Freeskiers come together on growing the sport and business.

“Carte Blanche: The Freeski Summit” returns to this year’s International Freeski Film Festival

MONTREAL, QUÉBEC, June 23, 2010 — Freeski marketers, athletes, manufacturers, filmmakers and media will gather again this year to bring together the industry’s brightest minds for discussions surrounding the growth of their sport. Carte Blanche: The Freeski Summit, lead by Origin Design + Communications as part of the International Freeski Film Festival (IF3) will once again wrap up the popular five day event in Montreal on September 19th, 2010. The half-day, invite-only event, designed for senior marketing managers and directors,  brand managers, team managers, event and film producers as well as media working in freeskiing’s realm, will feature panel and participant discussions and will include an impressive line up of speakers and contributors. While speakers will be confirmed soon, topics have been released, and this year’s panelists will discuss:

•               Branded Entertainment, also known as branded content or advertainment, as an entertainment-based vehicle for action sports marketing strategies. Branded entertainment has become a key focus for action sport brands in the fight for “front of mind” with their consumers. This panel will review the concept, identify how it is relevant to the freeski industry, discuss case studies, successes and means for potential implementation.

•               Events of the future. In 2009, 20 billion dollars were spent on event sponsorships, and in the freeski industry, events remain a primary marketing vehicle. But, how has the digital age changed events?  Are ‘anti-comp’ events the way of the future? How can sponsors leverage events? How do brands decide which events to align with? What’s the role of social media and web tv? This panel will discuss how to keep our primary marketing channel fresh and evolving.

Increased interest for the Summit is expected following the success of last year’s event with speakers that included freeskiing phenom Simon Dumont; freeskiing’s godfather Mike Douglas; athlete agent Michael Spencer from EGO Sports Management; Mike Nick, Director of Marketing from Orage; Scott Jewett, Director of Marketing at Red Bull; and Martin Giroux, the Sales and Marketing Director for Mont Saint-Sauveur International.

The date has been confirmed for Monday, September 19th from 1pm at the Montreal Hilton Hotel. To request an invitation, contact Marie-Josée Legault of Origin Design + Communications at  (514) 842-5252 or mj@origindesign.ca.

Origin Design + Communications is a Montreal- and Whistler-based advertising agency specializing in mountain sports and resort tourism. An authority in skiing and snowboarding marketing, Origin operates as the creative agency of record for Whistler Blackcomb, Tourism Whistler, Jay Peak Resort and Salomon Canada. Origin offers strategic marketing, branding and creative services, including full-service web design and development, social media marketing and experiential marketing expertise. For more information go to www.origindesign.ca.

IF3—the International Freeski Film Festival has become known as the “Cannes Film Festival of Skiing,” bringing together athletes, filmmakers, industry leaders and fans for the exclusive world premieres of top ski and freeski movies, concerts, parties and meetings. The Festival’s goal is to showcase the talent freeskiing has been fostering over the years; to create public awareness of skiing’s new dynamic emergence and to grow awareness for the progression of the sport. For more information go to www.if3.ca.