a 48hr experiment in making & sharing
November 28-30, 2025
Inspired by events like the 48 Hour Film Project and Hackathons, Create-a-thon is a low-stakes weekend dedicated to trying things, making things, exploring ideas, and seeing where the process leads. It is open to anyone who feels the spark to create. No required experience. No specific medium. No pressure to finish or impress. This is not a competition: no judging, no rankings. Just creative practice, curiosity, and learning from each other.
You can make whatever you like: music, writing, video, code, games, sculpture, painting, performance, zines, culinary experiments, collage. You can stay in your comfort zone or use this as a chance to try something you have been curious about but never gave yourself permission to start.
You can work solo or form a small team and work together. Just as long as you create.
Sign up ahead of time. Space is limited to keep things intimate.
When you sign up, you will also submit a prompt or multiple prompt ideas (example, more examples). Feel free to get really creative with this, or don't submit anything at all, no pressure!
On Friday at 5pm, one prompt will be chosen at random and emailed to all participants. That is the creative spark for the weekend.
From Friday at 5pm to Sunday at 5pm, you make something. You do not have to use all 48 hours. Rest, do other life things, work at your own pace. There is no prize for pushing yourself too hard.
At the end, we gather in person for a show and tell afterparty:
This is the heart of Create-a-thon. It is about the journey (not the destination), and it can be really exciting and inspiring to hear about other peoples journeys!
Bring your work if possible, or bring documentation (photos, videos, audio, writing, screenshots) that helps give others a sense of what you made.
During your sharing time, you are also encouraged to speak to your creative process. These questions may help you reflect:
- How did you get started, and where did you go from there?
- What surprised you during the making?
- Where did things break or shift?
- What would you continue exploring if you had more time?
This is an opportunity to learn from each other across disciplines. A cross-pollination of creative thinking.
Interested? sign up here.5:00–6:00 Gather and mingle
6:00–7:00 Show and tells
7:00–7:10 Short break
7:10–8:00 Remaining show and tells
8:00–9:00 Hang out, talk, unwind
A projector, mic, and a laptop will be available. The show and tells will be recorded for documentation and wider sharing (if you choose).
Accesibility Note: unfortunately the venue is in a basement and requires going down a flight of ~15 stairs. There is however a back entrance with only 3 stairs that can be used as an alternative.
An optional Discord server will be open for those who want to share progress, frustrations, breakthroughs, or simple check-ins. No expectation to be active. It is simply there to build community before, during, and after the weekend.
Free. Truly. This is DIY. No budget. No entrance fee. Just people making things because that is what we are drawn to do.
A big thank you to C'est What? for letting us use their space free of charge.
Process over product. Curiosity over perfection. Honesty over presentation. There is no failure when you create something. You learn, others learn through you, and that is the whole point.
If this resonates, you’re welcome here.
Sign up link.