<nettime> Futur en Seine - digital city festival in Paris Region - 29 may 7 june 2009

[Ewen Chardronnet <ewen@no-log.org>]

The International “Futur en Seine” Festival


Futur en Seine (www.futur-en-seine.org) is a new popular Festival of the 
Digital city, a unique cultural, technological and social event, which 
will take place from 29th May to 7th June in the city of Paris and Ile 
de France region. For ten days, across the city and region, you will be 
able to see, touch and interact with innovative technologies and 
applications which will be part of daily life in the digital city of the 
future. The scale and scope of the Festival is breathtaking: 10 full 
days, 40 venues, some 300 events, 16 major prototypes, 30 conferences, 
and a digital village….all free of charge!

Futur en Seine also presents a pioneering international program and 
perspective. This stands alone in its open, inclusive and interactive 
format, bringing together leading international visionaries, thinkers, 
creatives and practitioners with “grass-roots” interaction and public 
participation. At the same time, the festival offers the international 
visitor a broad and mixed English language program, with a diverse range 
of conferences, exhibitions, prototypes, and demonstrations.

During the festival there will be ample opportunity for international 
visitors to present innovative technologies, prototypes and services and 
explore new research, development and business opportunities.

The festival also has a profound social and ethical perspective. At a 
time of global economic crisis, doubt in the future, and lack of trust 
in traditional social and economic institutions, the international 
festival and conference will focus not only on technological progress 
and services in the city, but also on the social and ethical potential 
of media to (re)establish trust and collaboration between the 
"grass-roots" public, digital research and development, government and 
business.

The social and ethical impact of digital media and information 
technology on the structure, form and experience of life in the city of 
the future, from new products, services, tools, applications, to our 
physical and virtual space and relationships, is a subject of concern 
throughout the world. The international program of Futur en Seine 
addresses this concern directly. Over the festival, the Futur en Seine 
international program will bring together renowned international 
thinkers and visionaries with creatives and practitioners from leading 
European (and US) cities to discuss new approaches and prototypes, 
design new blue-prints, and formulate recommendations for a more 
“livable”, humane, and sustainable digital city of the future.

The International “Futur en Seine” Program

Within this context, the international program will focus throughout the 
festival on certain central themes, which will directly affect the lives 
of the citizen in the next few years. These include:

Mobility
Space, Security, Trust
Collaborate Design, Mapping Complex networks across cultures and social 
layers
Environmental and Social Sustainability

To open the international program on 30th/31st May, leading 
international thinkers will address these themes at the 
World-Information City Conference, which has chosen to hold its major 
annual event in Paris, with such eminent speakers as Saskia Sassen 
(US/NL), Stephen Graham (UK), Bruno Latour (FR), John Urry (UK), Carlo 
Ratti (IT/US), Solomon Benjamin (IN), Eyal Weizman (IL), Christophe 
Aguiton (FR), Dominique Cardon (FR), and Brian Holmes (US). This major 
event promises new insight and debate at the highest international 
level, and is a fitting way in which to open the international festival.

These themes are addressed throughout the following days in a wide and 
colourful range of conferences, exhibitions, prototypes and 
demonstrations throughout the city and region, with diverse cultural, 
artistic and media-related perspectives. On an international level, 
events in English will include ongoing workshops and presentations on 
such subjects as geo-localization and cultural mapping, audio-visual and 
open software innovation, and architectural experimentation in the 
WikiPlaza on the Place de la Bastille, a projet by Hackitectura.net. The 
“Immaterial” Digital Season in the Maison des Métallos hosts such events 
as the “Arctic Perspective Initiative”, focusing on an international 
project to design a mobile, media-centric facility, life-support 
habitation and work module with renewable energy supply, waste cycling 
and communications systems, and a range of other international 
exhibitions, conferences and performances. To the north of the city in 
Saint-Ouen, Mains D’Oeuvres hosts the ”Mal au Pixel” (Pixelache) 
International Festival of Electronic Art and Culture, featuring 
installations, performing arts, meetings, workshops and concerts around 
the themes of public space, urban electronics and ecology. The list of 
international events continues with Eurodigimeet, featuring key players 
from the Digital Industries, and Read Digital at the Bourse de Commerce, 
Dimension 3: The future of 3D at the Centre National de la Danse, Peter 
Greenaway’s “Tulse Luper VJ Tour” at the Bains Numériques in 
Enghien-les-Bains, and many more diverse and fascinating spectacles.

The international festival culminates in Cap Digital’s international 
event “World Future Digital City@FenS”, under the heading “The Digital 
City in the Next Five Years”, which takes place over two days in the 
inspirational setting of the refurbished Hermes factory, in the historic 
heart of the city, near the Place de la Bastille. International guests 
(political advisors, planners, thinkers, creatives, business, research) 
and their Paris City/Region equivalent have been invited to collaborate 
in discussing and designing the new paradigm of the digital city.

If you are interested in participating in the International Conference 
“The Digital City in the Next Five Years” or have general inquiries 
about the international “Futur en Seine” festival, please contact Olivia 
Dasté on +33 (01)1 40 41 11 86 or by email: international@capdigital.com.




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