Fresno Famous

Boil it down and Pecha Kucha Night is about two things — thinking and drinking.

OK, not really. But it is number eight on the offical list of 20 things you should know about the event, and though it’s not the offical motto, they should think about changing it.

“Drinking is encouraged,” says Kiel Famellos-Schmidt, vice-chair of Creative Fresno and the organizer of Pecha Kucha Night Fresno, which will hold it’s first event 20:20 (that’s 8:20 p.m.) Dec. 15 at the Starline.

Started in Tokyo in 2003 by Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham, Pecha Kucha (pronounced peh-cha ku-cha,) is a designers’ show-and-tell, and also a clever way to attract people to SuperDeluxe, a multi-media experimental event space they own.

It’s become a global phenomenon, with Pecha Kucha Nights popping up in more than 100 cities (Fresno is No. 156) and drawing big-time crowds. An event in Tel Aviv drew more than 1,000.

Mostly, it’s a forum for creatives to show their work in an easy, informal environment. Think old timey salon gathering, but held at a bar. The presentations are concise, the interest level is kept high, and as many presenters as possible are jammed in over the course of the night.

So, forget what you think you know about powerpoint presentations.
There’s no stop button here, no clicking back. You’ve got 20 pictures, 20 seconds each, for a total of 6 minutes, 40 seconds, before you’re kicked off the stage and the next presnter is on.
Go.

The event is free and open to anyone — designers, arcitects, painters, photographers. In Los Angeles, a number of geographers have begun to use the format to explain and visually demonstrate their research. Video art has also been shown.
Some organizers have even varied the format. In Groningen, in the Netherlands, two slots are given to a live band, and each presentation is critiqued in its final 20 seconds. There’s even Pecha Kucha mash-ups, like Pecha Kucha karaoke (where presenters create a narrative for someone else’ slide sho) and Pecha Kucha ironchef (duelling presenters competing for audience appreciation).

For the first Fresno night, presenters will include Famellos-Schmidt, along with architectural photographer David Swann, wildlife photographer David Hunter, anthropologist Henry Delcor and artist Kitty Chix (maybe not real name?).

There’s still room for presenters, Famellos-Schmidt says, if you can get your pictures in by Dec. 12.

Design is everywhere, Famellos-Schmidt says.
Pecha Kucha is about exploring that design — any and all design, really.
“We interact with design everyday. It could be an artwork or a website, clothing, or even a building. These things have a huge impact on our lives and there are designers/creative people behind each one. If you come to Pecha Kucha you get the chance to connect those dots, as well as see some designs you may have never seen or thought about before.”

And, if you throw a few back, that’s fine, too.

For a full list of cities and events (because, a road trip is always fun), visit Pecha Kucha Global at www.pecha-kucha.org

Pecha Kucha Night
20:20 (8:20 p.m.), Dec. 15
Starline, 831 E. Fern Ave.
www.creativefresno.com, www.pecha-kucha.org
FREE!