By now, we’re all familiar with the Zoom conference call, board game night, or networking event. But for Pittsburgh organizations with big events on the horizon, a webcam alone isn’t going to cut it. As online interactions become the norm, organizations are quickly shifting plans to recreate some of the magic of in-person gatherings online.
StartNow spoke to two organizations about how they’re replicating live events online with the help of technology, the local community, and an engaged audience.
“I’m over the Zoom happy hours,” joked Day Bracey, co-founder of the Fresh Fest Beer Fest, America’s only Black beer festival. With the festivities moved online, Fresh Fest Digi Fest will stream and share over 54 hours of content for festival attendees in a single day.
From noon to 9 p.m. on August 8, programming will be streamed across six different online channels, each uniquely themed and plotted out over the festival’s app. Programs include lectures, interviews, and live DJ sets and art. Other channels will feature pre-recorded content from local chefs cooking up recipes using beer.