This year marks the 23^rd annual SXSW Interactive Festival in Austin. As a breeding place for discovering new technological advances, this five-day event will take you on a journey into the future as we hear from industry leaders and influential speakers give their insight on the emergence of new ideas and how they will shape our future. We know SXSW can be overwhelming with the hundreds of events to attend, so we narrowed down a list of our top 5 must-see speakers this year.

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Just like that, that’s a wrap of SXSW 2015. We had a great time checking out Interactive panels and keynotes, some films, and great bands in the sun (and a lot of rain). To wrap it up, we will be running two blogs: this one on awards and then an upcoming one on top speakers. Two of the most important awards for Interactive honor incredibly innovative companies, products, and startups. The SXSW Accelerator Startup Competition has 48 technology companies go head-to-head in a two-day competition with six winners, while the SXSW Interactive Innovation Awards focuses on evolving and broadening trends of the digital industry, giving out fourteen awards and four special honors.

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SXSW 2015 came and went with a bang, per usual. We had a great time checking out Interactive panels and keynotes, some films, and great bands in the sun (and a lot of rain). To wrap it up, we are running two blogs: a previous one on awards and then this one on top speakers. There were over 600 sessions at SXSW Interactive – the majority of the sessions were picked via users on the SXSW PanelPicker, with more than 3,000 ideas entered. Needless to say, it was very hard to choose the top speakers. Before SXSW, we ran our top 5 speakers to see – now we have our top 5 speakers that we saw.

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After four months of being a spring intern for HMG, I am wrapping up my internship as I finish my last month of classes at The University of Texas at Austin before graduation. As the spring Social Media and Marketing Intern, I have been able to get my hands on a ton of projects throughout my time here. It has been an incredibly valuable experience for me – both personally and professionally.

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We were very excited to get an opportunity to collaborate alongside Cox Media to tackle a website redesign for Career Point College. At first glance, we knew this website needed a makeover, and we were full of ideas on how to revamp their site and promote further success for Career Point College. To begin with, they were managing multiple websites that essentially had the same information on them. So right off the bat, we knew we needed to not only develop an updated website, but also to create a way for students and prospectives to access information in a single location.

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Having just graduated from the University of Texas (hook ‘em!) and with the final days of classes already under my belt, the past few weeks have been full of reflecting and looking back over the past semester. I can hardly believe that just a few months ago I was starting here at HMG, taking the reigns from their previous rockstar intern, Emily.  I feel like I’ve accomplished a TON and learned so much here, and I’m very grateful to have been part of the team this semester.
To wrap-up my time here, I wanted to share a few highlights from my experience as an intern and some of the projects that I’m most proud of.
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With the year coming to a close, 2014 “round-up” posts are taking over our social media feeds. We’ve seen a few good ones here and there, but we’ve got to say this one shared by Mashable takes the cake. We got an adrenaline rush from the first minute alone! Also go check the best shaver for men .

If you have a couple (seven-ish) minutes, watch this compilation of 223 viral videos that took over the internet this past year. Well done, YouTube.

Hello! I’m Ryan Gardner – the new Social Media and Marketing Intern at HMG Creative. I’m currently a senior Advertising & Business Foundations student at The University of Texas at Austin, graduating this May.

I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri and then moved outside of Dallas about ten years ago. Living in the suburbs made me very interested in living in a city, so I packed up for school in fall 2012 and headed to Austin, gravitating toward the music scene here. I can’t imagine a better city to go to college in. In my spare time, I’m frequently at concerts, still exploring the city with friends, or relaxing indoors at BookPeople or Whole Foods.

In December I wrapped up a Graphic Design Internship at It’s Time Texas, an Austin non-profit focusing on promoting health and fitness. Previously, I’ve held internships in PR, marketing, social media, and graphic design. Once the holidays ended, I wanted to switch over to the marketing agency environment, making the position at HMG a perfect fit for me.

This semester, I’m looking forward to running the social media accounts, connecting with clients and publications, and writing. It’s only day one, but I’m excited for all the upcoming opportunities here! To learn more about me, feel free to connect with me on Twitter at @RyanGardnerC or by email at ryan@hmgcreative.com.

[UT image via consultyourcommunity.org]

While it’s likely you hear all about SXSW bands, films, and interactive panels every year, most people don’t know the exact history of how the festival first started and then grew to the massive event it is today. This blog is part one of our four-part SXSW blog series that will span throughout February, with one blog going up each week.

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SXSW is easily one of the most exciting weeks of the year in Austin. However, it can also be loud and confusing, making it very important to plan ahead. If you’re well prepared, you’ll have no problem catching all – or at least most – of the sets, shows, films, and speakers you want. It will also be easier to meet up with friends or colleagues if you know where you’ll be and when you’ll be there. To help out, here are our tips for surviving SXSW 2015. This blog is part two of our four-part SXSW blog series that will span throughout February, with one blog going up each week. If you missed it, part one covered the history of the festival.

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