TEDxSP 2009: Outras Vozes

The product: TEDxSP was the first of the independently-organized TED-like events to be organized in Brazil, with the help of actual TED fellows. The theme was “What Brazil has to offer the world today”, with 30 speakers from various backgrounds.

The problem: TED has a very strict guideline in terms of how and where sponsors can make their brands present during the event. On the other hand, they’re very open to new ideas which fall in line with their philosophy and objectives. As TEDxSP’s second main sponsor, Santander wanted to find something to reflect their investment while feeling true to the event’s spirit.

The solution: According to their mission statement, TED’s main objective is to gather extraordinary people in the same place, at the same time, so they can exchange ideas and experiences, and maybe find new and exciting opportunities. Which is to say, the audience is more important even than the selected speakers – which is reflected in the lengthy questionnaire one has to answer in order to be eligible to attend the event.

With that in mind, I suggested we create a webseries with small, TED-like interviews with some of these remarkable attendees, to be featured in TEDxSP’s website and which would all bring Santander’s sponsorship and signature at the beggining – just as the main sponsor’s in the videos for the official presentations.