Last year marked the first annual SXSW Create event, where makers and hackers demonstrated their creativity, tools and technique. It began as a one-day, badge only event but will expand this year.

“Last year we put this on very quickly, so that was sort of the best we could do at the time,” said Aaron Haley, event organizer with SXSW Create. “We really had a goal of making it free and open to the public.”

And that’s exactly what they’ve done. This year Create will be open to the public at no cost and will also span four days. The event kicks off on Friday, March 8 from 2 – 6 p.m. and continues Saturday through Monday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the outdoor space adjacent to the convention center.

Haley said the event will focus on hands-on interaction that should peque the interest of both young and old.

“We’re going to have a great lineup of innovators and creators and makers there, showing off a lot of the things they’ve created,” said Haley.

Some of the makers in the lineup include Austin Hacker Space, which will be teaching people how to solder, as well as Lytro, which will be giving hands-on demonstrations of their innovative, no-focus camera technology.

SXSW Create lies at the intersection of the Interactive conference’s emphases of innovation, creativity and inspiration. Haley hopes the Austin and SXSW communities will be inspired through this creative, innovative event.