With less than 72 hours to go until the commencement of IAAB’s Fourth International Conference, the rise in IAAB’s energy is definitely palpable – I can feel it through our gchats, phone calls, texts, BBM messages, emails and all the other technology that we use to keep our geographically-dispersed staff as a cohesive whole.

Personally, the conference and the PR, marketing and media surrounding it have occupied a lot of my thoughts and energy in the last few weeks – particularly in the last few days. As I was packing my bag for the trip, I found myself growing more and more excited at seeing the rest of the staff. I also found myself thinking about the prospect of the unknown at the conference. There are going to be so many extraordinary speakers and panelists assembled this weekend that I’m confident there will be no shortage of amazing insights, ideas and dialogue to take something away from. I am so impressed with my IAAB colleagues for gathering so many amazing people to partake in our conference, and I can’t wait to see what comes out of it.

The IAAB International Conference has never disappointed me. Before IAAB was IAAB, before the thought of getting involved in this organization even entered my head, I unwittingly attended the Saturday Night Entertainment portion of the First International Conference in Boston. I’m proud of IAAB for staying true to its mission and its roots, and consistently showcasing new Iranian talent to the Iranian community – from Haaleh in 2004, to Maz Jobrani in 2005, to Hypernova and the Abjeez in 2007 – all of these talents have gone on to do amazing things and achieve greater levels of recognition in our community, and I’m sure that Fared Shafinury, Tehranosaurus and Sholi will not disappoint.  We are very lucky to have multiple groups collaborating with us (PAAIA, Shabeh Jomeh), and multiple talents who want to perform at our event. It’s a further testament to the growth and the power of our organization, and as we branch out into the West Coast, we can only go up from here.

I’ve expressed my excitement about a lot of things in this post, but above all, I’m excited at the prospect of seeing many new faces at our event this weekend. The conference can’t come soon enough – and I hope to see you there!!!

Be omideh didar,

Sherry

p.s. – Please REGISTER so that we know to expect you!!!