Knutepunkt

The annual Knutepunkt conference, first held in 1997, has been a vital institution in establishing a Nordic role-playing identity, and in establishing the concept of "Nordic larp" as a unique approach. Though the conference started out strictly as a larp event, it has since embraced role-playing games in a more genereal fashion. Today the conference still has an emphasis on larp, but programs devoted to traditional tabletop role-playing as well as newer arrivals such as freeform are common.

A live action role-playing avant-garde movement, which pursues radical experimentation and the recognition of role-playing as a form of art, has been connected to the Knutepunkt conferences. The scope of the Knutepunkt conference has expanded rather rapidly over the last few years with participants showing up from numerous non-Scandinavian countries. Since about 2003 Knutepunkt has seen participants from USA, Germany, France, Italy, Russia, Estonia, Belarus, Belgium, the Netherlands, Israel, the Czech Republic, UK, Austria and others.

The name of the convention varies with the organizing country (the meaning of the name being "nodal point" in the language of the hosting country).

The next Knutepunkt - Knutepunkt 2009 - will be held in Norway.

History

*Knutepunkt 1997 Oslo, Norway
*Knutpunkt 1998 Stockholm, Sweden
*Knudepunkt 1999 Copenhagen, Denmark
*Solmukohta 2000 Helsinki, Finland
*Knutepunkt 2001 Oslo, Norway
* [http://kp02.sverok.net/ Knutpunkt 2002] Stockholm, Sweden
* [http://www.liveforum.dk/knudepunkt/ Knudepunkt 2003] Copenhagen, Denmark (Feb. 2003) (Official site was http://www.nordiclarp.org/knudepunkt/ which was simply a redirect to http://www.liveforum.dk/knudepunkt/)
* [http://www.ropecon.fi/solmukohta/ Solmukohta 2004] Espoo, Finland (Feb. 2004)
* [http://knutepunkt.laiv.org/ Knutepunkt 2005] Oslo, Norway (Feb. 2005)
* [http://jeepen.org/knutpunkt/ Knutpunkt 2006] Barnens Ö (Children's Island), Sweden (Apr. 2006)
* [http://www.knudepunkt.org/ Knudepunkt 2007] . Denmark. (Feb. 2007)
* [http://www.solmukohta.org/ Solmukohta 2008] Nurmijärvi, Finland (Apr. 2008)

Publications

The latest Knutepunkt conferences have been accompanied by books on LARP Theory,except the one in Stockholm in 2002.

*Anette Alsvåg, Ingrid Storrø, Erlend Eidsem Hansen (eds.): "The Book". Knudepunkt 2001. no ISBN
*Morten Gade, Line Thorup & Mikkel Sander (eds.): "As Larp Grows Up". Knudepunkt 2003. ISBN 87-989377-0-7. http://www.laivforum.dk/kp03_book/
*Markus Montola & Jaakko Stenros (eds.): "Beyond Role and Play". Solmukohta 2004. ISBN 952-91-6842-X. http://www.ropecon.fi/brap/
*Petter Bøckman & Ragnhild Hutchison (eds.): "Dissecting Larp". Knutepunkt 2005. ISBN 82-997102-0-0 (print) ISBN 82-997102-1-9 (online) http://knutepunkt.laiv.org/kp05/
*Thorbiörn Fritzon & Tobias Wrigstad (eds.) : "Role, Play, Art". Knutpunkt 2006. ISBN 91-631-8853-8 . http://jeepen.org/kpbook/
*Jesper Donnis, Morten Gade & Line Thorup (eds.): "Lifelike". Knudepunkt 2007. ISBN 978-87-989377-1-5. http://www.liveforum.dk/kp07book/
*Jaakko Stenros & Markus Montola (eds.): "Playground Worlds". Solmukohta 2008. ISBN 978-952-92-3579-7 (print) ISBN 978-952-92-3580-3 (pdf)