Artist Connect
Indie Things Possible is a Sacramento non-profit built to open up creative potential — especially for people who've never been invited to explore it. We partnered with them to build Artist Connect, a platform that closes the gap between artists looking for opportunities and venues looking for real, local talent.
THE CHALLENGE
Sacramento loses talent it can't keep busy. If artists can't easily find local gigs and grants, they leave — or stop making work. The problem we set out to solve was simple to state and hard to build: give artists one place to connect with the opportunities already around them.
“The vision will keep shifting. The point won't: keep Sacramento's artists working in Sacramento.”
THE APPROACH
We resisted building the whole vision at once. Instead we scoped a tight MVP — performing musicians, a set of known partner venues, and relevant grant opportunities — and piloted it with a small group of real artists. The design puts both artists and venues first, cutting hard requirements so applying takes seconds instead of an afternoon. From there it's a feedback loop: ship, listen, refine, and let the platform grow with the people using it.
THE OUTCOME
Building it alongside The Rink Studios and Indie Things Possible let us solve a problem we live ourselves — a creative economy that's hard to sustain. By keeping it hyperlocal to Sacramento musicians and venues, every change lands directly on the people it's meant for. The longer-term aim is a blueprint: a model other cities can adapt to keep their own artists working at home.
NEXT PROJECT
Team Summit
UpperCloud — Transformative Teams