Pictoplasma is the world’s leading conference on contemporary character-driven creativity. This year marks the 22nd edition, which focuses on storytelling and how can characters shape emotion, identity, and meaning. Founded in 1999 in Berlin, they are truly OGs in this space and we’ve been fans for a long time. They’ve spent the past couple decades connecting creatives and industries across a variety of disciplines including illustration, animation, arts, design, gaming, and emerging media. Their upcoming conference features lectures, artist talks, workshops, publications, exhibitions, and screenings.

Pictoplasma 2026 will take place May 7–9 in Berlin (and streamed live). This year’s speakers include a handful of our favs: Christoph Niemann, Conor Kehelly, Gemma Correll, Jack Sachs, Karlotta Freier, and more. Tickets are on sale now!