it.

A team of 23 students attended the 2022 Conference and Interactive, Film, and Music Festivals under the guidance of SXSW’s Brand & Marketing web and social media teams. They captured photo and video content, coordinated content delivery and transcribed key moments from conference keynotes and featured talks, film screening Q&As and other event programming for usage on SXSW’s social media accounts and website. Students were exposed to up-and-coming artists, films and emerging topics, including the future of the Metaverse, NFTs and the importance of diversity and inclusion in technology and media.

SJMC students hit the streets during SXSW to capture the feel of the 10-day festival.
SJMC students hit the streets during SXSW to capture the feel of the 10-day festival.

Some of the students shared their takeaways, best memories and work from the event.

My SXSW experience was life changing and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that allowed me to expand my knowledge and gain inspiration from the most brilliant minds in entertainment, news, tech, music and film. Before SXSW, I was a little nervous about graduating and what is out there outside of my small TXST bubble – but it was so inspiring to see all that the world has to offer.
-Melina Madrigal, electronic media major

Image of Jade Bird performing during SXSW, by Madigan Minihan.

I met so many cool people and had so many one-of-a-kind experiences that it left me thinking, “How do I keep getting so lucky?” every night on the drive home. My biggest takeaway was that at SXSW, no one is a stranger. Always make a friend out of the person next to you on the bus, behind you in line or standing with you at a show. You never know who they could be or how you could get along.
-Madigan Minihan, Digital Media Innovation major

SXSW was an experience unlike anything I’ve been a part of before. With the conferences and the films and the music, there was never a point where I was bored. I made so many friends, all of which I hope to continue to talk to and see outside of this event.
-Beth Bruch, Digital Media Innovation major

The whole experience was OUTTA THIS WORLD! This experience made me realize how lucky I am and grateful to form part of the TXST crew. If it wasn’t for TXST, I would have never experienced SXSW the way I did. Love TXST, love SXSW!
-Mireya Martinez, Advertising major

This experience was 10x better than I imagined it would be! I never considered doing this particular kind of thing as a career, but I could actually spend my life doing this and be completely happy. I think I just gained a new serious interest!
-Maya Goodlow, Advertising major

Image from the Creative Industries Hub by Cassie Butterfield

My SXSW experience was amazing. I loved being a part of such a huge event and getting up close access to thought leaders and artists. My big takeaway is that I want to be involved in SXSW in future years in whatever way I can!
-Autumn McGowan, Digital Media Innovation major

My favorite part of this experience, aside from the incredible shows I saw, were the networking opportunities. I’ll never forget this spring break, and I wouldn’t have wanted to spend it any other way.
-Cassie Butterfield, Journalism major

I got to work with a real media team, get real life experience – not just read about it or hear from other professionals in the field. It gave me a glimpse into a very exciting career.
-Julian Ortiz, Digital Media Innovation Major

Imani Wilson transcribes panel content during SXSW for quick updates to social media.

My favorite part was getting to meet and work with my teammates and getting content for SXSW. Being a part of a big festival and getting to experience everything was awesome. Capturing in-the-moment shots was so inspirational and important. For this to be my first SXSW festival, I had an amazing time! This experience is something I can take with me to my job.
-Imani Wilson, Public Relations major

It was fun learning about what other people are passionate about all week. My favorite part was that anything could happen. I could see something random and cool simply by walking down the street in the SXSW environment.
-Morgan Sick, Advertising Major

The SXSW experience was like none other. SXSW is constantly moving, and you need to be able to match its pace. I really enjoyed my first SXSW experience and was able to snap lots of cool pictures that will be going straight to the portfolio.
-Sabrina Macias, Electronic Media major

My favorite part of the experience was the chance to meet and network with various people including videographers, photographers, writers and artists. My biggest takeaway from working SXSW would be that you get what you put in. Whenever I pushed myself to try new things, I would do just that.
-Steven Phipps, Digital Media Innovation major

Each day reminded me that there was more to life than college, but that TXST was how I was going to get there. I got to network with dozens of people from the industries I want to go into and work with an amazing team. Most importantly, I was able to build my creative portfolio and got the full SXSW experience that any Austin local would dream of.
– Eva Nobles, Advertising major

This is the fifth year of SJMC students supporting the conference on the SXSW Content Team. You can see much of their work featured on the SXSW website and their Instagram social media feed.

The 2022 SJMC SXSW Content Team included Beth Bruch, Cassie Butterfield, Isabel Clark, Wesley Farrell, Maya Goodlow, M.J. Ienatsch, Sabrina Macias, Melina Madrigal, Mireya Martinez, Autumn McGowan, Madigan Minihan, Eva Nobles, Julian Ortiz, Junior Pacheco, Sarah Pederzani, Steven Phipps, Cate Scanlan, Kyla Scott, Morgan Sick, Jake Sykes, Cecily Warford, Asanti Wiley, Imani Wilson.