SXSW Film Festival 2011
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Andrew Haigh’s Weekend
Screening Times: Friday March 11th, 7:00pm (Alamo Lamar C), Saturday march 12th,, 4:00pm (Westgate), Sunday March 13th (Alamo Ritz 1), Thursday march 17th, 8:00pm (Alamo Lamar C) A wistful Friday to Sunday romance unfolds in British newcomer Andrew Haigh’s Weekend, a drama involving a pair of men who meet at a gay dance club and spend a poignant weekend together, one which will change them both forever. Filmmaker: How did you first conceive of Weekend? Haigh: I really just wanted to tell a story about two guys and the start of a possible relationship in all its insecure, messy, drunken […]
by Brandon Harris on Mar 11, 2011 -
DUSTIN GUY DEFA’S “BAD FEVER”
Screening Times: Friday March 11th, 8:45pm (Alamo Lamar B), Monday March 14th 4:00pm (Alamo Ritz 2), Thursday March 17th, 3:00pm, (Rollins Theatre) SXSW stalwarts Kentucker Audley and Eleonore Hendricks star in Bad Fever, the debut from Brooklyn-based newcomer Dustin Guy Defa about the wistful, misbegotten almost, but not quite love affair between a couple of drifters, one of whom seems to videotape everything she does with an antiquated video camera. Filmmaker: How did you first conceive of Bad Fever? Defa: I was in the middle of writing a different screenplay and working as a carousel operator. One night this couple […]
by Brandon Harris on Mar 11, 2011 -
“BETTER THIS WORLD” DIRECTORS KELLY DUANE DE LA VEGA & KATIE GALLOWAY
When two young activists from Midland Texas were arrested with Molotov cocktails at the 2008 Republican convention, their story became a media sensation, but documentarians Katie Galloway and Kelly Duane de la Vega couldn’t escape the feeling that there was more to this story than the good-kids-turned-domestic-terrorists version the media was reporting. So, they did what any skilled documentarians do: they took a leap of faith, jumped a plane and started talking to people involved with the case. The result is Better This World, a documentary that explores what happens when idealistic, angry young activists stop being polite and start getting mixed up […]
by Mary Anderson Casavant on Mar 11, 2011 -
GRAB A HEALTHY BITE AT SXSW
One of the joys of going to SXSW every year is indulging in the eats around Austin. But often that leads to chowing down on stuff that’s certain to expand the waistline. But there’s hope. Over at the Eat Well Guide, you’ll find a rundown of some of the top local eateries in Austin that won’t put you in a food coma.
by Jason Guerrasio on Mar 9, 2011 -
“GIRL WALKS INTO A BAR” DIRECTOR SEBASTIAN GUTIERREZ
Over the years film lovers have accused everything from sound to television of destroying the cinematic altar at which they worship. But rather than wallow in nostalgia for a time before this newfangled digital world, director Sebastian Gutierrez decided to take this streaming media thing out for a whirl to see what she could do. He developed his latest feature, Girl Walks Into a Bar, exclusively for web distribution. Sponsored by Lexus, it will be available in the YouTube Screening Room on the same day as its SXSW premiere. The best part of the whole free-on-the-internet thing? Well for Gutierrez, it’s that […]
by Mary Anderson Casavant on Mar 9, 2011 -
SXFANTASTIC’S TIM LEAGUE ON 2011’S MIDNIGHT EDITION
Despite their protestations to the contrary, festival programmers are often a competitive bunch, jostling for not only premieres but status. That’s why SXFantastic, now in its third year, is such a welcome event. A collaboration between SXSW and Fantastic Fest, which unspools its own main event in September, SXFantastic brings Fantastic’s genre smarts and midnight-movie acumen to the South By sprawl. The result is a focused section that has been producing its own fan favorites, critical hits and even industry acquisitions. Last year’s successes included Gareth Edwards’ Monsters and the unlikely pick-up A Serbian Film (which just landed the SITGES […]
by Scott Macaulay on Mar 9, 2011 -
Janet Pierson on the Films — and Crowds — of SXSW
Six weeks before the festival, every hotel room in downtown Austin was booked solid. Badges were already selling out a month prior, and, in the last few weeks, LAX-AUS flights have become almost impossible to come by. Last year the festival was, by all accounts, over-crowded — press and industry felt needlessly constrained by the impossibility of special access to screenings, and complaints of line cutting were all over Twitter. Pierson and her staff took all of these criticisms hard. In the wake of the grumblings, there are new and bigger theatres (the renovated State Theatre, next to the Paramount; […]
by Alicia Van Couvering on Mar 9, 2011 -
SXSW CLOSING WITH THORNTON’S “THE KING OF LUCK” & ANNOUNCES ADDITIONAL TITLES
The South by Southwest Film Conference and Festival revealed today that its closing night film this year will be the world premiere of Bill Bob Thornton‘s documentary on Willie Nelson, The King of Luck. They also announced additional titles to the fest, including a work-in-progress screening of Bridesmaids, starring Kristen Wiig and produced by Judd Apatow, and a short from Harmony Korine. More info on the closing night film and additional titles can be found below. SXSW will take place March 11-19 in Austin, Texas. Read full list of features here; Midnight, SXFantastic and shorts here. CLOSING NIGHT FILM The […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Mar 2, 2011 -
SXSW REVEAL MIDNIGHTERS, SXFANTASTIC & SHORTS
The South By Southwest Film Conference and Festival announced today the lineups for its Midnighters, SXFantastic and short films sections. Midnighters has always been a popular section at SXSW having highlighted the talents of Eli Roth and Ti West in the past, but its notoriety grew a few years ago when the fest added the SXFantastic sidebar, which are midnight films programmed by the largest genre fest, Fantastic Fest. Last year, the section had the world premiere of Gareth Edwards‘ impressive debut feature Monsters. The complete list of Midnighters, SXFantastic and short films titles are below. SXSW will take place […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Feb 10, 2011 -
SXWS 2011 LineUp Announced
130 features (consisting of 60 world premieres, 12 North American premieres and 16 U.S. premieres) will screen this year from a record-high 1,792 feature-length films submitted to SXSW producer Janet Pierson and her team. Highlights include opening night film Source Code, from Duncan Jones (Moon), Jodie Foster‘s The Beaver, Greg Mottola‘s Paul, Sundance Grand Prize doc winner How to Die in Oregon, Errol Morris‘ Tabloid, Victoria Mahoney‘s Yelling to the Sky, Azazel Jacob‘s Terri and a special screening of Catherine Hardwicke‘s Red Riding Hood. See the complete lineup below. The Midnight, SXFantastic and shorts lineup can be found here. […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Feb 2, 2011
