Last week iShed headed to the South by South West Interactive Festival in Austin, Texas, with Media Sandbox participant Hazel Grian of Licorice Media and three other digital agencies from Bristol. The Festival celebrates the creativity and passion behind the coolest new media technologies and featured keynote talks and panel sessions covering everything from web design to bootstrapping to social networks, with a heavy helping of mobile, pervasive and games.

Traveling with Mike Bennett of Bristol Media, Benjamin Hostler of Beef and Andy Parkhouse of Team Rubber, our mission was to research new business opportunities, spot emerging digital trends and explore what Bristol can learn from one of the biggest international conferences and festivals of the year.

The hot topics at the Festival were mobile, creativity, collaboration and ARGs (with Hazel being recognised across the Festival for her MeiGeist ARG). You can read our blog, which covers general impressions of the Festival and some detailed notes on events, here.