Blog

Our First Booth: Creator Pathways at NYC's Impact, IRL

By Elliot Zhuo and Zhanna Kapranova, Co-founders, ContentGenZ ยท 2026-11-06

On 31 October 2026 we ran our first ever booth, at the National Youth Council's Impact, IRL at the MBS expo. The two of us, Elliot and Zhanna, spent the day at the Creator Pathways booth, talking to young people about making content. We came home tired, happy and with a S$1,000 microgrant for First Serve.

Elliot and Zhanna smiling behind the purple Creator Pathways booth, with flyers and a QR code on the counter
Elliot and Zhanna at the Creator Pathways booth.

What Impact, IRL is

Impact, IRL is a one-day event for youths aged 15 to 35 who want to create change in Singapore. The National Youth Council and the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre organise it together. There are workshops, panels, a marketplace of youth-led projects, clinics where you can get advice on your project or a grant, and an on-site microgrant.

We were there as part of our Youth Action Grant application, to share Creator Pathways and hear what young people think of it.

Our youth booth at Impact, IRL

Creator Pathways is for young people who want to make content but don't know where to begin. You learn to film, edit and post with the phone you already have, find your voice, and work towards a real project. That was the pitch on our booth, and it got people talking.

Students from lots of different schools stopped by. Many were already curious about content creation: some post now and want to get better, others have wanted to start for a while and didn't know how. A few were camera shy, and we told them we were too. It was a good reminder of why we're building this. If that sounds like you, we've written about how to start creating content as a student and building a content portfolio.

A visitor reads about Creator Pathways at our booth.

We also met many of the other vendors and youth teams. Some were working on similar problems, some could be partners, and a few could become clients. We're following up with them this week.

Ringing the bell for First Serve

Impact, IRL has a microgrant you can apply for on the day, and you hear back before you leave. We applied for First Serve, our tennis programme for young women in Singapore, and got S$1,000. Zhanna got to ring the bell.

Zhanna rings the bell for our First Serve microgrant.

First Serve is supported by the National Youth Council Singapore.

Thank you, NYC

A big thank you to the National Youth Council for the experience and for setting up the booth for us. All we had to do was turn up with our flyers and talk to people. For a small team running its first booth, that made the day easy and fun.

What's next

We're taking what we heard at Impact, IRL into the first Creator Pathways cohort. If you're a young person in Singapore who wants to start making content, register your interest and we'll tell you when sign-ups open.

If you met us at the booth, thanks for stopping by. We'd love to hear what you make.

Sources

Frequently asked questions

What is Impact, IRL?

Impact, IRL is a one-day event co-organised by the National Youth Council and the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre, for youths aged 15 to 35 who want to create change in Singapore. It has workshops, panels, grant consults, a marketplace of youth projects and an on-site microgrant.

What is Creator Pathways?

Creator Pathways is ContentGenZ's programme for young people in Singapore who want to make content. You learn to film, edit and post with the phone you already have, build your confidence and voice, and work towards a real-world project.

How do I join Creator Pathways?

Cohort 1 is on the way. Register your interest on the Creator Pathways page and we'll tell you when sign-ups open.