Now in its 10thᵉ edition, this programme aims to support a cohort of 10 artists in defining an interactive project in the making, with a diverse range of digital creation specialists.

Artists whose projects are selected will benefit from various workshops aimed at better defining the outlines of their projects, finding technical solutions and preparing funding applications. The cohort of 10 artists will attend experience-sharing sessions on other artists' projects, who will talk about their journeys. After three Saturdays of collective emulation, bootcamp participants will receive three hours of mentoring with one of the trainers. At the end of the programme, there will be a 7-minute pitch session in front of digital production specialists.

This training programme aims to support projects in development, which may be at an early stage. 

Emerging artists are invited to submit their applications! 

Detailed Program

Wednesday, 28 January, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

5 : 00 PM - Preparatory meeting of bootcamp artists at TOPO

→ Brief introduction to each participating artist and their projects.

6:00 p.m. – Artist presentation | Le Sacre du Printemps

With Iona McEwan

→ Le Sacre du Printemps is an interactive documentary that addresses the challenges of being a caregiver. However, incorporating personal and vulnerable testimonials into an interactive project raises important ethical questions. Iona McEwan will present these issues and the steps she has taken to address them.

Saturday, 31st January, from 9:30 am to 5 pm

9:30 a.m. – Structuring workshop | Brainstorming and collaborative discussion sessions

With Stéphanie Lagueux, digital artist, mediator and cultural worker (at Ada X).
With Katherine Melançonmulti-disciplinary artist, interactive designer and strategist.

→ The cohort is divided into two groups, which switch facilitators halfway through the workshop. Each facilitator, in their own way, questions and challenges participants through concrete conceptualisation exercises that will help to further define the projects. A sharing session is planned at the end of the workshop.

3:45 p.m. – Artist presentation | Beyond the work: Transcending artistic practice through entrepreneurship and innovation

With Hamie Robitaille and Ganesh Baron Aloir by Transversal

→ What if entrepreneurship could be an extension of artistic expression? Ganesh Baron Aloir and Hamie Robitaille explore this question through their careers, which span digital art, artificial intelligence, connected objects and transdisciplinarity. They will discuss the creation of systems, tools, methods and languages, as well as intellectual property as a space for artistic autonomy.

Saturday, 7 February, from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

9:30 a.m. – Experience sharing | ALÉAS : transdisciplinary musicopoetic work

With Cléo Palacio-Quintin, transdisciplinary artist, flutist-improviser-composer, Productions Fiolûtröniq.

→ Documented chronology of the production of a multi-platform project and an artistic application for tablets: for more than five years, Cléo Palacio-Quintin has been drawing, composing, recording and designing an application for tablets incorporating her music (performed by the Bozzini Quartet, Bernard Falaise, Sarah Albu and herself) and the poetry of Thierry Dimanche. The scene Échos et reflet des éolithes was presented as a window display installation in 2023. The application is currently being integrated into the Unity platform with a view to its commercialisation. This large-scale project is based on important design, production, tree structure and interaction documents.

1:15 p.m. – Structuring workshop | Tools and methods for collaborative work

With Chélanie Beaudin Quintin, a visual artist and filmmaker at the crossroads of dance, cinema and anthropology.

→ Challenges and methods of multi-platform production and creation, based on his current projects. Or the art of diving into an immersive process by exploring various modes of scriptwriting and production with diverse and remote teams.

3:45 p.m. – Sharing experiences | 15 years of research, innovation and creation at Iregular

With Daniel Iregui, Founder & Creative Director atIregular, Montreal-based digital art studio. Iregular designs audiovisual installations, large-scale sculptures, architectural projections and scenography, with a particular focus on interactive and immersive experiences.

As founder and creative director of Iregular, Daniel Iregui will share the results of several years of constantly evolving research on public space, drawn from countless projects and installations exhibited internationally. He will also reveal the technical advances they have discovered over time, the studio's approach to innovation in order to achieve a shared artistic vision, and all the lessons and tips that time will allow him to share, so that you don't have to overcome the same obstacles that the studio has faced since its creation.
*** Presentation in English

Saturday, 14 February, from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

9:30 a.m. – Structuring workshop | Murmuration : interactive scripting and iterative design

With Patricia Bergeron, creative producer at Leitmotiv.

→ Murmuration (6DOF virtual reality documentary fable, 19 min) is an immersive creative project developed over several years, deployed through various iterations and presentation contexts. The project combines interactive storytelling, immersive environment design and sensitive interactions, and has evolved through testing, feedback and production constraints.

By taking Murmuration As a case study, this workshop offers a practical approach to iterative interactive design applied to multi-platform projects. We will cover the key stages of development: defining intentions and concepts, interactive scripting, creating mood boards and references, prototyping, testing phases, integrating technical components and making successive adjustments. The workshop will highlight how to structure an interactive project over time, how to balance narrative, user experience and technical constraints, and how a clear methodology can support the coherence of a project while leaving room for its evolution.

1:15 p.m. – Structuring workshop | The Pitch in brief

With Giulia Frati, director and chair of the board of directors of the cooperative Makila.

→ Tips and guidelines on the art of pitching.

3:45 p.m. – Artist presentation | The biogram: chronicle of a slow metamorphosis 

With Steve Savage, writer and translator. He also participates in numerous projects combining drawing, music, graphic design, IT, video and architecture. 

Saturday, 7 March, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Final pitch session 

→ In turn, participants have seven minutes to give a polished presentation of their project and receive feedback from a network of guests selected by TOPO.