Mobilefest: Sao Paulo

When Alexander Graham Bell invented a simple device called the telephone, he would have never thunk it that combined with modern technology the phone has since become a necessary part of life that these days extends further than a convenient tool for returning your mom’s calls. It’s a life-capture machine, a music player, a learning device…add your preferred method of use here. The second-ever Mobilefest, which started today in Sao Paulo and was the first to accept entries over SMS, MMS or WAP, gets a roster of academicians, artists, environmentalists and more "” most notably among them editor of The Millennium Whole Earth Catalog Howard Rheingold and famous hacker Gabe Sawhney "” rubbing shoulders for three busy days of lectures, roundtables and exhibits that seek to explore how mobile technology influences “democracy, culture, art, ecology, peace, education, health and the third sector.” Exhibits include a public-based interactive text exercise called SMS Graffiti and international short films made and produced on a cell phone. Check out the trailer for Mobilefest on the homepage to see what you’re missing out on.