Tech
Tech Company Builds its Brand through Sci-Fi Film Competition
This year’s Sci-Tech Film Challenge runs September 20–22. Registration is open until September 6.
What does a global cloud infrastructure provider have in common with science fiction filmmakers? The uninspired may say, “nothing.” But those with an eye toward creative marketing, unique brand-building and innovative partnerships will understand right away that companies seeking new ways of reaching customers are willing to try different approaches. That’s why tech industry leader OVHcloud has partnered with Atlanta Sci-Fi Film Festival to sponsor its 48-Hour Sci-Tech Film Challenge.
Billed as “the free-style rap battle of filmmaking,” this competition is one of the most unique 48-hour film challenges in the world, according to Amanda Ray, founder and CEO of the Multicultural Sci-fi Organization (MCSFO) and organizer of the festival.
Press materials for the contest explain that participants have 48 hours to create a sci-fi short film from start to finish, incorporating cutting-edge technology into creative storytelling.
Tech company partnerships
The festival plans to partner with different tech companies for each year’s challenge in order to support evolving technologies. For two years in a row, OVHcloud has fulfilled that role. Similar to the way innovative tech has been introduced in shows like “Star Trek” over the years, the 48-Hour Sci-Tech Film Challenge enables festival partners to see how their products or services might be integrated into a narrative. This collaboration gives filmmakers experience working with brands in a legal, responsible and respectful manner while still being creative, according to the news release.
Registration is open through September 6 at filmfreeway.com. The competition begins at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, September 20 and filmmakers have until 7 p.m. on Sunday, September 22 to write, shoot, edit and upload their completed film. Films will be judged according to categories such as: Adherence and Best Use of Required Element, Artistic Merit and Technical Achievement according to the release.
There will be a live screening of the finalists’ films during the sci-fi festival, held October 4 to October 6 in Peachtree Corners, with winners announced at the awards ceremony.
From Wu-Tang to AOL to OVHcloud
Sherin Baday, senior director of marketing for OVHcloud, has an extensive history of working with a diverse roster of companies.
“I worked in New York in the music industry for 10 years in marketing, management, promotions, all types of duties around the spectrum, working with a couple of record companies. Then from there, I moved to America Online,” she said.
One of her most noteworthy clients was rap/hip-hop pioneers Wu-Tang Clan.
“That was the hardest transition I think anyone can have culturally. And then from there, it was a string of SaaS companies,” she said. “It wasn’t as sexy as the music industry. … My first job after Wu-Tang I worked at a fixed asset software company.”
Even though it didn’t present the same excitement as working with performers such as Ghostface Killah, Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Method Man, Baday applied some of the same principles of branding she learned back in the late 90s.
“Regardless of the product, it needs a face. It needs that human element, a recording artist, a musician, a film — that’s all a product,” she said.
Unique brand building
In the same way that artists must connect to fans, a fixed asset company needs a way for potential customers to identify with it.
“How do I bring a personality into this product and let people relate to it or find it endearing, or be able to say, ‘Oh, I remember them because of this video that they did about this little mascot that caught my eye,’” she said. “I was always trying to think of ways to humanize it and that’s what I’ve been doing across all these SaaS companies.”
Baday came to OVHcloud when it opened its U.S. office nearly seven years ago.
“We’re in a field where the hyper scalers are huge,” she said. “We have AWS in our backyard here in Herndon. Google is here, so we’re not trying to really compete with them on paper — we know our space. We’re trying to build a name for ourselves, build some awareness and find our own group of customers.”
But building a brand isn’t an overnight thing, she admitted.
“I think working with people like Amanda [Ray of Atlanta Sci-Fi Film Festival] and programs like this help with the memory recall,” she said. “Because you remember programs like this instead of an ad or a website or an email that you get from a company you don’t know or that you’ve never heard of.”
So Baday is looking for different ways to build awareness.
“Whether it’s supporting a Formula One team or an English soccer club, how can we stick out and really get people to know who OVHcloud is and that we are a human company?” she said.
Measuring success
Baday didn’t seek out the partnership with the film festival. She and Ray met at an OVHcloud event.
“I met Amanda, heard about her program, what she was doing, what her plans were, what her vision was for the next five, 10, 15 years and I thought, ‘This is exciting!’” she said. “This is a group of innovators trying to break into the film industry and create these sci-fi films.”
Baday thought about the OVHcloud motto, “innovation for freedom” and realized that building new technology to help its customers fit perfectly with the vision of new technology that could be presented in science fiction films.
“A lot of these tech companies just try to target other tech companies right now, but everyone needs technology — the music industry, the arts industry, literature — they all need to put their films somewhere. They all need to back up their music,” she said. “So, when I spoke with Amanda, I realized … [the short film competition] could give us a face to show that we’re all about technology and improving people’s lives with it.”
OVHcloud is donating technology for the challenge and at the same time it’s building awareness about who the company is. The filmmakers get a demo of sorts of the technology that will keep their creative works safe.
Last year’s winner went beyond simple product placement to show how a service like OVHcloud fits with future tech. We won’t give away the plot, but those who are curious can check out the three-minute video online.
Beyond the traditional RoI model
At this early stage in the partnership, OVHcloud isn’t looking for a dollar-for-dollar return. It’s much more subtle than that.
“You don’t really realize the impact of a partnership or sponsorship like this until someone from a newspaper reaches out saying, ‘I want to do an interview because I think this is amazing,’” she said.
Of course, her bosses are looking to add to the bottom line.
“They’re like, ‘Well, what do we get from this? Did we get any sales? How many people came up and said they’re going to buy a server from us?’” she said. “To me, it’s not about that. It’s about building the awareness and partnering with this film community and growing our name as a supporter of the arts. And that’s a whole different level of return I can’t show, but I think it’s important when we do get interview requests or as the media grows around it.”
Right now, she’s asking her superiors to be patient. “I would say it’s going to all be worth it in the end.”
The Atlanta Sci-Fi Film Festival takes place October 4-6 and is FREE with advance registration. Visit atlantascififilmfestival.com for more information.
Source: Curiosity Lab and the city’s Inside Peachtree Corners newsletter
The City of Peachtree Corners and Curiosity Lab kicked off spring with numerous new collaborators and partners. It’s been an exciting past few months of new and innovative technology making waves in a variety of industries including GIS, metaverse tech, smart delivery and so much more!
Learn more about [Curiosity Lab’s] newest members and partners, and how they’re helping Peachtree Corners, and [the] Innovation Center continue to thrive and grow.
BizzTech
As Peachtree Corners continues to grow, city officials are always looking to find innovative solutions to increase safety through preventative management tools. Earlier this year, Curiosity Lab announced its partnership with BizzTech — the leading provider of immersive, AI-driven Metaverse platforms — to deploy a photorealistic digital twin of downtown Peachtree Corners.
BizzTech’s Urban Metaverse will provide city leadership with an increased level of real-time insight to accelerate data-driven decision-making, boost public safety and cut planning costs.
BizzTech’s solutions are AI-powered digital twins that combine generative AI and agentic AI to not only simulate but also autonomously adapt and respond to various scenarios, enhancing user interaction and decision-making.
The platform’s predictive analytics alert city personnel to potential bottlenecks and safety hazards before they escalate, supporting proactive maintenance, optimized traffic flow and lower operational costs.
The first-of-its-kind collaboration with Curiosity Lab marks a big step forward in operational efficiency. More on this announcement can be found here.
Esri
Continuing the partnership focus on increasing city management efficiency, Curiosity Lab partnered with Esri — the global leader in geographic information systems (GIS) technology — to deploy ArcGIS OnlineSM and ArcGIS VelocitySM.
Together, these solutions will enable Peachtree Corners to seamlessly visualize, analyze and consolidate data from connected smart city solutions. Esri’s ArcGIS Velocity solutions will aggregate real-time IoT device data, giving Peachtree Corners immediate insight by combining information from both existing and newly deployed technologies, empowering leaders with
critical information.
[Curiosity Lab and city leadership] are looking forward to exploring the many ways this technology will help spot patterns, predict issues, and act upon situations before they impact our community. Learn more about this announcement here.
Arrive AI
If you’ve stopped by Curiosity Lab recently, you may have noticed a new high-tech mailbox at the entrance — Arrive AI’s ArrivePointsTM. Arrive AI has joined our ecosystem with the launch of its autonomous last mile (ALM) solutions anchored by smart mailboxes.
Offering a 24/7 solution within Curiosity Lab, the smart mailbox tracks, verifies and dispenses packages, and features integrated video monitoring to keep packages safe during and after delivery.
The unit also features advanced heating and cooling capabilities, compensating for rapid temperature shifts of up to 20°F in minutes to protect packaged contents. Connected via T-Mobile’s award-winning 5G network, ArrivePoints offer low latency, high speed connectivity and strong bandwidth for seamless delivery and real-time tracking.
We’re looking forward to seeing Arrive AI enhance its delivery capabilities in real-time with high-speed connectivity and our innovative ecosystem. Read more about this innovative delivery unit in Informed Infrastructure’s latest article or read the full announcement here.
[Curiosity Lab] has more exciting announcements regarding new collaborations with companies such as Derq and VisionCraft, two traffic management system innovators changing the way cities can improve traffic and roadway safety.
“As 2025 rolls on, we’ll continue pushing the boundaries of what a smart city can do — and we can’t wait to share what’s next. Stay tuned for more to come!”
The original, unedited version of this article can be found in the city’s Inside Peachtree Corners June 2025 newsletter.
City of Peachtree Corners
From Suburb to Smart City: Peachtree Corners Sets the Tone for Atlanta Tech Week
In January 2024, the Boston Consulting Group released a report that offered guidelines on how to turn Atlanta into a top tech hub in the U.S.
Peachtree Corners recently proved it has become an instrumental piece to reaching that goal after hosting the kickoff event of this year’s Atlanta Tech Week, which took place June 8–13.
Atlanta Tech Week is an offshoot event of RenderATL, one of the largest tech conferences in the country. While RenderATL takes place at the Americas Mart, Atlanta Tech Week is a full week of events held in multiple locations throughout metro Atlanta, including Peachtree Corners, Brookhaven, Midtown and Downtown.
Kicking off the week in Peachtree Corners
To get things started, Atlanta Tech Park in Peachtree Corners hosted an all-day conference on June 8 that catered toward tech companies and entrepreneurs who live outside the I-285 perimeter.
“We’re on a mission to make Atlanta a top-five tech hub, and the big focus for us has been uniting the entire Atlanta tech ecosystem,” said Avoilan Bingham, president of Atlanta Tech Week. “We’re proud to kick things off here in Peachtree Corners because it’s an ideal spot — outside the perimeter; there’s so much talent that lives in and around Peachtree Corners.”
“What makes Atlanta Tech Week special is that it showcases what’s unique about each individual neighborhood that’s an innovation hub,” he continued. “Peachtree Corners can tell a unique story about innovation, growth and entrepreneurship.”
That story includes the development of Atlanta Tech Park and Curiosity Lab, which have attracted numerous tech companies to the area. They’ve also laid the foundation of Peachtree Corners’ journey toward becoming a leading smart city with its wireless 5G environment, autonomous shuttles and solar roadway.
A day of workshops and networking
The event featured numerous tech workshops throughout the day, including one in which Atlanta Tech Park, Curiosity Lab and other innovation centers in metro Atlanta could showcase the technology coming from the companies they host.
“It gives entrepreneurs and startups an opportunity to see what’s happening outside the perimeter,” said Nashlee Young, director of business operations at Atlanta Tech Park. “We’re excited for people to see the technology that’s going on in the area and bring more visibility to Peachtree Corners and what we’re all about.”
Young said over 1,100 people attended the kickoff event with hundreds more applying for a waitlist.
“It keeps growing,” she said. “The number of people we’ve got registered today shows that more people want to get out in front of others and connect.”
Valerie Chang, managing director of Curiosity Lab, said the success of the event shows how much the area has recovered since the COVID-19 pandemic, when most of the office space in the area went unused.
“There was a fear about whether it would build back up,” Chang said. “We put a lot of work into revamping this area and reinvesting in The Forum and making it appealing to people who work out here. It’s a huge part of Peachtree Corners’ vision to be a leader in innovation. This feels like a full-circle moment. To kick off Atlanta Tech Week here this year is very meaningful to us.”
Tech and innovation outside the perimeter
As more and more companies seek to open offices and headquarters in Atlanta and more entrepreneurs create startups, Chang said if they look beyond Downtown and Midtown, they’ll find multiple suburbs that can meet their needs. Peachtree Corners, for example, offers the 5G ecosystem at no cost and a city government that supports startups.
“When it comes to building a tech hub, don’t count any city out of the conversation,” Chang said “We put a lot of work toward recruiting companies to come here and showing off what Peachtree Corners has to offer. We’re more than just a suburb. We’re an innovative tech community.”
For more about Atlanta Tech Week, visit atl.tech.
To learn more about Atlanta Tech Park, visit atlantatechpark.com.
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