From NPC to Main Character: The Power of Belonging

{
  "id": "PP1162215",
  "track": "Brand & Marketing",
  "focus_area": null,
  "category": "Fireside Chat",
  "event_id": "PP1162215",
  "event_type": "panel",
  "format": "Fireside Chat",
  "genre": null,
  "subgenre": null,
  "name": "From NPC to Main Character: The Power of Belonging",
  "presented_by": null,
  "publish_at": "2025-11-03T16:30:00.000-06:00",
  "reservable": true,
  "reservable_id": "PP1162215",
  "reserved": false,
  "date": "2026-03-15",
  "end_time": "2026-03-15T11:00:00.000-05:00",
  "start_time": "2026-03-15T10:00:00.000-05:00",
  "message": null,
  "image": null,
  "credentials": [
    {
      "name": "Platinum Badge",
      "type": "platinum"
    },
    {
      "name": "Innovation Badge",
      "type": "innovation"
    }
  ],
  "contributors": [
    {
      "id": 34272,
      "company": "Rachel Issan Lowenstein",
      "credential_types": [
        "innovation"
      ],
      "entity_id": 2065952,
      "name": "Rachel Lowenstein",
      "speaker_types": [],
      "title": "Founder + Culture Strategist",
      "image": {
        "alt_text": "Rachel Lowenstein",
        "credit": "Rachel Lowenstein",
        "url": "https://images.sxsw.com/P3ZrkDyztsvvqb2kBlAy83J8raA=/600x600/images.sxsw.com/48/f2ede8e6-d29d-506f-c192-96b82c6fe39f/pcid-867550"
      },
      "speaker_type": "Speaker",
      "details": "Rachel Lowenstein is a forthright cultural decoder and storyteller reshaping narratives around neurodiversity and creativity. She’s been a trusted advisor to iconic brands inc. Nike, Chanel, Google, Unilever, Booking.com, UN Women, Volvo and Nestlé. She navigates cultural complexities and drives meaningful social impact through bold storytelling.\nToday, Rachel runs her own culture consultancy and is the co-founder of The Neu Project, an experience design agency focusing on neuro-informed design. Her visionary work earned her recognition as one of Ad Age’s 40 Under 40 (2023) and Advertising Week’s Female Is Female Award (2022). Rachel is also a sought-after international speaker, having taken stages at the United Nations, Cannes Lions, SXSW, CES, Advertising Week, and Yale University.",
      "links": {},
      "type": "person"
    },
    {
      "id": 77976,
      "company": "Ubisoft",
      "credential_types": [
        "innovation"
      ],
      "entity_id": 2238928,
      "name": "Haye Anderson",
      "speaker_types": [],
      "title": "Brand Director",
      "image": {
        "alt_text": "Haye Anderson",
        "credit": null,
        "url": "https://images.sxsw.com/SDv64Hxptf0pzIdGMzarGhKpEeY=/600x600/images.sxsw.com/48/9c799677-3d04-ae4f-152d-25936b159d5d/pcid-1622155"
      },
      "speaker_type": "Speaker",
      "details": "Throughout her career, Haye Anderson has pushed creative boundaries, telling brand stories in fresh, unexpected ways. At Ubisoft—a creator of worlds committed to enriching lives with memorable entertainment—she leads brand and marketing for the Anno franchise, a premiere builder game in the strategy genre. Its next release, Anno 117: Pax Romana, lets players step into the sandals of a Roman governor in 117 AD. Will you expand through economic growth or military dominance? Unite cultures or crush rebellion? The cost of peace is yours to decide. Since its rebrand to reach wider audiences, Anno has earned industry acclaim, including recognition from It’s Nice That as a 2024 Branding Moment of the Year and a Gold NYX Gameshow award for Brand Identity.",
      "links": {},
      "type": "person"
    }
  ],
  "venue": {
    "accessible": false,
    "age_policy": null,
    "floor": "5",
    "id": "V2051",
    "indoor_outdoor": null,
    "name": "Waterloo Ballroom 3",
    "parent_id": "V2024",
    "parent_venue_name": "Austin Marriott Downtown",
    "venue_entry_info": null,
    "formats": null,
    "location": {
      "address": "304 E Cesar Chavez St.",
      "lat_lon": [
        30.2628298,
        -97.74157
      ],
      "city": "Austin",
      "postal_code": "78701",
      "state": "TX",
      "name": "Austin Marriott Downtown"
    },
    "root": {
      "accessible": null,
      "age_policy": null,
      "floor": null,
      "id": "V2024",
      "indoor_outdoor": null,
      "name": "Austin Marriott Downtown",
      "parent_id": null,
      "parent_venue_name": null,
      "venue_entry_info": null,
      "formats": null
    },
    "events": "[omitted 5 venue events]"
  },
  "description": "Cultural conversations around “main character energy” and a loneliness epidemic have made some feel like NPCs in the game of life. But what drives someone to join a Twitch stream or wear a jersey to a bar? Belonging. Fandoms aren’t mindless obsessions — they’re identity-shaping communities that turn disconnected observers into players. This talk explores how brands can drive growth through belonging by inviting people in through storytelling, access, and shared imagination—turning passive audiences into passionate communities.",
  "experience_level": "Intermediate",
  "accessibility": [],
  "accessible_venue": false,
  "add_bcl_url": false,
  "add_slido": false,
  "age_policy": null,
  "american_sign_language": false,
  "apple_url": null,
  "audio_description": false,
  "caption_url": null,
  "closed_captioned": false,
  "cpe_credit": false,
  "has_subtitles": false,
  "hash_tags": [],
  "high_sensory_experience": false,
  "live": false,
  "long_description": "Cultural conversations around “main character energy” and a loneliness epidemic have made some feel like NPCs in the game of life. But what drives someone to join a Twitch stream or wear a jersey to a bar? Belonging. Fandoms aren’t mindless obsessions — they’re identity-shaping communities that turn disconnected observers into players. This talk explores how brands can drive growth through belonging by inviting people in through storytelling, access, and shared imagination—turning passive audiences into passionate communities.",
  "meeting_url": null,
  "meeting_url_live": false,
  "mentorly_url": null,
  "mobile_audio_url": null,
  "open_captioned": false,
  "playlist_tag": null,
  "rebroadcast": false,
  "recommended_ids": [],
  "search_conversions": null,
  "short_program": false,
  "slido_url": null,
  "sort": "FROM NPC TO MAIN CHARACTER: THE POWER OF BELONGING",
  "source": "Official",
  "squad_up_url": null,
  "stream_embed": null,
  "stream_id": null,
  "stream_url": null,
  "strobe_warning": false,
  "subdiscipline": null,
  "summit": null,
  "summit_display_name": null,
  "tags": [],
  "talent_attending": null,
  "title_only": false,
  "track_display_name": "Brand & Marketing track sponsored by Youtube",
  "trailer_id": null,
  "trailer_url": null,
  "video_on_demand": null,
  "vimeo_id": null,
  "vod": false,
  "xr_project_type": null,
  "youtube_id": null,
  "related_sales_client": null
}