4 SXSW NFT projects brands need to know—and one bonk

The NFT crypto community is out in force at SXSW this week, with activations for metaverse startups attracting some of the biggest crowds in Austin. Fluf World and Doodles, two projects that have sparked some playful imagination around the metaverse and its possibilities, saw SXSW attendees eager to get one-on-one time to make a pitch. These projects aren't alone in Austin either. Here's a roundup of some of the NFT action at SXSW. Fluf World The New Zealand founders of Fluf erected a fairground in the center of SXSW, right outside of the Austin Convention Center. It was one of the hottest nightlife tickets in town, and a draw for workers at some of the biggest tech companies, too, such as Snap, Meta and Disney, according to people who were attending the site throughout the week. Fluf’s site had a series of hangout domes, reminiscent of the virtual “burrows” that the Rabbit avatars own in the NFT world being created through the project. Inside the SXSW domes were lounges for talks, and digital projections of NFT art. And, of course, at night there was electronic music, with long lines to get inside. Fluf launched last year as NFT characters, known for the rabbit iconography, but the project is expanding to other characters. The New Zealand company has utopian visions for NFTs and blockchain technology, viewing it as a way for creators to find their fans and crowdsource their rise to fame, and share in the spoils. Fluf also launched a new app, partly timed to SXSW, called Burrows, which is a “metaspace” where avatars can theoretically live and create online. Austin, we’re still here - come hang with us and @doodles! 🌈 @sxsw pic.twitter.com/hMksZHp9WU— BEHR Paint (@BehrPaint) March 13, 2022 Related: How brands are using NFTs See all of Ad Age's A-List 2022 winners here. Doodles At SXSW, it’s hard to miss the line snaking around the corner on East Cesar Chavez Street with Instagram-types of all stripes waiting to get into Doodles. It’s a colorful installation that shows off this newly popular NFT community. People may recognize Doodles from a recent Snapchat integration, where the startup created augmented reality filters for Snap, depicting some of the whimsical art. Doodles are like children’s sketches come to life. Doodles is working with Behr Paint on a collaboration, and the SXSW event had displays of real-life versions of Doodles painted in Behr’s pastel colors. Doodles also sold merch and collectibles at the highly Instagrammable location. 🚨 Just dropped! The official @sxsw mascot, the Batfan is now available in the SXSW x BCL #NFT Marketplace here https://t.co/xxUytzzSNs! Mint one of the 2,022 possible PFPs before they sell out. #SXSW2022 pic.twitter.com/QyjtBuhxD4— Blockchain Creative Labs (@wearebcl) March 14, 2022 Blockchain Creative Labs This Web3 company, which is owned by Fox, set up shop right across from the Austin Convention Center to discuss the prospects of the metaverse, blockchain and NFTs, and what they can do for the entertainment industry. Blockchain Creative Labs is SXSW’s first Web3 sponsor. Blockchain Creative Labs displayed NFTs at its event space and hosted a project to “mint” NFT profile pictures. Blockchain Creative Labs designed what it called the official mascot of SXSW dubbed “Batfan,” a taco-toting, fluffy red bat. The project minted 2,022 NFTs for people to get their own characters. Some people on Twitter complained about bugs and delays in the launch. “Trying to buy one but Moonpay erroring out after taking my payment,” one Twitter commenter said. “3, 2, 1 … getting ready for the automated bots.” Some of the NFT activities at SXSW show that this is still a nascent technology. SO COOL #dogebonk being a part of #SXSW the #tech space is truely innovative!! So excited to see what the future holds. #SouthBonkSouthWest $dobo #memecoin #sorryelon pic.twitter.com/Eh1P9FVKFh— Alison B (@lalalastuff_) March 12, 2022 Marcel.art The art world is showing off its NFTs, too. Marcel.art is an entire gallery devoted to digital artists working in the medium of NFTs. The gallery is part of SXSW’s XR Experience, and features 64 artists picked by eight curators. “Through a mix of visual media and presentations, the collection’s NFTs touch on themes including cultural identity, nascent trends in digital creation, moving images as a narrative tool, and animation,” the art collective said in its SXSW entry. The show runs through March 15 at Fairmont hotel. South Bonk South West This was not an authorized SXSW installation, but it’s visible nonetheless; the doge bonkers have taken over every streetlight in Austin with stickers and signs imploring attendees to join them. The mysterious group is hyping the token Doge bonk, a spoof of the infamous Dogedog, which of course, got turned into a meme currency. The group plastered stickers and posters around Austin with images of the bonked doge, which most internet users will get. The bonk is a version of doge dog that has been cowed by a light bonk on the head, often used to demonstrate when someone has been mildly punished. The bonk fanatics have been active on Twitter during SXSW trying to gin up action for their cause. According to CoinMarketCap the DOBO (Dogebonk token) is worth $0.00000003996. You can catch Art Curator Mark Sabb's exhibition titled "Say Less" at our #NFTGallery at @sxsw ! To learn more about his curation process and find the artists from his show, download https://t.co/lLShaF0rlS app today! #nftart #nftcollectors #tezos #marcelartapp pic.twitter.com/B86z3UTe6C— marcel.art (@MAR_CELL_NFT) March 13, 2022

4 SXSW NFT projects brands need to know—and one bonk

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