Burning Life
Coming September 27 through October 5, 2008
<videoflash>YgqojJ987wY</videoflash> Machinima by Phaylen Fairchild - Images Poid Mahovlich
It's Time to Build Burning Life 2008!
How do you get involved? Use the Burning Life '08 Volunteer Signup Form But before you start filling this out, you may want to take note of the volunteer positions listed in the "What Needs Doing & How To Play" section below. You will be able to apply for specific volunteer positions from those lists by using this form.
What is Burning Life?
Burning Life was first held in 2003 when the grid was still in it's infancy, and this is it's 6th year running. Burning Life is the Second Life version of the real life Art, Fire and Community festival known globally as Burning Man. Both Burning Man and Second Life began in San Francisco, California, USA, (on planet Earth). But they have a lot more in common than their birthplace.
In 1999, an innovative man made a long trek from San Francisco to the sun-baked playa of an enormous, flat, dry lake bed in the Nevada high desert. He went to attend the renowned Burning Man festival where, for one week each year, 50,000 people build art, camps and communities and celebrate being who they really are. This man came back with new ideas for the virtual world he was planning; ideas about the nature of reality, creativity, identity and community. He worked some of these ideas into the very fabric of "Linden World" which eventually became what you and I know as Second Life. That man was Philip Linden.
What happens at Burning Man is something phenomenal. This real world city built by its citizens has roads, street signs, an FAA-approved airport, a power grid, a hospital, huge public plazas, street lights, processions, rituals and spectacles. It has fabulous fashions, ridiculous situations and artworks so raw they are dangerous.
BUT - It's all temporary. At the end of that week, every last last speck of what was brought there is taken away again, Leaving No Trace of the city that was just there. When the winter rains come, even the footprints vanish. Til next year....
Because Burning Life is a mirror in spirit of a real life event, albeit with the unique and creative twists only Second Life can offer, we follow suit. Together, we will build a city, and we voluntarily accept many of the same restrictions that Nature imposes on the real thing. We do this to see how creative we can be with the same palette of materials and to revel in the beauty of simplicity. We use the same blank, desert landscape, and many of the things we build are naked or primitive in structure, easily revealing to the casual viewer how they were constructed. Just pretend that you're bringing everything you need with you in your car or truck and you're going camping. Extreme Camping. Really Extreme Camping.
The other thing you need to know up front is this: Both Burning Life and Burning Man are completely non-commercial. There is no buying or selling in this city...no sponsorships, no logos, no advertising, but acts of unconditional gift-giving that play a large part in Burning culture. It's all about about the radical inclusion of participants, it means welcome and respect — with no prerequisites for participation. It's all about us and what we have made for each other to enjoy.
Burning Life is a Linden-Sponsored, Resident-Created Event.
Upcoming Episodes:
- More history and Philosophy
- A few words from Philip Linden
- How to get a camp site at Burning Life '08
Stay Tuned!
Dusty Linden
What Needs Doing & How To Play
Burning Life '08 Volunteer Positions
Browse all volunteer positions
Browse by Department:
- Administration
- Art Department
- Burning Man Regional Group
- Communications
- Community
- Dispatch
- DMV- Department of Mutant Vehicles
- DPW- Department of Public Works
- DPW Coders
- Rangers
- Performance
Browse by Major Skill Set:
Performers' Availability Form
Make a Theme Camp Proposal
Until August 31,you can apply to get a reserved space for Theme Camp building at Burning Life '08! "What's a Theme Camp!?", you may ask. It's a plot of land you can call home at Burning Life. It is where you "camp" and also where you invite other participants to join in some sort of experience, dialog, event or whatever you have dreamed up to amuse them.
This year, we are going to have two types of Theme Camp plots; the first are 58 reserved plots along the fancy main road (called the Esplanade), and the second type will be the first-come-first-served plots that comprise the rest of the city.
Here's the idea-- to get a guaranteed, reserved plot, come up with a really hilarious or profound camp theme and propose it here. This form will be open for submissions until Sunday, August 31.
We have a small committee of veteran Burners and art types who will pick out the proposals with the most promise of making an indelible impression of mad brilliance on the most people. Or simply those that make us laugh the hardest. For inspiration, you can see what sort of Theme Camps people build at the real life Burning Man Festival! Check their web site here!
If you do not get one of these Esplanade spots, do not despair. We will shortly begin to release chunks of the city in a first-come-first-served, land rush style (plus some as a lottery), both for theme camp builds and for small art projects. We anticipate several land-rushes, geared toward different time zones. Keep your eyes on this wiki and on the forum for more news... soon....
Next Steps
Coming up soon:
- Watch this article for Sim Opening information
- How to grab a first-come-first-served camp space to build on at Burning Life '08
- How to apply for space to create art at Burning Life '08
- How to submit a proposal to build the Temple
Staff list
Links
Burning Life
- vburn.org Resident Resources Website
- Second Life Forum for Burning Life To discuss the event and preparations
Additional Burning Life Links
- Burning Life History Past Burning Life Events
- Burning Life Flickr Group Post Burning Life Event images here
- BurningLife.com Unofficial SL Burning Life Festival Commentary Blog
Burning Man Links and references
- Burning Man website Annual Art, Fire and Community festival
- Burning Man on the Wiki Wiki Look- Up
- BurningMan Image Gallery Images from Burning Man
- Ten Principles Of Burning Man 10 Reasons why
Zero Drama Tolerance
If you are thinking of volunteering to work on the pre-event set-up, read this: The Burning Life Production Team will be a no-drama zone. It's goal-oriented, get-'er-done work, all accomplished behind the scenes. While it's very fun and satisfying, it is no place for a big ego or someone who needs to be the center of attention or in control. It's collaborative. "Team" is a big word around here; be prepared to work with others and be good at reaching a goal, even if the road to it is not the one you might have chosen if working alone! We're all about "get 'er done, lighten up, and have fun".
Image by Poid Mahovlich