Indie Fest 2013 Recap

Last month we brought together our Big Cartel crew for a weekend conference in Salt Lake City.

This Indie Fest was built around our desire to learn and grow from people who are doing it right. We wanted to talk and interact with folks who live their passion - so their stories could fuel our own inspiration. Good news is, it totally worked.

Interviews

We talked to Cody Derrick from City Home Collective, whose passion is creating personal spaces that make us better, more productive people. We heard from Matt Caputo of Caputo’s Market & Deli who taught us that the best way to support a niche industry is to become a connoisseur and an evangelist. Paul Mayne from Day One showed us that the our well-documented memories can become our most important possessions.

Joseph and Colton from The Heirloom Restaurant Group inspired all of us to get off of our bums and make a difference in the world where we see a need. The incredible filmmaker Ti West joined us from Los Angeles to show his latest film, The Innkeepers, and shared the pains of retaining control over every aspect when making an independent film. We wrapped that night up chatting with Lance and Will, the steam behind the mighty Kilby Court venue. Along with a special, intimate show from Jake Bellows who may have changed the world, quite literally, with his incredible and intimate performance.

Experiences

We kept the energy rolling with a Sunday morning breakfast in the BC living room while we watched INTRO by SLC filmmaker Brandon Cahoon. After a short live set from David Williams, the film’s subject and star, we headed to Copper Palate Press, a local screen-printing co-op to try our hand at the craft. We hopped a bus to the foothills of Salt Lake and landed at the NHMU for a privately-guided tour through the massive collection of dinosaur bones.

Tim Lee, head exhibit designer for the museum took us through his process of collaborative design and set us up perfectly for our keynote. Feeling all our senses heightened and buzzing, the inimitable Doug Fabrizio, of KUER’s Radio West, crowned the weekend with a moving presentation on “listening in a noisy, digital world.”

Until next time

After a packed weekend full of non-stop inspiration and fun, our Big Cartel crew took Monday to work together while applying everything we heard. We hope to infuse more of the lessons and passion gleaned from our Indie Fest weekend as we continue on, to help make Big Cartel a more efficient and powerful tool for each of you.