Now in its tenth year, Brighton Digital Festival returns with a broad programme ranging from sound-based immersive theatre based on the lives of swimmers to a chance to ask questions of Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and others through an AI-powered installation.

This time, the themes include climate change, the circular economy and digital tech in a pandemic. That means you can see an art visualisation of Covid data, explore plant biotechnology through an augmented reality app and learn how to make a movie on your smartphone.

Festival CEO, Alli Beddoes, picked seven highlights to look out for…

Alternative Stages | BEYOND THE STAGE | Live Music Meets a New Reality
The FuseBox, Weds 27th Oct, 4pm, free
Ooh, what a line-up! It’s a room of Brighton heroes with Platform B, Donna Close and Phil Jones discussing the balance of live and virtual gigs and the best technology to support them. Plus, you know you’re in for a good show when Chris Thorpe-Tracey (aka Chris T-T) is in the driving seat as chair – it’s sure to be full of wisdom, humour and everything in between.

AVXLuton Live – soundmaking on a dime
Online, Fri 29th Oct – Fri 5th Nov, 6pm
This will be a veritable feast of collaboration, testing, trialling and experimentation on your own devices and with like-minded creatives. If you’re an artist that visualises your practise, come to this session to hear what that might sound like. If you’re a musician or sonic artist, come and see it take a shape of its own. Lovely stuff! We can’t wait to experience the results.

The Algorithmic Tales
Online, Sat 30th Oct, 10am-12pm, free
David Blandy is running some brilliant online workshops and game jams where punters are invited to reflect a vision of Brighton and Mars in the distant future. It doesn’t matter if you’ve lived in Brighton for aeons or a flash – bring your stories and myths of the city and form a future archeology for a new world.

Eva Quantica VR
The Garden Cafe, Sun 31st Oct, Sat 6th Nov, 4pm, donation
We are big fans of Maf’j Alvarez’s work. In Eva Quantica, you can enter a surrealist painting through VR. This piece is about female empowerment, immigration, tradition and obligation. It was commissioned by the National Gallery, London, so it’s great that it’s coming ‘home’ to Brighton for the festival.

Stickybits VR Game Show
The Rose Hill, Weds 3rd – Thurs 4th Nov, 7pm, £6.84
Ah, you know you loved the Zoom games at the start of lockdown, right? Well, head to The Rose Hill and immerse yourself in a gameshow hosted by Kassia Zermon, aka Bunty. We’re already envious of the participants – this event will be so much fun.

SketchSesh with Special Guests
Lighthouse, Sat 6th Nov, 8pm, £17
For the first time, SketchSesh is coming to Brighton, bringing their incredible creative drawing class to BDF21. More details are going to be announced in the next few days, but with past models including fierce drag icons such as Bimini Bon Boulash, Gigi Goode and Naomi Smalls, this is sure to be amazing.

If I Could Get To You – Amaal Said
Enter Gallery, Sun 7th Nov, 6.30pm-6am, free
It’s wonderful to have Amaal’s beautiful work in the Brighton Digital Festival this year. This is an installation that is best experienced as dusk falls, so make your way to the North Laine as the sun sets and explore the process of memories through sound and moving image.

Friday 29th Oct – Sunday 7th Nov 2021
Visit Brighton Digital Festival 2021 for full listings.

Photos courtesy Brighton Digital Festival.