Creative Groups Sydney

Sydney Beat Lab: Producers Jam Session

We are getting the Sydney Beat Lab back together for another open jam session. This is a space for producers of all levels to bring their gear, share what they are working on, and collaborate in real time. Whether you use a laptop, a hardware sampler, or just want to connect with other local makers, this is a chance to step out of the bedroom studio and trade ideas in a casual setting. The session is meant to be collaborative rather than competitive. We usually set up a shared signal chain and rotate through beats, offering feedback and learning from each other’s workflows along the way. It is a great way to break through creative blocks and meet people who are as obsessed with sound design and rhythm as you are. If you have been looking for an excuse to get out and plug in with some fellow producers, we would love to see you there. Space is limited so we can keep the setup manageable, so please take a moment to RSVP if you are planning to come along.

Pearls of Great Price Painting Creative Art Experience

**Pearls of Great Price: Discovering Your Inner Treasure** **A Creative Afternoon of Art, Reflection & Connection** **Slow down. Create something beautiful. Discover the treasure within.** Join us for a relaxing and inspiring Creative Wellbeing Workshop, where you’ll explore the beauty and symbolism of pearls through art-making and gentle reflection. You’ll be guided to create your own pearl-inspired artwork while exploring themes of **beauty, self-worth, resilience and the experiences that shape us**. Like a pearl that develops layer by layer, our lives are shaped by the many experiences, seasons and moments we encounter along the way. This workshop offers a welcoming space to pause, enjoy the creative process, reflect on your own journey and appreciate the beauty that can emerge over time. ✨ **You'll experience:** 🐚 **Gentle guided reflection** inspired by the beauty and symbolism of pearls 🎨 **Step-by-step instruction** to create your own pearl-inspired artwork 🤍 **A relaxed and welcoming environment** where you can slow down and enjoy being creative 🌸 **Simple creative wellbeing practices** to support relaxation and self-reflection ✨ **An opportunity to connect** with yourself and others through creativity 🖼️ **A beautiful artwork to take home** as a meaningful reminder of your experience **No artistic experience necessary — just bring yourself and enjoy an afternoon of creativity.** 📅 **Tuesday, 6 October 2026** 🕒 **3:00 – 5:00 pm** 📍 **Club Ryde** 💰 **$65 per person** *(All art materials included)* *“Within every story lies a hidden treasure, waiting to be discovered, embraced and brought to light.”*

Painting Creative Art Experience

**Painting Creative Art Experience** Join us for a fun and relaxing in-person workshop where you'll explore the power of painting to unlock your creativity and promote healing. No experience needed—just bring your open mind and let your imagination flow! Step into a calm, welcoming space where you can slow down, breathe, and reconnect with yourself through colour and creative expression. This is a gentle, guided painting experience designed to support emotional release, relaxation, and creative flow—no art experience needed. You don’t need to be “good at art.” You just need to come as you are. Through intuitive painting and reflective creative exercises, you’ll be invited to explore your inner world in a safe and supportive environment. This is a space to let go of pressure, quiet the mind, and reconnect with your natural creativity. Whether you’re feeling overwhelmed, creatively blocked, or simply needing time to rest and reset, this workshop offers a pause from everyday life and a return to yourself. You’ll be gently guided by **Louisa Chan**, an artist and art therapist who integrates creativity, emotional wellbeing, and healing practices into her work. Expect a relaxed, nurturing atmosphere, soft guidance, and a sense of freedom to express what words often cannot. **In this workshop you will:** * Explore painting as a tool for emotional expression and release * Experience a calm, supportive creative space * Reconnect with your imagination and inner world * Let go of perfection and create freely * Leave feeling more grounded, lighter, and creatively refreshed No experience needed. All materials are provided. Come as you are—leave with colour, calm, and something meaningful you created from within.

SydDT #131: Lead Change That Matters with Ben Pecotich

Join us for the launch of my Ben Pecotich's new book Lead Change That Matters: Design the Conditions for Momentum! Your ticket includes all the usual SydDT goodness… plus a set of limited-edition Lead Change That Matters cards that we’ll use on the night to catalyse conversation and help you choose your own journey. You’ll also get a special launch discount on Ben's new book. 300+ people shared their experiences, goals, frustrations, and hopes through the research behind the book – including so many of you from the SydDT community. Lead Change That Matters is a call to action. It says the work matters, the people involved matter, and what we choose to do next matters. This session is for you if you’re: * Leading change you’re accountable for but can’t really control * Navigating complexity with increasing ambiguity and uncertainty * Caring for everyone’s wellbeing but dodging your own burnout * Firefighting the tactical when you want to lead the strategic change that matters At the heart of the book is a tension that ran through the research. Leaders are expected to juggle more as the work becomes faster, more complex, and more scrutinised… but the conditions around them haven’t kept pace with what’s being demanded. We want people to collaborate, adapt, take the initiative, and deliver meaningful results. What are we doing to make that possible? The premise is that leading change well is about designing the conditions for people to do meaningful work together – bringing purpose and performance together to build momentum and deliver results that matter. We’ll explore these themes together… with a focus on how we design the conditions for momentum, so we can lead change that matters. Come join us for some fun conversations with interesting people in and around the design thinking community. New members are welcome! **SPEAKER** **[Ben Pecotich](https://www.linkedin.com/in/benpecotich/)** **Design & Innovation Director/Founder, [Dynamic4](https://dynamic4.com). Author of Lead Change That Matters: Design the Conditions for Momentum** Ben's a designer, adviser, and founder of Dynamic4. He works alongside leaders and their teams on their most complex challenges across strategy, design, and tech. For 30+ years, Ben's led, designed, and delivered strategic change in financial services in Australia, NZ, Asia, the UK, and Europe – and co-founded 20+ startups and social enterprises across health and fitness, fintech, events, and community building. He founded Dynamic4 in 2001. Ben takes a human-centred design and living systems approach to helping clients design, build, and launch ideas that customers and teams love, make money, and do great things for people and our planet while increasing wellbeing. Everything he does is about accelerating the transition to more regenerative ways of living and doing business, creating the conditions for people and communities to be happier and live on a healthier planet. Ben's the author of Solve Problems That Matter and his new book Lead Change That Matters: Design the Conditions for Momentum is launching now. He's also the co-founder of Sydney Design Thinking. **EVENT SPONSORS** This event is brought to you by [Thoughtworks](https://www.thoughtworks.com/), [Shapeshifters](https://www.shapeshifterscreative.com.au/), and [Dynamic4](https://dynamic4.com/). We take photos and record our events for documentation and promo purposes. Just let us know if you prefer not to be featured.

Sydney HUG Meetup @ Netflix Animation

Our October 2026 SydHUG is brought to you via a collaboration between the Sydney Houdini User Group, Netflix Animation Studios & the ACM SIGGRAPH Sydney Chapter. We look forward to welcoming attendees from across our communities! \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- **PRESENTATIONS** More details coming soon. \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- **SCHEDULE** 6.30pm: Doors open, networking 7.00 to 8:30pm: Presentations **1.** **Anna Molamphy: Procedural Modelling Pipelines** Discover how NAS leverages Houdini in the world of procedural modelling. From creating hair tubes and growing leafy trees to building large scale environments, we’ll showcase our procedural modeling tools and the pipeline that powers it all. **2.** **Eric Chan: Point Instancers from Upstream Departments** Eric from PAFXTD will present the FX tools and pipeline workflow for handling Point Instancers delivered by upstream departments. He’ll be joined by Julian Davidson (FX), who will be available to answer any FX-specific questions that arise. The session will use our upcoming film, Steps, to showcase the instancing tools in FX. 8:30 to 10:00pm: Networking and refreshments \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- **ACCESS & ENTRY** \- We have a maximum capacity limit for this SydHUG\, so please register early to avoid disappointment\! \- Attendees will receive a NDA\, sent to your email via Envoy before arrival\. Please complete this **before** arrival on the day, and allow 10 minutes to sign in and collect your name tag at Reception upon arrival. \- Attendees will also receive an email in the leadup to the event with specific access details \(entry gate etc\.\.\)\, to ensure smooth entry to the event\. \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- **PRIZES AND GIVEAWAYS** SideFX has Houdini Indie licences up for grabs. \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Eye Candy Game Jam - Launch Night

Join this game jam if you would like to build skills in: Shaders (mainly Shader Graph in Unity3D), Realtime post processing effects, particle effects for aesthetics, using realtime and baked lighting to make things look and feel nice, other kinds of VFX relevant to games. **==>** **[Register for Launch the Night On Humanitix](https://events.humanitix.com/eye-candy-game-jam-launch-night) <==** At the launch night (**[this Humanitix event](https://events.humanitix.com/eye-candy-game-jam-launch-night)**), we will have the following: * Free food! * The main theme reveal. * Talks and workshops to elaborate on game eye candy techniques. * Mentors from AAA Game Industry and Academia **Host:** * [Dr. Matt Cabanag](https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattavc/) \- Winner of Multiple Game Jams and International Hackathons\, AR/VR Associate Lecturer at UNSW Art & Design \(A&D\) **Mentors:** * [Xi (Ma) Chen](https://www.linkedin.com/in/xi-ma-chen-b4206949/) \- Rendering Lead at Take 2 Interactive\, Graduate of UNSW CSE * [Pierre Azzi ](https://events.humanitix.com/games-industry-panel-2025)\- Former AAA Game Developer \(Rockstar Australia\)\, Sessional Academic at CSE * [Dr. Ali Darejeh](https://www.linkedin.com/in/alidarejeh/) \- AR/VR Lecturer at the UNSW's School of Computer Science and Engineering \(CSE\) * [Emily Tang](https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilylitang/) \- Animation & 3D Art Lecturer at UNSW A&D * [Dr. Vedant Sansare](https://www.linkedin.com/in/vedantsansare/) \- Game Design Lecturer at UNSW A&D * [Bradley Lin](https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradley-lin-aba96a20b/) \- GMSoc Events Director\, PhD Student at CSE and UNSW Sessional Academic \(multiple UNSW schools\) * [Chris Leung](https://christopherleung-unsw.itch.io/) \- Master of Simulation and Immersive Technologies \(MSIT\) graduate\, A&D * [Dr. Guy Lobwein](https://www.linkedin.com/in/guy-lobwein/) \- Game Art Lecturer\, Game Art/Design Discipline Lead at A&D * [Harman Singh](https://www.linkedin.com/in/harmanhssingh/) \- GMSoc Vice President\, Master of IT Student and Sessional Academic at CSE More information, official Game Jam signup, and the latest event updates can be found on: [https://itch.io/jam/eye-candy-game-jam](https://itch.io/jam/eye-candy-game-jam) Organised by [Dr. Matt Cabanag](https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattavc/) and [Bradley Lin](https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradley-lin-aba96a20b/), with the [UNSW Game Making Society](https://www.unswgmsoc.org/), and [IGDA Sydney](https://igda.org/chapters/au-sydney/). 2D eye candy image by Daniel Lee. Eye Candy Game Jam is part of the [Sydney Games Festival](https://sydneygamesfestival.org/)).

The Art of Mindful Watercolour

Slow down, explore the beauty of watercolour, and spend a creative day with international artist Arafat Hosen. Join us for a relaxed and inspiring watercolour workshop designed for complete beginners and art lovers alike. Guided by international artist **Arafat Hosen**, you'll learn the foundations of watercolour painting while exploring a mindful, enjoyable creative process. Through step-by-step demonstrations and personalised guidance, you'll create your own artwork in a friendly and supportive environment. No previous painting experience is required. What's Included * All professional art materials provided * Step-by-step instruction by International Artist Arafat Hosen * Small group experience (Maximum 20 participants) * Morning tea, coffee & traditional Bengali refreshments * Certificate of Participation What You'll Learn * Understanding watercolour materials * Basic drawing and composition * Colour mixing * Flat and graded washes * Wet-on-wet & wet-on-dry techniques * Creating a complete landscape painting * Practical tips for continuing your watercolour journey Important Information * Suitable for beginners. * All materials are provided. * Please arrive 10 minutes early. * Wear comfortable clothing. * Limited to **20 participants** to ensure individual guidance. Ticket Price **$85 per person** https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/the-art-of-mindful-watercolour-tickets-1995864471361 A premium beginner-friendly watercolour workshop in Sydney, perfect for anyone looking to learn painting, relax, and enjoy a creative weekend experience with an experienced international artist.

Online Photography - The letter C

Beer and Pixels - Monthly

Beer and Pixels is back as usual, on the second Tuesday of the month. At the Off Broadway Hotel. \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- Got a game, demo or prototype you need people to playtest? Bring it along! Just provide a computer and input device, or a copy of the boardgame or card game you wish to show off, if you are a physical game dev :) Don't have a game to show? No worries! Just come on down, grab a beverage of your choice and play the games on display. See you there! PS: We have a Google Calendar of all Sydney events: https://calendar.google.com/calendar/u/0?cid=dXNpcGNlZzRzdGhrZGE5cnF0bDUwMHJlMDhAZ3JvdXAuY2FsZW5kYXIuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbQ PPS: If you are driving, parking is free after 6pm at the Broadway Shopping Centre. https://www.broadwaysydney.com.au/visit/parking [#BeerAndPixels](https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/beerandpixels?__eep__=6&__cft__%5B0%5D=AZXA1_Gs4GRAZsh55FxkF-C6TQs0cL7M-55eLC0PY3jSLiQIvmXsZYz39rKYw0ltJ6skKgSCCcFoA99W-7NeyX-WKj_Pb3uUHqNtK-RaC0IrJA&__tn__=q)

SSP ..FRI.. .. SCULPTURES BY THE SEA..OpenDay

Lets see the Sculptures on opening day after a coffee on the beach.

ST VINCENTS + OLLEY  

October syd<video> - #80th episode

Join us for Season 11, Episode 5 as we celebrate 80 meetups of community, code, and video tech this October with another great night of video tech talks returning to the slick **Canva** office for an evening of deep-dives, good friends networking, food and drinks. Tonights speakers will be **[David Rodd (US) - Software Engineering Manager Paramount+](https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-lightning-rodd/)** KITT: Could AI Have Saved Our Event Platform? How solving lost jobs evolved into building distributed state **[Janaka Beragama Kuruppuge - Director Cloud and AI Engineering @ Oracle](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdishantha/)** **[Jeremy Brown - Video and Ads @ Kick](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremybrownau/)** How much can change in a year at Kick the worlds fourth largest live streaming platform **Sponsors** Our thanks to **Canva** for hosting and sponsoring pizza + drinks at the venue. Sydney Video Technology is a volunteer group, as part of many groups independently run around the world. Tonight’s hosts will be: Jeremy Brown, Adrian Britton, Grégoire Duché and Amy Prosser