South by Southwest London
American annual film and music festival held in London
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
South by Southwest London (SXSW London) is a music, film and technology festival hosted in Shoreditch and Hoxton areas of London, England.[1] Its programming includes live music, keynote speeches, panel discussions and other kinds of events.[2]
| South by Southwest London | |
|---|---|
Koj, Musical artist at SXSW 2025 in London | |
| Genre | Conference and festival |
| Dates | June (dates vary) |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Locations | London, United Kingdom |
| Inaugurated | 2 June 2025 |
| Organized by | SXSW, LLC |
| Website | sxswlondon |
Inaugurated in 2025 with a specific emphasis on artificial intelligence, SXSW London is the first European iteration of the South by Southwest festival annually hosted in Austin, Texas, United States.[3]
History
SXSW first began in Austin, Texas, United States, in 1987 as a multimedia festival with music, film and technology programming.[4] Since then, the festival has been restructured and managed by the Penske Media Corporation, with festival offshoots, like SXSW Sydney, being operated in order to help "the bottom line" following financial difficulties during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.[1][5]
SXSW executive vice president Darin Klein stated that "The U.K. has a huge creator economy" as a reason for expanding the festival to London.[1] The first SXSW London festival was launched in 2025 and was scheduled to run from 2–7 June.[2] On the first day, London mayor Sadiq Khan delivered a kickoff speech, and guest speakers included Sir Demis Hassabis, Beeple, Katherine Ryan, Peter Kyle, Dan Clancy and Sir Tony Blair.[6][1][2] Films, such as the Eminem documentary Stans, were due to premiere at the Barbican Centre. Musical acts like Tems, Alice Glass and Mabel headlined the music programme.[2][5] Over 25 venues across East London, with hundreds of events total, were tapped for festival programming.[7]