From 28 to 31 May 2025, students transformed Hallein into a playground for media innovation and creative technologies. At the 13th Creativity Rules Festival, young talents from the MultiMediaArt, MultiMediaTechnology and Realtime Art & Visual Effects degree programmes presented their final projects - and impressively demonstrated how design, film, music, art and interactive media can intertwine.
The Alte Saline and the Hallein City Cinema provided the backdrop for four inspiring festival days - including captivating short films, digital experiences and interactive installations. The hearow app, for example, demonstrated how digital assistance can give blind and visually impaired people more independence in everyday life. In the VR world Botaniverse, visitors could playfully create their own plant landscapes. And the Drawtone installation transformed self-drawn images into soundscapes - a multi-sensory experience that blurred the boundaries between art and technology.
Inspiration from the creative scene
The supporting programme offered additional inspiration with top-class guests: Burkhard Müller, Chairman of the Board of the Art Directors Club (ADC), opened the festival with a keynote speech on the role of creative agencies in the age of AI. Media artists Flavia Mazzanti and Manuel Bonell provided insights into their work in the field of virtual reality, while Anna Unterweger, director and UAS graduate, presented her award-winning film "Broke. Alone. A Kinky Love Story" in person at the Stadtkino cinema. The Venus Roadshow of the Creativ Club Austria (CCA) also made a stop in Hallein and honoured outstanding creative achievements from Salzburg.
Conclusion: Creativity meets the future
The ‘Creativity Rules Festival’ 2025 impressively demonstrated how interdisciplinary, socially relevant and future-oriented creative work is today. The great interest shown by the audience and the high quality of the projects on show once again made the festival an important meeting place for the creative scene - and a showcase for the innovative strength of Salzburg University of Applied Sciences.
Further information:
https://creativity-rules.at
