South by Southwest Sydney (SXSW Sydney) has debuted its public program for 2024, turning Darling Harbour's Tumbalong Park into a hub of creativity that will host more than 60 hours of free entertainment, as well as brand activations, inspiring talks, tech demos, live music, meet & greets, esports competitions, and more.

The free program will run from October 14-20, and is expected to draw over 100,000 attendees.

The NSW government is backing the event, with John Graham, Minister for Jobs and Tourism, Minister for the Arts and Minister for Music and the Night-time Economy, pointing to the governments commitment to "helping people with the cost of living" through such free events.

"Last year's first ever SXSW Sydney was a massive success and we're very excited to build on that great start this year, starting with today's announcement of the free event program in Tumbalong Park. The SXSW festival in Austin Texas is a global icon, Sydney's event is fast becoming one too. It will attract visitors from around the country and the world and showcase Sydney as the creative powerhouse that it is. The NSW government is committed to helping people with the cost of living. This free SXSW Sydney program gives people a chance to take part in this global festival, have a great day or night out, at no cost," said Graham

SXSW Chair, Geoff Jones, said: "In Partnership with the NSW Government, today we are delighted to launch SXSW Sydney's 2024 Public Program. At last year's inaugural Event, Tumbalong Park became a hub for the industry to converge between catching the latest session or artist showcase to connect with one-another. Brand activations were a key feature of the precinct and free public performances took place from the likes of Indonesian sensation Isyana Sarasvati, Dr. Karl and Black Mirror creator and showrunner Charlie Brooker. This year promises to be bigger and better than ever, with a host of incredible talent from all over the Globe ascending to Tumbalong Park. These seven days and nights will be filled with great entertainment, and I would highly recommend that all Sydney-siders join in on the festivities."

The event will feature world-class brand partners including Commbank, Zeekr, The Growth Distillery, ALL.com | Accor Hotels, Suntory Minus 196, Intuit Mailchimp, ARN, and Papa Salt. Brand Houses will also return in 2024 to take over SXSW Sydney venues, with Brand USA, Prime Video, and DEPT announced today.

'+91 Calling!', will bring a single-day showcase festival of Indian creative culture to the Tumbalong Park Main Stage on Sunday 20 October, featuring six acts from India and the Indian diaspora.

Music meets Tech on the Tumbalong Park Main Stage will see Ben Gillies (Musician, Songwriter and Silverchair Co-founder) unite with Johannes Saam (Futurist) and Tushar Apte (Producer and Songwriter) for a live demonstration session and performance.

The Main Stain will be joined this year by the brand-new The Dome stage, sponsored by The Growth Distillery. The Dome will feature 'Meet the Speaker' sessions throughout the week, giving attendees the chance to meet Conference speakers such as astrophysicist, Kirsten Banks.

SXSW Sydney is delivered in partnership with the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW. SXSW Sydney is an annual gathering of visionaries, thought leaders, and emerging talents from the Asia-Pacific region, featuring over 1000 events and networking sessions across the key pillars of Tech & Innovation, Games, Music and Screen.