FESTIVAL 25. AURORA.
Electric Medway Festival is a beautifully presented family event that happens every year in October half term, showcasing high quality digital art made with the community.
Aurora will be the sixth edition of the Festival. Inspired by nature’s Northern Lights that reached Kent last year, Aurora is a celebration of the wonderment of changing colour, particle energy and ancient ancestry. As Electric Medway turns 10, the Festival will be supporting the work of ten local artists or groups who see the world differently, including diverse perspectives from young people.
Full line up to be announced soon but will include:
- Highway to Infinity by Symoné
- Forest Keep by Electric Medway
- New Chronicles of Mudfog by House of Stars
- Medway Fighter by Jon Schwochert
- NINE by Temple of Kulture
- Men in Tech by Electric Medway
- Intra Stories by Electric Medway
Save the date in your diary!
24-26 October 2025.
Aurora will be the sixth edition of the Festival. Inspired by nature’s Northern Lights that reached Kent last year, Aurora is a celebration of the wonderment of changing colour, particle energy and ancient ancestry. As Electric Medway turns 10, the Festival will be supporting the work of ten local artists or groups who see the world differently, including diverse perspectives from young people.
Full line up to be announced soon but will include:
- Highway to Infinity by Symoné
- Forest Keep by Electric Medway
- New Chronicles of Mudfog by House of Stars
- Medway Fighter by Jon Schwochert
- NINE by Temple of Kulture
- Men in Tech by Electric Medway
- Intra Stories by Electric Medway
Save the date in your diary!
24-26 October 2025.
2024. Two worlds.
24-27 October 2024.
Two worlds was the fifth edition of Electric Medway Festival. It was the beginning of a conversation to imagine the possibilities of a different kind of world. Through the power of creative technology, audiences were invited to experience, enjoy and engage with 4 days of stimulating events, glimpsing worlds they wouldn’t normally see, touch or hear. What kind of world(s) should we be building for the future?
For reference, you can still download the Official programme guide. Last year's Festival was also part of Medway Culture Fest 24.
Two worlds was the fifth edition of Electric Medway Festival. It was the beginning of a conversation to imagine the possibilities of a different kind of world. Through the power of creative technology, audiences were invited to experience, enjoy and engage with 4 days of stimulating events, glimpsing worlds they wouldn’t normally see, touch or hear. What kind of world(s) should we be building for the future?
For reference, you can still download the Official programme guide. Last year's Festival was also part of Medway Culture Fest 24.
24 October 2024
Our climate of crisis.
Available to watch now. Partnering with Creative Medway, Our climate of crisis was an open discussion about our lives today, a story of how technology may have inadvertently contributed to our sense of permanent crisis. From the onset of AI and misinformation, to alarming data about the climate and mental health, could technology also pose the solutions by offering a means to imagine a better future? Panel: Filmmakers Cath Hoffmann and John Vincent, and Daniel Luscombe, Medway Climate Change. With auto-generated captions.
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Electric Medway TV.No longer available to watch. Audiences were invited to sit back in their sofa, get comfortable and enjoy these specially selected experimental films made by local artists that explored the themes raised in Our climate of crisis discussion. Wormhole of our Formation by Catherine Hoffmann touched on mental health, austerity and the environment, charting a personal journey through three red alert storms - Dudley, Eunice and Franklin. De Facto 36 by John Vincent took the idea of digital immortality - could we one day upload and preserve our consciousness and will AI be a help or hinderance? For reference, you can still access information on each film below.
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25 October 2024
Forest Keep.Chatham Library. Enter our fantasy woodland tent! Young people were invited to be part of Forest Keep, a new fictional story set in the future. Inside the tent young people used VR to see concept ideas created by young people so far, and created their own, including virtual sets of trees and sounds. They helped write different choices for the narrative with Sam Hall, in collaboration with Medway River Lit Festival. Medway Libraries also displayed a range of exciting fantasy books for loan. And, young people also helped design a retro arcade game, Medway Fighter with Jon Schwochert.
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The Chatham Book Monster.Chatham Library. Grab your phone and play a new digital trail developed by local young people! Start your journey by contacting the mysterious organisation OCTOPUS and get your first clue that will take you far beyond the Library. Solve cryptic puzzles and uncover the town's surprising secrets. Think tigers, unicorns, and painted elephants! The game is now live for an extended period - pop into the library for more information. Hosted by Docking Station and the Institute of Cultural and Creative Industries (iCCi), in partnership with London’s acclaimed arts charity, Coney.
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in.difference.Woodlands Academy Gillingham. In the new video game in.difference, five players make dream worlds, tailored to their disabilities and differences. But their worlds aren't so perfect after all. A virus has snuck into the game and it’s brought real-world problems with it! Can our players challenge the problems and defeat the virus? Square Pegs Arts Theatre Company presented an original performance for families and children (7+), enhanced by digital
technologies, puppetry and movement. |
26 October 2024
Nocturnal.Chatham House on The Old High St Intra and nearby Hulkes Lane, Tack Room, Hulkes Lane Darkroom & Studio and Intra Arts. An otherworldly evening of audiovisual installation revealed unseen and unheard rhythms of nature at night. Contributions were from Xtina Lamb, Jane Pitt, Anna Braithwaite, Formwork, Livi Wilmore and Medway Men in Sheds, Tom Ward, Cybersaur Arts, Gabi Almeida, Tyler Austin, Leigh Academy Rainham, Hulkes Lane Darkroom and Studio, The Historic Dockyard Chatham, Hannah Whittaker and Medway Superstars by 51zero. For reference, you can still Download the event map.
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27 October 2024
Illusions of nature.Gillingham Park. The public joined us for an afternoon of serene and surreal activities inspired by the surrounding trees. Squeeze Me beckoned playfulness with Air Giants' inflatable technology. VR thrill seekers enjoyed Volo: dreams of flight - an exciting swing experience by Studio Go Go. Also, people enjoyed animal inspired movement with WKD Yoga. Plus, at Electric Medway's Digital Gazebo families helped turn a tree into a live glow art installation! A VR swing for wheelchairs was be available. For reference, you can still Download free event map.
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About the Festival.
Born during lockdown as a hybrid-online event, Electric Medway Festival has evolved outdoors to become a popular feature on Medway's cultural calendar. It is now it's 5th year.
The Festival is produced by Electric Medway. It was conceived by Kevin Grist, Creative Director and Janet Moore, Community Director with initial support from Paul Cowell, Head of Culture and Libraries at Medway Council.
Since 2020, it has attracted partnership funding from Arts Council England, Medway Council, Kent County Council, Hi3 Network, Creative Estuary, Kent Community Foundation, Tesco Bags of Help, Arnold Clark Community Fund, Way of Life, Ideas Test, The Old High Street Intra, MSL Projects, Screen South and donations from individuals and community support in-kind.
Ranging from VR and projected light, to electronic music and AI, events and workshops are put on in everyday spaces including libraries, shopping centres, parks, cafes and even lamp posts.
The Festival is best known for commissioning innovative works by local artists and young people, boldly telling stories from Medway's neighbourhoods and capturing the unique DIY spirit of the area.
The Festival is produced by Electric Medway. It was conceived by Kevin Grist, Creative Director and Janet Moore, Community Director with initial support from Paul Cowell, Head of Culture and Libraries at Medway Council.
Since 2020, it has attracted partnership funding from Arts Council England, Medway Council, Kent County Council, Hi3 Network, Creative Estuary, Kent Community Foundation, Tesco Bags of Help, Arnold Clark Community Fund, Way of Life, Ideas Test, The Old High Street Intra, MSL Projects, Screen South and donations from individuals and community support in-kind.
Ranging from VR and projected light, to electronic music and AI, events and workshops are put on in everyday spaces including libraries, shopping centres, parks, cafes and even lamp posts.
The Festival is best known for commissioning innovative works by local artists and young people, boldly telling stories from Medway's neighbourhoods and capturing the unique DIY spirit of the area.
