About XMediaLab

XMediaLab is the internationally acclaimed creative industries event. XML creates a meeting place uniquely designed to assist companies and people get their own creative ideas successfully to market, through concept development, business matching, and direct access to world-class networks of creative professionals.

XMediaLab consists of a Pro Day Conference (General Admission) featuring a selection of the world’s outstanding creative practitioners for each Lab’s chosen theme; and the 2-day Lab itself (Selected Companies Only), in which the participants are able to work directly with their selected Lab mentors on their own project ideas, and explore partnerships and business opportunities with all other Lab participants Lab mentors.

Each XMediaLab is a completely unique event where people with original digital media ideas connect with a superb international network of independent creative thinkers, technology wizards, commercialization experts, potential business partners, and potential financial resources. The focus of the Lab is always on you and your idea.

XMediaLab specializes in building high-value professional networks between the emergent creative industries in China, India, the Middle East, and North and South Asia: the new geographies and new media hotspots that have the highest growth markets, the biggest numbers of consumers, the largest youth markets, and the greatest emerging talent pools. We also stage X|Media|Labs with partners in selected traditional media hotspots including London, Los Angeles, and Amsterdam.

The “X” in XMediaLab stands for cross-platform, cross-disciplinary, and cross-cultural.

Please also see our FAQ for further details on how the Lab operates.

 Lastly, ‘X’ marks the spot! We look forward to welcoming your participation at any XMediaLab in the time-zone within which we always operate: the near future!

Remember, ‘X’ marks the spot.

 

BACKGROUND

XMediaLab began at the Sydney Opera House in June 2003. By the end of 2009 more than 30 XMediaLab events will have been held in over 10 locations including Melbourne, Singapore, Mumbai, Beijing, London, New Zealand, Seoul, Los Angeles, Shanghai, Amsterdam, and Malaysia.

The Lab has partnered with the Sydney Film Festival, the Asia Media Festival, Broadcast Asia, ICCIE in Beijing, KOCCA in Korea, the Melbourne International Film Festival, FICCI-FRAMES in India, NPO in Amsterdam, the AFI in Hollywood, and MDeC in Malaysia.

For information about partnering to stage XMediaLab in your own digital media hotspot, please contact info@xmedialab.com.

The Directors: Brendan Harkin & Megan Elliott

Brendan Harkin

Brendan Harkin
Founder and Director, XMediaLab
Brendan Harkin is the Founder and Director of XMediaLab.

Brendan Harkin founded XMediaLab in June 2003. XMediaLab is the internationally acclaimed creative thinktank for digital media professionals that brings together the world’s outstanding creatives, executives, and power-brokers who work as mentors with local companies on their own creative project ideas.

XMediaLab focuses on creating high-value networks among the emergent digital media markets of China, India, the Middle East, and North and South Asia; and assisting local companies get their ideas successfully to market by involving them directly with the world’s leading digital media practitioners.

Brendan has held a number of high profile positions in new media industry   development: founding the first Asia Pacific Multimedia Festival; and as Australia's first General Manager for Public Awareness at the National Office for the Information Economy (NOIE) and was awarded an “Australia Day National Gold Medal” by the Australian Government for his services.

Brendan’s most recent honours include:

  • International Jury Member for the Interactive Emmy Awards held at MIPTV in Cannes
  • Appointed “Foreign Expert Advisor” to the Beijing municipal government on Digital Media industry development
  • Consultant to the Suzhou Industrial Park on Animation industry development
  • Named as one of the “Top Ten Most Influential People” in the Australian Digital Media industries
  • Named as one of the “50 Most Influential Australians in Asia” by the NY-based Advance Organization
  • Panellist at the 4th Al Jazeera Media Summit in Doha

In the past year he has been an invited international speaker at many creative industries events around China including the ICCIE Summit in Beijing, the Animation Summit in Xi’an, the Creative Industries Forums at Foshan, Shangdong, Wuhu and Shenyang, the Games Forum in Zhonghsan, and the Creative Industries Festival Week in Shanghai.
Brendan combines his involvement in the Digital Media industries with an academic background in philosophy, and was awarded a Doctoral Scholarship by the University of Melbourne where he studied ‘philosophy and technology’.

He has consulted to the United Nations Committee on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the European Union’s EUROPRIX initiative, most of Australia’s leading creative industries and media agencies; and has served as an Advisory Board Member to a large number of digital media, cultural, and technology events throughout Asia.
 
Megan Elliot

Megan Elliott
Director, XMediaLab

Megan Elliott combines first class cultural, industry, business and political awareness. She is widely recognised as one of the most successful and effective leaders of Australian media in industry development, political representation, and advocacy.

Megan began working with XMediaLab in 2004 and joined the company as a Director in 2006. She had developed and managed over 25  XMediaLab events across Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, India, Korea, China, London and Los Angeles.

Prior to XMediaLab, Megan was the Executive Director of the Australian Writers’ Guild (AWG), the Australian Writers’ Guild Collecting Society (AWGACS), and the Australian Writers’ Foundation.

Megan serves as an Academic Advisor to the School of Media Technology, Singapore; she has been a nominated judge of the Asia Television Awards (Singapore); a panelist at the 4th Al Jazeera Media Forum (Doha); and she is a regularly invited guest to the AFI Digital Content Lab (Los Angeles); Digital Entertainment Leaders Forum (Hong Kong); ICCIE (Beijing); FICCI-FRAMES (Mumbai); NASSCOM (Hyderabad); IAMAI (New Delhi); Animation Forum (Xi’an); 5D Conference (Los Angeles) and the Shanghai Television Festival (Shanghai).

Megan has previously served as a member of the Policy Research Group of the International Affiliation of Writers’ Guilds; a member of Australia’s UNESCO cultural network; a board member of CREATE Australia; a member of the Australian Screen Council. Megan continues to serve in an advisory role to digital media and creative industry organizations and events across Australia and Asia.

Megan’s background encompasses creative industries development for the European Union; industry development and organising for performing artists; and she herself is a recognised contemporary performance maker, industry writer and theatrical producer.