Rohit Dhawan, Mickey Capoferri, And Jack Conte To Kick Off 6th Edition Of Buffer Festival In Toronto

Buffer Festival is thrilled to announce YouTube's Head of Alternative Monetization, Rohit Dhawan, Lucasfilm's Senior Director of Online Content and Programming, Mickey Capoferri, and Patreon's co-founder and CEO, Jack Conte, as special guest speakers for the Festival's first ever Insight Series in Toronto this September.

With content creators looking to take the next step into turning their talent and work into a sustainable career choice, it is a priority for Buffer Festival to provide YouTubers with the tools and information necessary to turn these aspirations into a reality. Who better to kick start this dynamic four-day festival than YouTube's Head of Alternative Monetization, Rohit Dhawan. Dhawan's opening keynote will provide valuable insight into the current landscape of monetizing content while maintaining creative integrity and a unique voice. This is a not-to-be-missed chat that is sure to inspire both creators and brands looking to collaborate with them.

It is no secret that the team at Lucasfilm are regarded as some of the most gifted and compelling storytellers in the world, but one thing that separates them from the rest is their powerful ability to continue to engage and connect with audiences. With a well-strategized and steady focus on fan engagement by creating content that keeps an active dialogue with their fans, Lucasfilm has kept us passionately invested in their stories for decades. Buffer Festival is delighted to have Emmy-nominee and Lucasfilm's Senior Director of Online Content and Programming, Mickey Capoferri, joining Insight Series for a chat on "How To Continue The Story With Your Audience: A Brand's Perspective And Success." Capoferri's passion for connection and innovation, together with his extensive experience overseeing digital content and strategy for the globally beloved Star Wars franchise, will surely make this an engaging discussion.

The business of being a creator is still relatively new, and funding the creative class is the mission which drives Patreon. Co-founder and CEO, and musician, Jack Conte will be delivering the closing keynote address to creators and industry insiders from all around the globe to Buffer Festival. Conte went from turning out hit YouTube videos in his dog kennel-turned recording studio, to being the CEO of a company that is sending millions of dollars to creators every month. Patreon's continued commitment to monetize creators' work through membership, makes Conte the ideal speaker to conclude Insight Series with a dose of inspiration and empowerment.

Buffer Festival continues to lead the way by showcasing and promoting meaningful content of the highest quality. With every passing year, the bar is raised a little higher. The introduction of this year's Insight Series is only part of the Festival's evolution. In past years, the esteemed Industry Day successfully delivered educational insights into the online community from diverse perspectives. This year, Insight Series promises to deliver that and more by moving more towards an innovative TED Talks style rather than having panel after panel.

"We made the change not just in name but in spirit and programming," shared Scott Benzie, CEO of Buffer Festival. "We wanted to shift the conversation to inspiration and aspiration from a panel of talking heads. We aim to challenge our speakers to be more compelling and entertaining and by doing so, open Buffer up to a wider audience. There will still be conversations around monetization, the Creator ecosystem and what the future holds but we hope the content and delivery will be different."

Buffer Festival's Insight Series will take place on Thursday, September 27th, 2018 at the Glenn Gould Studio (250 Front St W, Toronto) and will consist of an action-packed, invigorating day of keynotes, debates, and fireside chats from established creators and brands who "get it." Insight Series will be open to anyone with a Festival pass.

For more information on Insight Series visit: https://bufferfestival.com/events/2018/insight-series

Buffer Festival is an annual showcase of video premieres, bringing the most acclaimed digital creators and their audiences together. Now in its 6th year, Buffer Festival continues to support and elevate today's acclaimed digital creators, help educate up-and-coming creators, and believe that strong relationships between creators, brands, and industry can pave the way for a powerful future. The festival includes a variety of programming, including a red carpet gala and premiere screenings, with YouTube's highest quality content on full display.

Buffer Festival is proudly created and organized by Canadian YouTubers and entrepreneurs Corey Vidal, Corrado Coia, Saskia Vanell, and Samantha Fall who have been an active part of the YouTube community since 2006. The four-day festival will be from September 27-30, 2018 at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts located at 27 Front St East, Toronto, Ontario M5E 1B4.

For more information visit: https://bufferfestival.com

ABOUT ROHIT DHAWAN

Rohit Dhawan is YouTube's Sr. Director of Product Management for Emerging Revenue which includes products such as Channel Memberships, FameBit, Merch, Ticketing, and TVOD. Prior to his current role, he was based in London responsible for AdSense globally and EMEA Display advertising.

From 2010 to 2013, he was the Lead Product Manager for Facebook Pages. From 2004 to 2010, Rohit led Google's AdWords 3rd Party Products, Publisher Ad Serving products, the DoubleClick acquisition, and Monetization Products for Asia Pacific.
Rohit holds an MBA from The Wharton School and an Electrical Engineering/Computer Science degree from UC Berkeley.

For more information about YouTube visit: https://www.youtube.com/

ABOUT MICKEY CAPOFERRI

Mickey Capoferri oversees digital content and strategy for Lucasfilm's online franchise initiatives including StarWars.com, The Star Wars App, and original video content. As Executive Producer for the Emmy-nominated The Star Wars Show, Science and Star Wars, and Star Wars Celebration and World Premiere Red Carpet Live Streams, his goal is to create rewarding, in-depth experiences that excite fans and are worthy of the Lucasfilm name.

Prior to joining Lucasfilm in 2013, he spent more than a decade producing content in the emerging interactive and web space. Most notably, as Vice President, Interactive Marketing at Paramount Pictures, he delivered digital marketing and experiential campaigns for the Transformers trilogy, Iron Man and Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America, Cloverfield, Tropic Thunder, Rango, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and many more.

Capoferri graduated from Texas Tech University where he spent most of his time producing video for sports, news, and whatever else he could capture.

For more information about Lucasfilm visit: https://www.lucasfilm.com/

ABOUT JACK CONTE

Jack Conte is a musician, filmmaker, half of Pomplamoose, and a co-founder at Patreon, a membership platform that makes it easy for creators to earn salaries directly from their biggest fans. Patreon, which is on-track to pay more than $300 million to creators in 2018 alone.

As a musician and filmmaker, Jack spent his days in a converted dog kennel-turned-recording studio in Sonoma County, making YouTube videos that have amassed over 120 million views. Now, he's in full-time CEO mode at Patreon HQ in San Francisco where the company is paying millions of dollars to creators every month around the world. Jack also loves working with robots.

For information about Patreon visit: https://www.patreon.com/

To post a comment, you must register and login.