Hot100 began in 2007 when Virtueel Platform invited a group of the most promising and successful new media talent in the Netherlands to a networking event and debate in Amsterdam’s Post CS building. The search for the Hot100 involved asking a wide variety of further education institutions, ranging from the Design Academy to the HKU, to select their own top 5 young people, either recent graduates or just about to graduate. This year’s event is primarily an opportunity for the Hot100 to get together and present themselves to a wider audience. Leonieke Verhoog, who initiated the event, has come up with a varied programme of meetings, keynotes and intensive workshops. Why the Hot100? The next generation is not easy to trace. This is largely due to the rise of DIY culture, which makes it less likely for people to organise themselves in traditional ways. For Virtueel Platform the aim is to link up with this new generation of media makers, who will set the agenda for applications and developments over the years to come. This year’s venue for Hot100 is PICNIC, the international crossmedia event that attracts large numbers of media professionals. For the Hot100 a unique opportunity to make themselves known to a wide range of potential employers or clients. For the visitors to PICNIC a chance to talk to the cream of the crop of Dutch new media. One of the conclusions of last year’s event was that we need a Hot100 building. So far this hasn’t materialised but it should be a piece of cake for a network going by the title of Hot100.
Floor van Spaendock Director Virtueel Platform
INTRODUCTION