talk
27. September, 17:00 - 17:30
Silent Green – Main Stage
Retune Festival 2018
talk
27. September, 17:00 - 17:30
Silent Green – Main Stage

Emma Laugier & Benjamin Males

The talk »People, Places, Spaces and Things« will focus on interesting technologies on the horizon and the ways they might impact our worlds, like flying dresses that ended up on world-famous music artists. Computation and technology has moved from rooms, to tables, to laps, pockets, wrists and now on bodies. As a new generation of products and services are developed in a world with ubiquitous internet and ‘smart’ devices, Benjamin Males will reflect on over 8 years or developing wearable technology for stage and screen and will propose some expectations for a future where technology is embedded in the fibre and fabric of everyday life.

Benjamin Males is a Creative, Technologist and Entrepreneur who bridges the gap between Science and Art. Both a Designer and Engineer by training, Benjamin upholds the principles of cross-disciplinarity and “Skunkworks” to push the boundary of where design and technology meet. Benjamin believes that technology is a ubiquitous resource that can be applied to places and spaces to create extraordinary and unexpected outcomes.In 2011 Benjamin co-founded Studio XO, a creative agency which conceived some of the most high-profile wearable technologies for artists and brands including Haus of Gaga, Arcade Fire, Black Eyed Peas, Pepsi, Disney, Intel and more. Arguably their most famous work was Lady Gaga’s flying dress Volantis, built from titanium and carbon fibre that flew Lady Gaga into her Artpop launch party in 2013. Benjamin consults across the design, technology and entertainment industries on bleeding edge technology.

Emma Laugier cut her teeth at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe whilst studying at university. She was a producer on the inaugural Old Vic T.S Eliot UK/US exchange hosted by the Old Vic and New York’s public Theatre. Emma went on to produce for Nabokov theatre company, premiering award winning early works by leading writers including Jack Thorne, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Duncan McMillan and Kate Tempest. Emma has worked for Sonia Friedman Productions, Bill Kenwright Productions and Cameron Mackintosh Ltd on the marketing of shows including Jerusalem, The Phantom of the Opera, Mary Poppins, Les Miserables, Miss Saigon and Hamilton.

Emma works with Benjamin Males to conceive of new ways in which technology can enhance the way we perceive, engage and interact with live experiences.