Jun 13, 2023
In this episode we talk to Hugh Forrest, the Co-President and
Chief Programming Officer at SXSW. Hugh joined SXSW in 1989
(you gotta hear his story of how he got there and the early years
of the organization).
SXSW has clearly had an impact on the growth on Austin's
global tech footprint, and this interview we talk about our past,
present, and future.
About Hugh Forrest
Hugh Forrest serves as Co-President and Chief Programming
Officer for South by Southwest (SXSW). For his role of Chief
Programming Officer, he oversees content for the SXSW Conference,
as well as the SXSW Music Festival, the SXSW Film Festival, the
SXSW Comedy Festival and SXSW EDU.
Forrest was named "Austinite of the Year" in 2012 by the
Austin Chamber of Commerce (along with fellow SXSW Directors Roland
Swenson, Louis Black and Nick Barbaro). In 2014, Forrest and these
other SXSW Directors were named Austin Entrepreneurs of the Year by
Ernst & Young. He was awarded a Key to the City in January 2023 by
Austin Mayor Steve Adler.
He received an honorary doctorate of humane letters in 2018
from Kenyon College, his alma matter. In 2021, he was
awarded Diversity Champion of the Year by the Austin Black Business
Journal.
In addition to his work at SXSW, he has previously served on
of the National Advisory Board for the Poynter Institute in St.
Petersburg, Florida. He has also served on the Board of Directors
for Austin Habitat for Humanity. He currently sits on the Board of
Directors for the Austin-based accessibility company Knowbility.
Via his decades of work with the Austin Reggae Festival, he has
helped to raise more than $1 million in funding for the Central
Texas Food Bank.
Before joining the SXSW team in the dark ages of 1989, he
founded a small monthly alternative publication called The Austin
Challenger. He also wrote for several other newspapers and
publications, including the Austin Chronicle, the Texas Sports
Chronicle, the West Austin News, Willamette Week and the Seattle
Weekly.
For 2024, SXSW is scheduled March 8-16.
About Austin Technology Council
Austin Tech Connect is the official podcast of the Austin
Technology Council. ATC was founded in 1992 to help promote
the growth of Austin technology companies and to help create more
community in the growth tech ecosystem. Today the
organization is a leading organization and
a major voice for the continued growth of tech in Central
Texas.