What defines the new, its novelty and its threshold of becoming old? Beyond clocks and calendars, what becomes an embodied timekeeper? It is a 'point of reference' (or many), mapping how something lasts, recognising its changing into the new. This referential point, a 'dot', acts as a horologe; a symbolic end but also a marker of infinite beginnings.

At STIR, the new year began later than January 1. Over the past months and until the week before, we've been placing and joining umpteen dots for the rigorous, rewarding making of the Architecture and Design Film Festival's South Asia debut in Mumbai—presented and embraced in a novel format of creative experimentation.

Its diverse programme of 20+ films imparted compelling narratives, alongside 'Frames of Reference', special projects and pavilions expressed by the country's leading creatives. A curated ~log(ue) programme raised questions on/ of/ as the creative circuit. Herein, the reference point of the typical commentary on and around architecture, design and arts underwent a fundamental shift. This fresh centring of creative thought through plural pivots—

viewing architecture through the lens of films; regarding cinema through designed avenues; examining design's impact through personal stories—moved away from what is default, viscerally, ambitiously. For the first time in the region, a celebration of such nature took place on an unprecedented scale. So in our first dispatch of the year, we bring you accounts of these shifting points: the festival's overview indulges in its affect and effect; the video relays its succinct highlights while the opinion notes the entanglement between film, architecture and spectator.

Reflecting on the new year, Foucault's view of time, emanating from every human experience, idea and cultural form, feels particularly relevant. For STIR and our growing community, this undertaking reaffirmed our role as catalysts and actors causing necessary shifts across temporal, spatial and cultural tangents; towards unveiling and discovering the next reference points.

Although late, it feels just in time to wish you the new and the next in 2025!