Ideas come from iDMAa (Savannah, 11/6 – 11/8)

Ideas are the currency in the digital media world. Good/Compelling/Creative/Innovative ideas set us apart. They help us succeed. Rewarding careers are built on a foundation of ideas.
But where do you get your best ideas? The shower? On long walks? During boring meetings? Good places, sure. But let me tell you where I have been getting my best ideas. The International Digital Media and Arts Association – iDMAa. Let me give you an example. In 2005 at the iDMAa Conference at Miami University, I was holding forth on how important mobile was going to be. I did a panel on it. A lot of people showed up and offered some cool perspectives. But Karla Berry and Conrad Gleber looked skeptical. “If mobile media is going to change the world, how come all we are getting is ringtones, silly games, and hello kitty animations.” They had a good point. There was a lot of potential there, but not much power.
We adjourned to a pub and gave ourselves a big challenge. Come up with a way that mobile can truly improve peoples lives. That meeting changed everything.
That December Karla, Conrad and I held the Mobile Media Workshop where filmmakers and students had to use cell phones to produce video addressing an important social topic (like AIDS, homelessness, substance abuse, etc.) And they had to do it in one day.
From that meetings and the ideas we kicked around, we have hosted to other events around the country. We have pioneered a new type of video to be distributed via cell phones, the Personal Public Service Announcement (http://www.mynmi.net/aids_ppsa/). Bottom line, that ideas that came from that iDMAa conference changed my career – for the better.
The 2008 iDMAa Conference is November 6-8 in Savannah, Georgia. The theme is “Ideas for the Future.” Do you really want to miss out on the cool idea that could change everything? http://www.idmaa.org/.