1 00:00:07,880 --> 00:00:10,780 There are a lot of people creating hype. 2 00:00:12,140 --> 00:00:13,640 We've all heard the story. 3 00:00:14,440 --> 00:00:16,680 NFT could make you a millionaire overnight. 4 00:00:17,340 --> 00:00:21,020 The crypto bro, the get rich fast, the let's party. 5 00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:25,720 The global crypto space can seem packed full of ego. There's a lot of people 6 00:00:25,720 --> 00:00:30,120 making very quick dollars without understanding what they're even doing. 7 00:00:30,360 --> 00:00:34,760 I was just seeing a bunch of cowboys coming in and going, we can get rich 8 00:00:35,560 --> 00:00:39,320 But who are the local innovators smashing those NFT stereotypes? 9 00:00:39,880 --> 00:00:41,300 Scratch beneath the surface. 10 00:00:42,560 --> 00:00:47,000 And there are wonderful communities across New Zealand putting in the 11 00:00:47,920 --> 00:00:52,040 We're seeing more people coming into this with good values. 12 00:00:52,280 --> 00:00:57,340 We meet the Kiwis killing it in the NFT scene and proving it's not all about the 13 00:00:57,340 --> 00:01:01,160 cash. We really believe it can be a part of the change in this industry. 14 00:01:02,040 --> 00:01:05,300 There are a lot of New Zealand creators who are trying to create something 15 00:01:05,300 --> 00:01:06,300 bigger. 16 00:01:06,380 --> 00:01:10,820 Maybe from the inside, we can start to turn it into something more accessible. 17 00:01:17,960 --> 00:01:22,780 For Luke Ryan, the road to creating a sellout collection of NFTs was far from 18 00:01:22,780 --> 00:01:26,600 easy, and it all started with his own journey of self -discovery. 19 00:01:27,820 --> 00:01:30,800 I was born here in Tamaki Makaurau. 20 00:01:31,400 --> 00:01:33,380 As a kid, I was definitely introverted. 21 00:01:34,400 --> 00:01:40,400 And my big dream was to have my own computer. And I used to think to myself, 22 00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:46,520 I've got a computer, I've made it. My identity was really tied to my Pākehā 23 00:01:46,520 --> 00:01:52,020 side. I was essentially cut off from Māoridom for the first two decades of my 24 00:01:52,020 --> 00:01:53,020 life. 25 00:01:53,340 --> 00:01:58,060 I decided to go to university, and I thought that I should probably do 26 00:01:58,060 --> 00:01:59,560 in corporate business. 27 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:01,580 So I went and studied business. 28 00:02:01,800 --> 00:02:05,540 And that was the beginning of 10 years that I spent at university, actually, 29 00:02:05,540 --> 00:02:06,580 work at the same time. 30 00:02:09,180 --> 00:02:14,380 After a decade working in corporate, I realized that maybe something else is 31 00:02:14,380 --> 00:02:15,380 calling me. 32 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:18,960 I decided to start a content agency. 33 00:02:19,540 --> 00:02:23,240 And as that evolved, I started to work with artists. 34 00:02:23,680 --> 00:02:27,340 And I felt a lot of reflection around this world. 35 00:02:27,880 --> 00:02:29,780 I was like, there's something rich there. 36 00:02:30,120 --> 00:02:34,280 I started to have this urge to know more about who I was. 37 00:02:34,520 --> 00:02:40,340 And then I got this opportunity to go onto this board for a charity where I 38 00:02:40,340 --> 00:02:41,860 up in Glendale, GI. 39 00:02:42,880 --> 00:02:47,860 And a lot of the protocols that the charity had were Māori. 40 00:02:48,340 --> 00:02:49,520 That's where I met Bill. 41 00:02:50,700 --> 00:02:52,980 Luke came onto the board of Te Waipuna Porowai. 42 00:02:53,700 --> 00:02:57,040 I would describe him as one of those people who still waters Monday. 43 00:02:57,710 --> 00:03:01,530 Bill started to show me things at my own pace. 44 00:03:01,790 --> 00:03:06,690 It became my safe space where I could learn about what Māoridom meant to me. 45 00:03:08,290 --> 00:03:12,810 The more I got to know Luke, I recognised that he had the skills of a 46 00:03:12,950 --> 00:03:18,370 the ability to see things before they occur or to be able to say that's where 47 00:03:18,370 --> 00:03:19,370 the issue is. 48 00:03:20,510 --> 00:03:24,950 I've seen brilliant Māori leaders and he was someone younger that had that 49 00:03:24,950 --> 00:03:26,190 ability to think like that. 50 00:03:26,800 --> 00:03:30,580 It was around the same time that Luke also discovered the world of crypto. 51 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:35,180 My first experience with Bitcoin was in 2018. 52 00:03:36,520 --> 00:03:43,300 I had heard that it was this asset that you could invest in. It's just so cool, 53 00:03:43,440 --> 00:03:45,840 but it's also quite unregulated. 54 00:03:47,440 --> 00:03:52,640 I was trying to work out for myself what's going on. I need to learn about 55 00:03:52,640 --> 00:03:54,780 industry. I need to make as many mistakes. 56 00:03:55,340 --> 00:03:59,400 as I possibly can so that I can learn faster. 57 00:04:01,120 --> 00:04:07,800 I managed to lose a lot of my crypto trading because I didn't know what I was 58 00:04:07,800 --> 00:04:13,640 doing. I had an allocation of money that I put into some digital assets and I 59 00:04:13,640 --> 00:04:15,920 got it really wrong. And so now they're worth nothing. 60 00:04:16,180 --> 00:04:19,660 Great! I just actually have to laugh at how bad I did. 61 00:04:19,980 --> 00:04:22,200 But it was almost like that was my training. 62 00:04:24,010 --> 00:04:28,570 While Luke knew crypto was a world he wanted to keep on exploring, it took a 63 00:04:28,570 --> 00:04:30,110 backseat when whānau called. 64 00:04:32,810 --> 00:04:34,570 COVID came. 65 00:04:34,990 --> 00:04:36,950 My brother had been quite unwell. 66 00:04:37,750 --> 00:04:38,790 He passed away. 67 00:04:41,170 --> 00:04:42,590 I was very shocked. 68 00:04:44,170 --> 00:04:47,210 My brother's wishes were that I was to run the tangi. 69 00:04:49,719 --> 00:04:53,760 Bill came and helped to give that grounding of protocols and it was such a 70 00:04:53,760 --> 00:04:54,820 living curve for me. 71 00:04:56,260 --> 00:04:57,640 My brother had a plan. 72 00:04:59,760 --> 00:05:04,120 It's time for you to really accept te ao Māori. 73 00:05:04,720 --> 00:05:09,540 But I was fearful to actually understand who I am. And as I started to unpack 74 00:05:09,540 --> 00:05:13,400 who I was, I started to have this deep urge to connect. 75 00:05:15,340 --> 00:05:18,120 The most pressing question that people ask all the time is, who am I? 76 00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:22,980 In Te Ao Māori, your knowledge of your own whakapapa is your ticket and pathway 77 00:05:22,980 --> 00:05:25,860 to your connections to everything in Te Ao Māori. 78 00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:29,980 And so knowing who I am, where I belong, where I come from, it allows you to 79 00:05:29,980 --> 00:05:30,980 connect with others. 80 00:05:35,020 --> 00:05:38,260 I just had this calling, and so we jumped in a car. 81 00:05:38,920 --> 00:05:42,460 Every two or three months, we'll drive somewhere, and we'll talk about the 82 00:05:42,460 --> 00:05:43,460 history of the land. 83 00:05:44,500 --> 00:05:45,500 There's a saying. 84 00:05:46,360 --> 00:05:51,060 And that's what he needs you to do. 85 00:05:51,440 --> 00:05:53,120 Let those winds blow in your face. 86 00:05:55,480 --> 00:05:56,480 To my soul. 87 00:05:57,380 --> 00:06:01,940 I realised there was a piece of me that was never actually acknowledged. 88 00:06:02,240 --> 00:06:06,580 Over there is Taurere Taurere, famous for where they beach the canoes, being a 89 00:06:06,580 --> 00:06:09,420 river that goes directly out of the sea. Luke started to grow. I saw 90 00:06:09,420 --> 00:06:16,340 the growth in him and his own knowledge 91 00:06:16,340 --> 00:06:17,340 of his identity. 92 00:06:19,380 --> 00:06:20,780 I started wanting to draw. 93 00:06:21,400 --> 00:06:25,160 I wanted to try different things like carving. 94 00:06:25,460 --> 00:06:28,460 I went from being an observer to wanting to be more than that. 95 00:06:28,760 --> 00:06:35,660 I was also trying to find my place in crypto. Do I buy crypto? Do 96 00:06:35,660 --> 00:06:38,100 I create crypto stuff? 97 00:06:38,460 --> 00:06:39,580 Andy creates crypto stuff. 98 00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:46,140 The local coffee shop where I live, that's where I started to meet Paul. 99 00:06:47,600 --> 00:06:50,380 He'd probably not want to be known as this, but I call him OG. 100 00:06:50,600 --> 00:06:53,120 He definitely has been around longer than most. 101 00:06:53,480 --> 00:06:56,500 I first heard of Bitcoin in 2011. 102 00:06:57,040 --> 00:07:01,380 Being in Europe at that time, it was actually incredibly easy to buy Bitcoin. 103 00:07:01,620 --> 00:07:05,200 I was shocked when I moved back to New Zealand and it was so hard here. 104 00:07:06,080 --> 00:07:11,120 Being that there was nobody really outside of techies or forums, there was 105 00:07:11,120 --> 00:07:15,700 nobody talking about Bitcoin in a commercial sense or in a business sense. 106 00:07:16,520 --> 00:07:22,300 I'll try to consult with businesses and banks so they can understand Bitcoin and 107 00:07:22,300 --> 00:07:23,300 cryptocurrencies. 108 00:07:23,720 --> 00:07:28,640 Paul is considered one of the pioneers of crypto in Aotearoa, and with a career 109 00:07:28,640 --> 00:07:33,180 immersed in the blockchain industry, that chance meeting with Luke then 110 00:07:33,180 --> 00:07:34,180 new door. 111 00:07:35,940 --> 00:07:41,560 With us both being tangata whenua, it was just a really nice connection, and 112 00:07:41,560 --> 00:07:45,680 had the answers that I'd been searching for. And that's where I saw the spark. 113 00:07:46,510 --> 00:07:51,390 I actually realised that my place in crypto was building things. 114 00:07:52,710 --> 00:07:58,510 We actually found we both share the same iwi, the Ngapuhi, and it was a great 115 00:07:58,510 --> 00:08:03,750 place for us to start. The protocols from a te ao Māori perspective, the 116 00:08:03,750 --> 00:08:09,390 protocols from a technology perspective, the same principles of integrity and 117 00:08:09,390 --> 00:08:10,390 trust. 118 00:08:10,800 --> 00:08:16,460 After I realised where our respective experiences could combine, I said, let's 119 00:08:16,460 --> 00:08:17,460 try a few projects. 120 00:08:18,440 --> 00:08:24,880 I really had this deep feeling in me to create something Māori. But I also was, 121 00:08:24,920 --> 00:08:26,300 like, really tempted. 122 00:08:27,980 --> 00:08:32,159 NFTs were such a radical idea. 123 00:08:32,600 --> 00:08:34,980 I was very hesitant at first. 124 00:08:35,559 --> 00:08:42,380 what really opened my mind is the communities that were behind them people 125 00:08:42,380 --> 00:08:46,520 who are purchasing nfts are so different than people purchasing client art see 126 00:08:46,520 --> 00:08:53,440 the young people having fun nfts are opening a door for a younger demographic 127 00:08:53,440 --> 00:09:00,020 to start to love art i had seen some maori 128 00:09:00,020 --> 00:09:04,930 appropriation happening in space you can't squash all of the cultural 129 00:09:04,930 --> 00:09:11,210 appropriation but what you can do is produce a genuine authentic article so 130 00:09:11,210 --> 00:09:17,250 can drown out the scammy projects by having something that is true to 131 00:09:17,250 --> 00:09:23,030 cultures when we were looking at creating an nft project we started with 132 00:09:23,030 --> 00:09:28,230 we were looking at the concepts and something just didn't feel right it 133 00:09:28,230 --> 00:09:31,070 have the flow and it started to feel forced so we just stopped 134 00:09:34,410 --> 00:09:37,510 And we said, fine, then we won't do it. 135 00:09:38,770 --> 00:09:44,130 And if you look at Māoridom, the birds are the ones that weave change before 136 00:09:44,130 --> 00:09:45,130 create something. 137 00:09:45,170 --> 00:09:50,410 That's when the next format started to show itself with the Heitiki. 138 00:09:50,790 --> 00:09:52,850 And I thought, really? 139 00:09:53,530 --> 00:09:58,090 Is this really what wants to start to come to life? 140 00:09:59,210 --> 00:10:03,110 Was it such a velocity that I couldn't say no, it was just meant to be? 141 00:10:04,010 --> 00:10:07,710 It really started to feel like I was on a rollercoaster with them. 142 00:10:13,490 --> 00:10:18,290 We decided that we wanted to bring Te Ao Māori into the Metaverse. 143 00:10:19,150 --> 00:10:22,150 And we wanted to create NFTs with the Hei Tiki. 144 00:10:22,350 --> 00:10:25,850 So Paul and I were working through this kind of creative process. 145 00:10:26,790 --> 00:10:31,210 OK, if we really respect the protocols, who should we be talking to? And that's 146 00:10:31,210 --> 00:10:33,590 where we started to connect with Bill. 147 00:10:35,170 --> 00:10:38,450 My understanding of NFTs and crypto is very limited. 148 00:10:39,030 --> 00:10:45,070 I went on my knowledge of Luke and his integrity and the need to be honest and 149 00:10:45,070 --> 00:10:47,270 sincere about Te Ao Māori and how we do things. 150 00:10:47,590 --> 00:10:49,750 He goes, well, what's your intention? 151 00:10:51,010 --> 00:10:55,850 To share our culture and to let anyone around the world... 152 00:10:56,320 --> 00:10:58,100 connect with it in their own way. 153 00:10:58,600 --> 00:11:02,700 Do it with the right intent, do it with sincerity, do it with honesty, aroha, 154 00:11:02,840 --> 00:11:04,280 and you can go there. 155 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:07,540 But aren't all the heitiki tapu? 156 00:11:07,900 --> 00:11:12,220 The heitiki are considered sacred and tapu, and they have their own mauri, 157 00:11:12,220 --> 00:11:16,360 its life force, and they have their own ihi, its own power, and mana being its 158 00:11:16,360 --> 00:11:17,360 own prestige. 159 00:11:17,770 --> 00:11:22,470 But it never said that you can't adapt it over time, as long as you keep the 160 00:11:22,470 --> 00:11:26,910 fundamentals of the life force, the ehi, the fierceness, that keeps the tiki in 161 00:11:26,910 --> 00:11:27,910 its form. 162 00:11:31,550 --> 00:11:37,550 Bill really gave her the... 163 00:11:38,330 --> 00:11:43,830 which we needed to work with them. The metaverse is like this new universe that 164 00:11:43,830 --> 00:11:50,190 is being explored, and these tiki are on a mission to go and navigate the new 165 00:11:50,190 --> 00:11:51,950 waters of the metaverse. 166 00:11:52,210 --> 00:11:56,470 I'm not up to play with the metaverse in the full sense, but I do know Māori 167 00:11:56,470 --> 00:11:58,030 have a part to play in that world. 168 00:11:58,250 --> 00:12:02,630 So I think it's really important that Māori take their own art to the 169 00:12:02,630 --> 00:12:05,350 because they are the authors of their own creation. 170 00:12:05,920 --> 00:12:10,120 Our people have always been innovative, our people have always been navigators 171 00:12:10,120 --> 00:12:15,460 by the stars, and it's a natural extension of our thinking in a 172 00:12:15,540 --> 00:12:16,540 digital world. 173 00:12:18,320 --> 00:12:25,180 Very much came from Luke's head. He created some very simple Tiki shapes, 174 00:12:25,260 --> 00:12:30,120 but it was then a reference point for when we approached an established artist 175 00:12:30,120 --> 00:12:32,580 who had experience with Tiki. 176 00:12:33,930 --> 00:12:38,270 The first sketches that came back were far more intricate than I was expecting. 177 00:12:38,450 --> 00:12:43,030 They almost came out to life in a 3D form. That really was the genesis. 178 00:12:43,210 --> 00:12:44,210 Taitantiki was real. 179 00:12:45,030 --> 00:12:49,570 So this funny edge called Karaka, and Karaka Tarawhiti was part of the wider 180 00:12:49,570 --> 00:12:51,390 Tainui Waikato iwi. 181 00:12:51,670 --> 00:12:55,710 The whakapapa behind Taitantiki started with Tainui. 182 00:12:56,910 --> 00:13:00,210 We actually worked with multiple artists, so we had one... 183 00:13:00,640 --> 00:13:04,540 coming up with a different kind of tamoko, ensuring that they had consent. 184 00:13:04,980 --> 00:13:09,340 And then we had another artist just bring all the colours to life. 185 00:13:09,640 --> 00:13:11,840 It was this beautiful weaving happening. 186 00:13:12,140 --> 00:13:13,860 It was like we were moving up the country. 187 00:13:14,500 --> 00:13:18,480 Different iwi going through, but definitely the roots were in Tainui. 188 00:13:18,940 --> 00:13:24,140 So we did a thousand, there were different types, but every one of the 189 00:13:24,140 --> 00:13:25,140 were individual. 190 00:13:26,100 --> 00:13:27,580 You know, what is their role? 191 00:13:28,090 --> 00:13:32,310 And you know there's different roles in Te Ao Māori within our tribes and our 192 00:13:32,310 --> 00:13:38,310 whānau. And we came up with the hierarchy of a tribe and the roles that 193 00:13:38,310 --> 00:13:43,750 do. A chief, a priest, we had a gatherer, a navigator, and really 194 00:13:43,750 --> 00:13:45,530 think about what that looks like. 195 00:13:45,990 --> 00:13:50,530 My personal journey into Te Ao Māori was exhilarating. I was learning quickly. 196 00:13:50,830 --> 00:13:54,890 We were running on adrenaline to get things done. There was a lot of late 197 00:13:55,820 --> 00:14:00,320 Our wives wondered, why are we spending so much time with someone that's not 198 00:14:00,320 --> 00:14:01,600 even going to pay? 199 00:14:02,040 --> 00:14:04,300 This for us has always been a passion project. 200 00:14:04,640 --> 00:14:09,560 Any value or wealth that we generated from the project, we would reinvest into 201 00:14:09,560 --> 00:14:11,620 creating additional things in the future. 202 00:14:12,640 --> 00:14:16,400 The perception that NFTs were something that could make you a millionaire 203 00:14:16,400 --> 00:14:20,560 overnight was something we just kept dispelling and just kept going, nope, 204 00:14:20,560 --> 00:14:26,420 is another form of artistry and creation, culture and community that we 205 00:14:26,420 --> 00:14:27,420 realise with this. 206 00:14:31,980 --> 00:14:35,380 The mint date was on the 10th of October in 2021. 207 00:14:36,060 --> 00:14:39,900 Thinking back to that day, yeah, I was very nervous. 208 00:14:40,980 --> 00:14:45,200 We had a karakia from Bill blessing the launch. 209 00:14:46,680 --> 00:14:49,160 Okay, you're going to receive this, but you're also going to get a karakia, 210 00:14:49,260 --> 00:14:53,980 which is part of a blessing, which will accompany this particular taonga or this 211 00:14:53,980 --> 00:14:54,980 particular tikit. 212 00:14:55,620 --> 00:15:00,180 So it keeps within Te Ao Māori. I think that keeps it safe, but also something 213 00:15:00,180 --> 00:15:02,760 that belongs to you. That's part of sharing our culture. 214 00:15:03,920 --> 00:15:09,000 We did our mint in phases, and we called them wakau. 215 00:15:09,480 --> 00:15:15,800 We had the first waka going out and it sold out and we went, oh my gosh, this 216 00:15:15,800 --> 00:15:17,980 amazing. Oh, the next waka is coming. 217 00:15:18,200 --> 00:15:19,380 And then it sold. 218 00:15:20,300 --> 00:15:21,660 We're like, shit, this is happening. 219 00:15:22,140 --> 00:15:25,440 We got, I think, to the end of the night. It was something like midnight. 220 00:15:25,440 --> 00:15:27,800 did the last waka. We fully sold out. 221 00:15:28,080 --> 00:15:29,820 You know, like we were kind of stunned. 222 00:15:30,240 --> 00:15:32,500 Now we've got this community that we need to... 223 00:15:33,040 --> 00:15:38,440 Talk to. You now have this community that has all of these expectations of 224 00:15:38,440 --> 00:15:39,440 you'll do. 225 00:15:40,240 --> 00:15:43,820 When you're buying an NFT, you're a shareholder in a way. 226 00:15:44,160 --> 00:15:48,840 So if you buy an NFT worth $10, they would like it to be worth $100. 227 00:15:49,060 --> 00:15:52,160 So you have a voice and you want to be a part of things. 228 00:15:56,960 --> 00:15:57,960 It came in wave. 229 00:15:58,640 --> 00:16:03,460 So there was a lot of desire to make their NFT worth more. We held our 230 00:16:03,600 --> 00:16:08,480 did what we believed was right, and that value has gone through different 231 00:16:08,480 --> 00:16:09,480 stages. 232 00:16:09,740 --> 00:16:14,980 And so what it really took was understanding where to find the right 233 00:16:14,980 --> 00:16:20,100 and actually what made us happy so we could continue to share Te Ao Māori. 234 00:16:22,040 --> 00:16:27,640 We have released two phases so far. One has been the 2D version. 235 00:16:28,300 --> 00:16:30,960 And then we did a 3D version. 236 00:16:31,480 --> 00:16:36,360 It was quite interesting to try different mediums out because 3D moving 237 00:16:36,360 --> 00:16:39,040 are being used on different marketplaces. 238 00:16:39,540 --> 00:16:44,480 And we are now working with different mediums for our oral culture. 239 00:16:45,000 --> 00:16:50,220 So we're definitely at that stage. We're back weaving our net, getting ready to 240 00:16:50,220 --> 00:16:51,220 go fishing. 241 00:16:51,420 --> 00:16:56,360 So there's a lot of hope there around what we could do and what we could 242 00:16:56,920 --> 00:16:58,700 And so that's where we are right now. 243 00:17:00,520 --> 00:17:04,119 With the deep connection with Te Ao Māori, with doing the work and getting 244 00:17:04,119 --> 00:17:07,540 know who I am, I feel like life's just starting. 245 00:17:09,180 --> 00:17:13,440 His growth has been huge, and I'm very proud of where he is at the moment. I 246 00:17:13,440 --> 00:17:18,220 know there's more to do, and I know his mind is always looking to the next 247 00:17:18,220 --> 00:17:19,220 challenge. 248 00:17:19,440 --> 00:17:23,099 I see so much change yet to come, and we're tired and ticky. 249 00:17:23,690 --> 00:17:28,530 continuing to be present in the Metaverse community and sharing Te Ao 250 00:17:36,230 --> 00:17:40,770 We've explored bringing Te Ao Māori into the Metaverse, but what other work has 251 00:17:40,770 --> 00:17:44,230 been created across Aotearoa that smashes the NFT stereotype? 252 00:17:45,040 --> 00:17:50,780 I am a big fan of new technology. Love trying new things out and seeing how it 253 00:17:50,780 --> 00:17:57,500 works. In 2018, we created Beyond with a vision of designing 254 00:17:57,500 --> 00:18:01,860 accessible, fun, wow VR experiences. 255 00:18:02,560 --> 00:18:07,740 One of the things that we've focused on is how do we make worlds where everyone 256 00:18:07,740 --> 00:18:12,000 feels like they can belong with goodness at the heart of it. 257 00:18:14,800 --> 00:18:21,600 I met Sam, she was an early innovator in the VR, AR space and I had a 258 00:18:21,600 --> 00:18:25,100 lot of respect for the work she'd been doing and it was kind of exciting at the 259 00:18:25,100 --> 00:18:27,960 time because there were a few of us females in this space. 260 00:18:29,680 --> 00:18:33,700 We've been running our Creative Tech Studio method for just over 19 years. 261 00:18:34,640 --> 00:18:38,840 Tech to me is always best when it's invisible, when it's actually the story 262 00:18:38,840 --> 00:18:42,260 that's doing the job and you forget that you're immersed in this experience. 263 00:18:43,820 --> 00:18:48,320 Jess and I would occasionally text each other and talk about projects. And we'd 264 00:18:48,320 --> 00:18:50,800 recently been briefed on an NFT range. 265 00:18:51,260 --> 00:18:55,260 So kind of started thinking about, well, we're doing all of this for other 266 00:18:55,260 --> 00:18:57,900 people. Why couldn't we do it for ourselves? 267 00:18:58,360 --> 00:19:02,780 When she messaged me and said, have you seen what's happening in this kind of 268 00:19:02,780 --> 00:19:05,340 digital avatar ownership NFT space? 269 00:19:05,560 --> 00:19:07,220 Because it's fascinating. 270 00:19:08,650 --> 00:19:14,570 We're like, we specialize in this. We make beautiful 3D characters all the 271 00:19:14,770 --> 00:19:17,050 We just felt like there was a big opportunity. 272 00:19:17,670 --> 00:19:20,890 The market for NFTs at the moment is crypto growth. 273 00:19:21,150 --> 00:19:26,110 It's such a derogatory term, so I'm sorry for those people who are genuinely 274 00:19:26,110 --> 00:19:31,470 this, but the market is very targeted and heavily dominated by men. 275 00:19:32,400 --> 00:19:36,460 The huge egos, the let's party, drive fast cars. 276 00:19:37,320 --> 00:19:41,640 I was just seeing a bunch of cowboys coming in and going, we can get rich 277 00:19:44,840 --> 00:19:50,960 Female characters, people of colour, NFTs that there are in here, were valued 278 00:19:50,960 --> 00:19:51,960 lower. 279 00:19:52,140 --> 00:19:56,060 But it's a self -fulfilling prophecy because... 280 00:19:56,270 --> 00:20:00,890 If you're white and male in the space, it's a version of you, right? So you're 281 00:20:00,890 --> 00:20:03,550 not going to necessarily buy a female character. 282 00:20:04,510 --> 00:20:10,530 If I wanted to change, I kind of have to be part of that change. So maybe from 283 00:20:10,530 --> 00:20:11,530 the inside. 284 00:20:11,740 --> 00:20:14,160 We can start to turn it into something more accessible. 285 00:20:14,400 --> 00:20:19,120 If we could reduce the tech terms, if we could show that women were in this 286 00:20:19,120 --> 00:20:22,580 space, if we could show people of colour in this space, you might gravitate more 287 00:20:22,580 --> 00:20:27,040 towards it. So we decided to collaborate on a collection that focused on 288 00:20:27,040 --> 00:20:29,820 diversity, inclusion and accessibility. 289 00:20:33,070 --> 00:20:38,010 We looked at our own upbringing and we very quickly got to kind of this idea of 290 00:20:38,010 --> 00:20:42,770 doing a generational range, so the 80s, 90s and the zeros, and thought, well, 291 00:20:42,890 --> 00:20:44,950 there's something pretty nostalgic about that. 292 00:20:45,170 --> 00:20:49,010 So we started thinking about all the things we loved collecting, because 293 00:20:49,010 --> 00:20:53,310 are collectible. I collected garbage pail kits. They were one of my favourite 294 00:20:53,310 --> 00:20:54,310 things. 295 00:20:54,950 --> 00:20:59,950 We talked about how could we potentially bring some of that collectible card 296 00:20:59,950 --> 00:21:01,590 quirkiness aspect. 297 00:21:02,620 --> 00:21:05,360 They're a little repressed. They're a little bit misunderstood. 298 00:21:05,880 --> 00:21:09,780 And they've gone through some hardship, you know, so they've come out of it on 299 00:21:09,780 --> 00:21:10,779 the other side. 300 00:21:10,780 --> 00:21:13,620 They're a little bit rebellious, but with good heart. 301 00:21:14,100 --> 00:21:15,400 None of us are perfect. 302 00:21:15,740 --> 00:21:19,920 When we first started looking at the art, we're like, they look too nice. 303 00:21:20,160 --> 00:21:24,600 We want the quality to be great, but they all look like plastic models. 304 00:21:24,820 --> 00:21:26,480 How can we change that up? 305 00:21:29,520 --> 00:21:34,700 We had one of our artists come up with some ideas around these tattoo -y type 306 00:21:34,700 --> 00:21:37,160 pieces of art on their vase. 307 00:21:37,520 --> 00:21:42,680 That's when things started to feel really good for us and started to draw 308 00:21:42,680 --> 00:21:47,680 this idea around superpowers and how we all have a superpower. 309 00:21:48,740 --> 00:21:51,160 And that's not about being able to fly. 310 00:21:52,180 --> 00:21:54,260 It's just about who we are as humans. 311 00:21:55,880 --> 00:21:57,940 And we're all a little bit messy. 312 00:21:58,670 --> 00:22:02,030 We're all a little bit unique, and that's what makes us special. 313 00:22:03,550 --> 00:22:08,270 We're living in a world where gender is very fluid, and so just having a female 314 00:22:08,270 --> 00:22:12,250 -male collection didn't feel quite right for us. What if we just took that out 315 00:22:12,250 --> 00:22:16,010 of the picture? What if there just isn't one? And you get to decide what you 316 00:22:16,010 --> 00:22:17,010 want that to be. 317 00:22:18,000 --> 00:22:21,960 It was really important for us that we had a 3D character because we can do 318 00:22:21,960 --> 00:22:26,040 with 3D characters. We could take them across different platforms. 319 00:22:26,380 --> 00:22:29,160 So if you want to use it in a game, then you'll be able to. 320 00:22:31,240 --> 00:22:35,820 There's a new audience who are really interested in having their own avatars, 321 00:22:35,860 --> 00:22:39,360 their own characters, which they can bring into new worlds, whether it's for 322 00:22:39,360 --> 00:22:40,360 work or play. 323 00:22:41,060 --> 00:22:46,560 If we took a little refresh into that metaverse space or game space, it's your 324 00:22:46,560 --> 00:22:47,560 bespoke character. 325 00:22:48,000 --> 00:22:50,320 There won't be anyone else like you in that space. 326 00:22:50,600 --> 00:22:53,260 And so I think that's where the beauty of NFT lies. 327 00:22:53,920 --> 00:22:59,000 This idea that I have something that is wholly mine, that no one else has access 328 00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:03,640 to. Now, it's less about the show -off nature and more about how I can showcase 329 00:23:03,640 --> 00:23:04,680 a little bit of myself. 330 00:23:06,640 --> 00:23:11,640 We hope that the audience who want to be represented by these will be people who 331 00:23:11,640 --> 00:23:15,540 have good values, who want to do good things in the world, and they'll feel 332 00:23:15,540 --> 00:23:18,300 proud of how they look because we think they look pretty cool. 333 00:23:19,780 --> 00:23:24,520 The intention behind Little Riff Raff is not to make a whole lot of money. We 334 00:23:24,520 --> 00:23:27,920 really want them to be accessible, to open up a new audience. 335 00:23:29,180 --> 00:23:33,380 One of the biggest factors in creating this was actually how could we put it 336 00:23:33,380 --> 00:23:35,160 back into either charity or society. 337 00:23:35,840 --> 00:23:40,040 And so how can we do good from it was a real driver for us. So out of that came 338 00:23:40,040 --> 00:23:44,520 up this idea of Little Riff Raff Academy, which is all about upskilling 339 00:23:44,520 --> 00:23:47,660 training the next generation in the creative tech sector. 340 00:23:48,960 --> 00:23:53,180 So the Little Riff Raff Academy is still a little bit work in progress, but the 341 00:23:53,180 --> 00:23:57,920 idea is that it will be a platform where people can be a part of learning 342 00:23:57,920 --> 00:24:02,340 sessions, mentorship, as well as real -world events, workshops. 343 00:24:03,950 --> 00:24:08,670 It can feel a really daunting thing to come into an industry, be it virtual 344 00:24:08,670 --> 00:24:10,570 reality or 3D creation. 345 00:24:10,950 --> 00:24:14,250 How do we enable as many people as possible to be involved? 346 00:24:15,410 --> 00:24:20,310 We want more women in the game sector, in coding, in creative tech, more people 347 00:24:20,310 --> 00:24:22,030 of colour, people from different backgrounds. 348 00:24:22,250 --> 00:24:25,830 So that's the first goal, is to see how we can level that playing field. 349 00:24:27,710 --> 00:24:32,190 We really believe in what we're doing and how we can be a part of the change 350 00:24:32,190 --> 00:24:33,190 this industry. 351 00:24:34,000 --> 00:24:38,260 The characters we've made are really empowering. They all have a strength to 352 00:24:38,260 --> 00:24:39,780 them. They all have a superpower. 353 00:24:40,400 --> 00:24:45,180 And I resonate with that, and I hope that an audience will resonate with that 354 00:24:45,180 --> 00:24:46,180 too. 355 00:24:50,120 --> 00:24:53,140 Bitcoin absolutely consumes a lot of energy. 356 00:24:53,540 --> 00:24:55,660 Mining is big news when it comes to Bitcoin. 357 00:24:56,000 --> 00:24:58,480 A lot of people talk about how dirty Bitcoin is. 358 00:24:58,820 --> 00:25:01,040 But what if the narrative we've been told is huge? 359 00:25:01,870 --> 00:25:05,610 The mining process and Bitcoin shouldn't be feared by the public. 360 00:25:05,810 --> 00:25:09,850 Could crypto actually help solve global warming? I do believe that Bitcoin 361 00:25:09,850 --> 00:25:12,810 mining could revolutionize the energy industry. 362 00:25:13,050 --> 00:25:19,110 Bitcoin mining is actually the number one most viable solution to solve some 363 00:25:19,110 --> 00:25:21,070 our major methane issues.