Cross industry production design event, Set & Scene 2026, made its debut on Saturday 25 April at Central Saint Martins, hosting over 800 attendees from across film, theatre, live events and immersive design in a sold-out first year.
Positioned as a new cross-industry platform for design and creative collaboration, the one-day event brought together practitioners, makers, suppliers and technologists to “explore the future of how stories are built across stage, screen and experience.”
The programme was run across three stages, hosting panel discussions, talks and live demonstrations. Sessions featured leading voices from across the industry, covering topics such as sustainable design, emerging technology, brand storytelling, creative careers, and the evolving relationship between physical and digital production. Alongside the talks programme, the Set & Scene exhibition featured a large-scale, interactive space where attendees could engage with materials, technologies and processes. The exhibition featured a wide range of companies and organisations supporting the creative industries and Live demonstrations, hands-on activations and “meet the maker” sessions created opportunities for exchange between designers, makers and suppliers.The day opened with a private screening of David Bowie: You’re Not Alone at Lightroom.
The event was founded by Yosien Burke, Bimla Jackson and Murray Ashton.
Yosien Burke and Bimla Jackson, Co-Founders of Set & Scene, said: “Set & Scene 2026 was both our dress rehearsal and our premiere, and it truly could not have gone better. Ultimately, this isn’t about us – it’s about the creative community. Our role was simply to create a space and platform to bring people together across industries. We are incredibly proud of the sustainability scene we built this year. Seeing the content sessions completely packed – exploring craft and emerging technology, alongside the brilliant interactive displays in The Street was a real highlight for us. We’ve also learned a huge amount from this first year, and the feedback we’ve received will directly shape how we develop and grow Set & Scene moving forward. That ongoing dialogue with the community is incredibly important to us. Throughout the day, attendees told us how valuable it was to meet and hear from peers across theatre, film, events and immersive design. In a world where freelance work can often feel isolating, hearing people describe the event as having a real ‘festival’ energy – something ‘epic’ and much-needed for inspiration – means everything to us.”
Following the launch, Set & Scene will continue to build a year-round programme of cross-industry activity, with further events in development and early access now open for 2027.
Photography Credit: Ula Blocksage
Staff Reporter
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