The weird and wonderful festival returns March 8th–16th
News team, asssembleeeee! Yep, it’s that time of year again when the Cinapse team charges their mobile battery packs and fuels themselves with free tacos, Topo Chico, and Lone Star as they make their way around Austin, Texas, as our weird little (not so little these days) gem of a town is consumed by SXSW. While some come for all manner of things Interactive, Educational, or Musical, you know our heart lies with film, and as such we’ll be bringing you instant reactions over social media (follow @CinapseNews), interviews, and full review coverage throughout the fest. Click our SXSW tag to see all content. Expect a ‘Most Anticipated’ post from the team in the next few days. For now, feast your eyes on this year’s lineup.
Feature films in the SXSW lineup screen in the following categories: Narrative Feature Competition; Documentary Feature Competition; Headliners; Narrative Spotlight; Documentary Spotlight; Visions; Midnighters; 24 Beats Per Second; Global; Festival Favorites; and Special Events. The Episodic program consists of Episodic Premieres and the Episodic Pilot Competition.
NARRATIVE FEATURE COMPETITION
Ten world premieres, ten unique ways to celebrate the art of storytelling. Selected from 1,346 narrative feature submissions in 2019.
Alice (France)
Director/Screenwriter: Josephine Mackerras
She did everything right until it all went wrong. Cast: Emilie Piponnier, Martin Swabey, Chloe Boreham (World Premiere)
Extra Ordinary (Belgium)
Directors/Screenwriters: Mike Ahern, Enda Loughman
Rose, a mostly sweet and mostly lonely small-town driving instructor, must use her supernatural talent to save the daughter of Martin (also mostly sweet and lonely), from a washed-up rockstar who is using her in a satanic pact that will reignite his fame. Cast: Maeve Higgins, Barry Ward, Will Forte, Claudia Doherty (World Premiere)
Go Back to China (China, U.S.)
Director/Screenwriter: Emily Ting
After spoiled rich girl Sasha Li (Anna Akana) blows through half of her trust fund, she is cut off by her father (Richard Ng) and forced to go back to China and work for the family toy business. Cast: Anna Akana, Richard Ng, Lynn Chen, Kelly Hu, Kendy Cheung, Aviva Wang (World Premiere)
Mickey and the Bear
Director/Screenwriter: Annabelle Attanasio
Faced with the responsibility to take care of her addict, veteran father, headstrong teen Mickey Peck keeps her household afloat. When she has the opportunity to leave for good, she must choose between familial obligation and personal fulfillment. Cast: Camila Morrone, James Badge Dale, Calvin Demba, Ben Rosenfield, Rebecca Henderson (World Premiere)
Ms. White Light
Director/Screenwriter: Paul Shoulberg
Lex Cordova’s business is dying. She has a unique ability to connect with her clients that are terminally ill. It’s just everyone else that she has a problem with. Valerie is a no bullshit woman who loves living her life. Her only way out is thru Lex. Cast: Roberta Colindrez, John Ortiz, Judith Light, Carson Meyer, Zachary Spicer (World Premiere)
Pig Hag
Directors: Sam Probst, Colby Holt, Screenwriter: Colby Holt
Jodie, a woman in her mid-thirties, struggles with the pressure to find a partner and have children. When she attends a Guns N’ Roses concert, she thinks she may have met a potential match — until he immediately ghosts on her. Cast: Anna T Schlegel, Tony Jaksha, Pete Zias, Michael Henry, Nate Stoner, Maxwell Esposito, Amanda DeSimone, Alex Myerchin, Andrew Kudla (World Premiere)
Porno
Director: Keola Racela, Screenwriters: Matt Black, Laurence Vannicelli
When a group of naive teens working at a movie theater in a small Christian town discover a mysterious film hidden in its basement, they unleash an alluring succubus who gives them a sex education…written in blood. Cast: Evan Daves, Larry Saperstein, Jillian Mueller, Glenn Stott, Robert Tann, Bill Phillips, Katelyn Pearce, Peter Reznikoff (World Premiere)
Saint Frances
Director: Alex Thompson, Screenwriter: Kelly O’Sullivan
At the start of the summer, Bridget has an abortion just as she lands a much-needed job in affluent Evanston, Illinois — nannying a six-year old. Cast: Ramona Edith-Williams, Kelly O’Sullivan, Lily Mojekwu, Charin Alvarez, Jim True-Frost, Max Lipchitz, Mary Beth Fisher, Francis Guinan, Bradley Grant Smith (World Premiere)
South Mountain
Director/Screenwriter: Hilary Brougher
When her teenagers head off to camp and her husband abruptly leaves her to begin a new family, Lila is left to her own curious and chaotic devices for a summer in her rural home in the Catskill mountains. Cast: Talia Balsam, Scott Cohen, Andrus Nichols, Michael Oberholtzer, Naian Gonzalez, Midori Francis, Macaulee Rusnak Cassaday, Isis Masoud, Violet Rea, Guthrie Mass (World Premiere)
Yes, God, Yes
Director/Screenwriter: Karen Maine
After an innocent AOL chat turns racy, a Catholic teenager in the early 00s discovers masturbating and struggles to suppress her urges in the face of eternal damnation. Cast: Natalia Dyer, Timothy Simons, Wolfgang Novogratz, Francesca Reale, Susan Blackwell, Parker Wierling, Alisha Boe, Donna Lynne Champlin (World Premiere)
Narrative Feature Competition Jury: Barbara Chai, Senior Editor for the Wall Street Journal; Ira Madison III, Writer and Host of the podcast Keep It!; Jada Yuan, Inaugural 52 Places Traveler for the New York Times
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE COMPETITION
Ten world premieres: ten real world stories that demonstrate innovation, energy and bold voices. Selected from 1,005 feature documentary submissions in 2018.
Ernie & Joe
Director: Jenifer McShane
Ernie & Joe follows two officers with the San Antonio Police Department mental health unit who are diverting people away from jail and into mental health treatment — one 911 call at a time. (World Premiere)
For Sama (United Kingdom)
Directors: Waad al-Khateab, Edward Watts
For Sama tells the epic story of a young woman’s journey through love, war and motherhood across five years of the uprising in Aleppo, Syria. (World Premiere)
Museum Town
Director: Jennifer Trainer, Screenwriters: Noah Bashevkin, Pola Rapaport, Jennifer Trainer
From the ashes of a deserted factory, an ambitious center for contemporary art has emerged. With MASS MoCA, a familiar story of deindustrialization in a rural American town finds an unconventional route to recovery. (World Premiere)
Nothing Fancy: Diana Kennedy (United Kingdom, U.S.)
Director: Elizabeth Carroll
Award-winning cookbook author, diehard environmentalist and feisty British nonagenarian Diana Kennedy reflects on an unconventional life spent mastering the cuisines of Mexico. (World Premiere)
Stuffed (Canada, U.S.)
Director: Erin Derham
Stuffed is a documentary feature film about the surprising world of taxidermy and the passionate artists across the world who see life where others only see death. (World Premiere)
Tread
Director: Paul Solet
Pushed to his breaking point, a master welder in a small town at the foot of the Rocky Mountains quietly fortifies a bulldozer with 30 tons of concrete and steel and seeks to destroy those he believes have wronged him. (World Premiere)
Vision Portraits
Director/Screenwriter: Rodney Evans
A feature-length documentary that chronicles the creative paths of blind and visually impaired artists including a photographer (John Dugdale), dancer (Kayla Hamilton), writer (Ryan Knighton) and the film’s director, Rodney Evans. (World Premiere)
We Are The Radical Monarchs
Director: Linda Goldstein Knowlton
Meet the Radical Monarchs, a group of young girls of color at the front lines of social justice. Set in Oakland, the film documents the journey of the group as they form, grow, and earn badges for units like “Black Lives Matter” and “Radical Beauty” (World Premiere)
Well Groomed
Director/Screenwriter: Rebecca Stern
Well Groomed travels the humorous, visually stunning world of Competitive Creative Dog Grooming alongside the colorful women transforming their beloved poodles into living sculptures. (World Premiere)
Why Can’t I Be Me? Around You
Directors/Screenwriters: Harrod Blank, Sjoerd Dijk
Rusty, a male race enthusiast, decides at 53 to get breasts. His father cuts his pay, his motorcycle friends abandon him and the women he dates all reject him. Rusty pursues her new identity and only hopes to gain acceptance from others. (World Premiere)
Documentary Feature Competition Jury: Karen Han, Entertainment Reporter at Polygon; Adam B. Vary, Senior Film Reporter for BuzzFeed News; Katie Walsh, Film Critic for the Tribune News Service
HEADLINERS
Big names, big talent: Headliners bring star power to SXSW, featuring red carpet premieres and gala film events with major and rising names in cinema.
The Beach Bum
Director/Screenwriter: Harmony Korine
The Beach Bum follows the hilarious misadventures of Moondog (Matthew McConaughey), a rebellious rogue who always lives life by his own rules. Co-starring Snoop Dogg, Zac Efron, and Isla Fisher, The Beach Bum is a refreshingly original and subversive. Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Snoop Dogg, Isla Fisher, Stefania Lavie Owen, Jimmy Buffett, Zac Efron, Martin Lawrence (World Premiere)
Booksmart
Director: Olivia Wilde, Screenwriters: Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins, Susanna Fogel, Katie Silberman
On the eve of graduating high school, two academic superstars and best friends realize they should have worked less and played more. Determined to not fall short of their peers, the girls set out on a mission to cram four years of fun into one night. Cast: Kaitlyn Dever, Beanie Feldstein, Jessica Williams, Will Forte, Lisa Kudrow, Jason Sudeikis (World Premiere)
The Curse of La Llorona
Director: Michael Chaves, Screenwriters: Mikki Daughtry, Tobias Iaconis
In 1970s Los Angeles, La Llorona is stalking the night…and the children. Ignoring the eerie warning of a troubled mother, a social worker is soon drawn into a terrifying supernatural realm, with the lives and souls of her own kids at stake. Cast: Linda Cardellini, Raymond Cruz, Patricia Velasquez, Marisol Ramirez, Sean Patrick Thomas, Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen, Roman Christou (World Premiere)
Good Boys
Director: Gene Stupnitsky, Screenwriters: Lee Eisenberg, Gene Stupnitsky, Beth Stelling, John Phillips
The writers of Superbad and the producers of Sausage Party take on sixth grade in Universal Pictures’ Good Boys, an R-rated comedy about three friends on an epic one-day odyssey of bad decisions. Cast: Jacob Tremblay, Keith L. Williams, Brady Noon, Molly Gordon, Midori Francis, Josh Caras (World Premiere)
The Highwaymen
Director: John Lee Hancock, Screenwriter: John Fusco
Texas Ranger Frank Hamer reflects on what made him a great lawman as he comes out of retirement to hunt down Bonnie and Clyde. Cast: Kevin Costner, Woody Harrelson, Kathy Bates, Kim Dickinson (World Premiere)
Pet Sematary — Closing night film
Director: Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer
Based on the seminal horror novel by Stephen King, Pet Sematary follows Dr. Louis Creed (Jason Clarke), who, after relocating with his wife Rachel (Amy Seimetz) and their two young children from Boston to rural Maine, discovers a mysterious burial ground hidden deep in the woods near the family’s new home. When tragedy strikes, Louis turns to his unusual neighbor, Jud Crandall (John Lithgow), setting off a perilous chain reaction that unleashes an unfathomable evil with horrific consequences.
Untitled Seth Rogen/ Charlize Theron Comedy
Director: Jonathan Levine, Screenwriter: Dan Sterling
An ambitious diplomat with a spotless reputation and a hard-partying journalist hilariously redefine “international relations” as they try to keep their red-hot romance under wraps. Cast: Seth Rogen, Charlize Theron, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Andy Serkis, June Diane Raphael, Ravi Patel and Alexander Skarsgård (World Premiere)
Stuber (Work-in-Progress)
Director: Michael Dowse, Screenwriter: Tripper Clancy
When a mild-mannered Uber driver (Kumail Nanjiani) picks up a cop (Dave Bautista) hot on the trail of a brutal killer, he’s thrust into a harrowing ordeal where he has to keep his wits, his life and his five-star rating. Cast: Kumail Nanjiani, Dave Bautista, Iko Uwais, Natalie Morales, Betty Gilpin, Jimmy Tatro, with Mira Sorvino and Karen Gillan
Us — Opening night film
Director/Screenwriter: Jordan Peele
An original nightmare from Oscar-winner Jordan Peele (Get Out), starring Lupita Nyong’o and Winston Duke, Us pits an average American family against a terrifying opponent: doppelgängers of themselves. Cast: Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Elisabeth Moss, Tim Heidecker, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Anna Diop, Evan Alex, Shahadi Wright-Joseph, Madison Curry, Cali Sheldon (World Premiere)
NARRATIVE SPOTLIGHT
High profile narrative features receiving their World, North American or U.S. premieres at SXSW.
Adopt a Highway
Director/Screenwriter: Logan Marshall-Green
After being released from prison following a twenty year sentence for a minor offense, an ex-con must learn to navigate the world while coming to terms with his own life which has moved on — all while caring for an abandoned baby he finds in a dumpster. Cast: Ethan Hawke, Elaine Hendrix, Diana Gaeta Marshall-Green, Betty Gabriel, Mo McRae, Chris Sullivan, Nate Mooney, Christopher Heyerdahl, Anne Marie Johnson (World Premiere)
The Art of Self-Defense
Director/Screenwriter: Riley Stearns
The Art of Self-Defense stars Jesse Eisenberg and is set in the world of karate. Eisenberg plays a man who is attacked on the street and enlists in a local dojo, led by a charismatic Sensei (Nivola), in an effort to learn how to defend himself. Cast: Jesse Eisenberg, Alessandro Nivola, Imogen Poots (World Premiere)
Come As You Are
Director: Richard Wong, Screenwriter: Erik Linthorst
Three young men with disabilities embark on a road trip to a brothel in Montreal catering to people with special needs to lose their virginity and embrace their independence. Inspired by a true story and remake of the Belgian film Hasta La Vista. Cast: Grant Rosenmeyer, Hayden Szeto, Ravi Patel, Gabourey Sidibe, Janeane Garofalo, C.S. Lee, Jennifer Jelsema, Martha Kuwahara, Delaney Feener, Asta Philpot (World Premiere)
The Day Shall Come (United Kingdom, U. S.)
Director: Chris Morris, Screenwriters: Chris Morris, Jesse Armstrong
An impoverished preacher who brings hope to the Miami projects is offered cash to save his family from eviction. He has no idea his sponsor works for the FBI who plan to turn him into a criminal by fueling his madcap revolutionary dreams. Cast: Marchánt Davis, Anna Kendrick, Danielle Brooks, Denis O’Hare (World Premiere)
Frances Ferguson
Director: Bob Byington, Screenwriter: Scott King
A small town’s reaction to scandal. Cast: Kaley Wheless, Nick Offerman, Keith Poulson, David Krumholtz (World Premiere)
I’m Just F*cking With You
Director: Adam Mason, Screenwriters: Gregg Zehenter, Scott Barkan
A young man and his sister endure a night of increasingly frightening practical jokes while spending the night at a secluded motel. Cast: Keir O’Donnell, Hayes MacArthur, Jessica McNamee (World Premiere)
Mother’s Little Helpers
Director/Screenwriter: Kestrin Pantera
When Joy Pride, a groovy 70’s burn-out on the caboose of the flower power movement learns she has weeks to live, her estranged children come together to do right by a mother who always did them wrong. Cast: Breeda Wool, Melanie Hutsell, David Giuntoli, Sam Littlefield, Kestrin Pantera (World Premiere)
Olympic Dreams
Director: Jeremy Teicher, Screenwriters: Alexi Pappas, Jeremy Teicher, Nick Kroll
In the Athlete Village at the Olympic Winter Games, Penelope (Alexi Pappas), a cross-country skier, befriends Ezra (Nick Kroll), a volunteer dentist, after a disappointing finish in her race. Penelope and Ezra share a special but limited time together. Cast: Nick Kroll, Alexi Pappas, Gus Kenworthy, Morgan Schild, Jamie Anderson (World Premiere)
The Peanut Butter Falcon
Directors/Screenwriters: Tyler Nilson, Michael Schwartz
A young man with Down syndrome runs away from the retirement home where he lives to chase his dream of becoming a professional wrestler. Cast: Shia LaBeouf, Dakota Johnson, Zack Gottsagen, John Hawkes, Bruce Dern, Thomas Haden Church, Jon Bernthal, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, Mick Foley (World Premiere)
Pink Wall (United Kingdom)
Director/Screenwriter: Tom Cullen
Six scenes. Six years. Six moments that shaped the relationship of Jenna and Leon. Pink Wall examines what defines us, the pressures of gender expectations, and our perpetual struggle between life and ambition. Cast: Tatiana Maslany, Jay Duplass (World Premiere)
Run This Town (Canada)
Director/Screenwriter: Ricky Tollman
A political aide tries to corral his brash, outspoken boss when a young researcher at a newspaper gets word of a scandal that could make or break both of their careers. Cast: Ben Platt, Nina Dobrev, Mena Massoud, Damian Lewis, Jennifer Ehle, Scott Speedman (World Premiere)
Sword of Trust
Director: Lynn Shelton, Screenwriters: Lynn Shelton, Mike O’Brien
A curmudgeonly pawnshop owner and his man-child sidekick team up with an out of town couple to cash in on a family heirloom: a sword believed by alt history conspiracy nuts to be proof that the South won the Civil War. Cast: Marc Maron, Jon Bass, Michaela Watkins, Jillian Bell, Toby Huss, Dan Bakkedahl, Tim Paul, Whitmer Thomas (World Premiere)
Villains
Directors/Screenwriters: Dan Berk, Robert Olsen
When a pair of amateur criminals break into a suburban home, they stumble upon a dark secret and two sadistic homeowners who will do anything to keep it from getting out. Cast: Bill Skarsgard, Maika Monroe, Kyra Sedgwick, Jeffrey Donovan (World Premiere)
The Wall of Mexico (U.S., Mexico)
Directors: Zachary Cotler, Magdalena Zyzak, Screenwriter: Zachary Cotler
A young white handyman, hired by a wealthy Mexican-American family to upkeep their ranch, finds himself caught between disgruntled locals and the family’s outrageously decadent daughters and discovers that something quite unusual is happening at the ranch. Cast: Jackson Rathbone, Esai Morales, Marisol Sacramento, Carmela Zumbado, Alex Meneses, Moises Arias, with Mariel Hemingway, and Xander Berkeley (World Premiere)
DOCUMENTARY SPOTLIGHT
Shining a light on new documentary features receiving their World, North American or U.S. premieres at SXSW.
Any One Of Us
Director: Fernando Villena
Through the inspiring journey of a recovering athlete, Any One of Us offers an unprecedented glimpse into the traumatic world of spinal cord injuries. (World Premiere)
Autonomy
Director: Alex Horwitz
A feature documentary about the emerging technology of self-driving vehicles and the big questions they raise: what is control and who do we become as we relinquish it to machines? (World Premiere)
Bellingcat — Truth in a Post-Truth World (Netherlands)
Director/Screenwriter: Hans Pool
Bellingcat — Truth in a Post-Truth World explores the exclusive world of Bellingcat, a highly-skilled and controversial collective of “citizen investigative journalists” dedicated to redefining breaking news in the 21st century. (North American Premiere)
Breakthrough
Director/Screenwriter: Bill Haney
Breakthrough tells the story of a renegade, blues-playing, Nobel prize-winning Texas scientist who created a cure for the world’s deadliest disease. Narrated by Woody Harrelson with a country-blues soundtrack. (World Premiere)
Building the American Dream
Director: Chelsea Hernandez
In Texas, construction workers face the deadliest conditions in the country. Building the American Dream follows three immigrant families who are rising up to seek justice and equality in an industry rife with exploitation. (World Premiere)
Community First, A Home for the Homeless
Director: Layton Blaylock
Community First, A Home for the Homeless, is a feature documentary about a totally unique concept for mitigating homelessness. Conceived and created in Austin, Texas, Community First! Village is truly transforming the lives of homeless people. (World Premiere)
Human Nature
Director: Adam Bolt, Screenwriters: Adam Bolt, Regina Sobel
A once-in-a-lifetime scientific discovery called CRISPR gives us the power to change what it means to be human. Now it’s up to us to decide how far we should go. (World Premiere)
I Am Richard Pryor
Director/Screenwriter: Jesse James Miller
I Am Richard Pryor tells the life story of the legendary performer and iconic social satirist, who transcended race and social barriers by delivering his honest irreverent and biting humor to America’s stages and living rooms until his death at 65. (World Premiere)
I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth Vs. Michelle Carter
Director: Erin Lee Carr
Teen Michelle Carter’s actions shocked a nation — but what really happened behind closed doors? This HBO special showcases the prosecution’s point of view and alternately the defense’s. Which side do you fall on? (World Premiere)
It Started As a Joke
Directors: Julie Smith Clem, Ken Druckerman
It Started As a Joke documents the decade-long run of the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival. The film celebrates Eugene’s unique brand of humor and reminds us of the healing properties of comedy — even in the most challenging of life’s circumstances. (World Premiere)
Jump Shot
Director: Jacob Ryan Hamilton
Jump Shot uncovers the inspiring true story of Kenny Sailors, the developer of the modern day jump shot in basketball, and how he defined the game, but why the game never defined him. (World Premiere)
Kathy Griffin: A Hell of a Story
Director: Troy Miller, Screenwriter: Kathy Griffin
In her first ever comedy concert film, Comedian Kathy Griffin details the aftermath of lost work and being the subject of a federal investigation following the release of her now infamous photo depicting President Donald J Trump. (World Premiere)
Qualified
Director: Jenna Ricker
In the world of motorsports, the Indianapolis 500 has long been considered the only race. In May 1977, Janet Guthrie — the first woman to attempt Indy — earned herself a spot in the prestigious field of 33. (World Premiere)
Red Dog
Directors: Casey Pinkston, Luke Dick
In the early 1980’s, the only family that toddler Luke knew were the strippers, bouncers, and outcasts that made OKC’s rowdiest strip club their home. (World Premiere)
The River and the Wall
Director: Ben Masters
Five friends venture into the unknown wilds of the Texas borderlands to document the environment before a wall is built. As the wilderness gives way to the bustling Rio Grande Valley, they encounter the unexpected and enter uncharted emotional waters. (World Premiere)
Running with Beto
Director: David Modigliani
Follow Beto O’Rourke behind the scenes of his breakaway campaign to unseat Ted Cruz in the US Senate. With intimate access to the candidate, his family and team, the film captures Beto’s rise from a virtual unknown to a national political sensation. (World Premiere)
Salvage
Director: Amy C. Elliott
The Yellowknife dump, and its massive, unrestricted salvage area, has long played a central role in this remote Canadian city’s civic and social life. Can a colorful group of thrifty locals save it from city bureaucrats determined to close it down? (World Premiere)
State of Pride
Director/Screenwriters: Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman
Fifty years after the Stonewall uprising, Oscar winning filmmakers Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman travel to three diverse communities — Salt Lake City, San Francisco, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama — for an unflinching look at LGBTQ Pride. (World Premiere)
Sunset over Mulholland Drive (Germany)
Director: Uli Gaulke, Screenwriters: Uli Gaulke, Marc Pitzke
The vital power of creativity — a behind the scenes look into Hollywood’s retirement home. (North American Premiere)
VISIONS
Visions filmmakers are audacious, risk-taking artists in the new cinema landscape who demonstrate raw innovation and creativity in documentary and narrative filmmaking.
Becoming Leslie
Director: Tracy Frazier, Screenwriters: Sandra Guardado, Tracy Frazier
Becoming LESLIE reveals the inner and bizarre world of Leslie Cochran, a cross-dressing homeless misfit who became the most iconic and unlikely civic symbol of Austin, Texas. (World Premiere)
The Garden Left Behind
Director: Flavio Alves, Screenwriters: John Rotondo, Flavio Alves
A Mexican trans woman struggles to build a life for herself as an undocumented immigrant in New York City. Cast: Michael Madsen, Ed Asner, Carlie Guevara, Danny Flaherty, Alex Kruz, Anthony Abdo, Dawn Young, Tamara M. Williams, Miriam Cruz, Brock Yurich (World Premiere)
J.R. “Bob” Dobbs and The Church of the SubGenius
Director: Sandy K Boone, Screenwriters: Sandy K Boone, Jason Wehling
This film explores the underground movement that has galvanized the imaginative, the artistic, the nerdy, even the deranged — to examine the simmering dystopia in their culture, and do absolutely nothing about it… except, maybe, poke fun at it all. (World Premiere)
Jezebel
Director/Screenwriter: Numa Perrier
A true story. In the last days of her mother’s life, 19-year-old Tiffany crashes with five family members in a Las Vegas studio apartment. In order to make ends meet, her sister, a phone sex operator, introduces her to the world of fetish cam girls. Cast: Tiffany Tenille, Numa Perrier, Stephen Barrington, Bobby Field, Brett Gelman, Rockwelle Dortch, Zoe Tyson, Dennis Jaffee, Jessa Zarubica (World Premiere)
Leave the Bus Through the Broken Window (Hong Kong, U.S.)
Director: Andrew Hevia
A broken-hearted filmmaker navigates an unfamiliar city, an international art fair and his personal baggage in this intimate, playful and unexpectedly comedic documentary. (World Premiere)
One Man Dies a Million Times (Belarus)
Director/Screenwriter: Jessica Oreck
Set in the future, a story about seeds and genetic diversity, about growth and decay, about love and war, and about hunger of all kinds. Cast: Alyssa Lozovskaya, Maksim Blinov (World Premiere)
Red 11
Director: Robert Rodriguez, Screenwriters: Robert Rodriguez, Racer Rodriguez
Rob, an independent filmmaker, loses his investor’s money only to find out his investors are the Cartel. He checks himself into a medical research facility to pay off his debt, but quickly realizes it won’t be that easy. Cast: Roby Attal, Lauren Hatfield, Carlos Gallardo, Alejandro Rose Garcia, Rebel Rodriguez, Racer Rodriguez, Eman Esfandi, Steven Brudniak, Brently Heilbron, Pierce Foster Bailey (World Premiere)
Romantic Comedy (United Kingdom)
Director: Elizabeth Sankey
Musician and writer Elizabeth Sankey investigates the past, present and future of romantic comedies, assisted by a chorus of critics, actors and filmmakers. (World Premiere)
Sakawa (Belgium, Netherlands)
Director/Screenwriter: Ben Asamoah
What human story lies behind the phenomenon of ‘internet fraud’? In Sakawa we meet three Ghanaian youngsters who, out of desperation, turn to internet scamming with the help of black magic. (North American Premiere)
Tito (Canada)
Director/Screenwriter: Grace Glowicki
A desperate man seeks refuge from the predators hunting him by befriending a cheerful intruder. Cast: Grace Glowicki, Ben Petrie (World Premiere)
MIDNIGHTERS
Scary, funny, sexy, controversial — ten provocative after-dark features for night owls and the terminally curious.
7 Reasons to Run Away (From Society) (Spain)
Directors: Esteve Soler, Gerard Quinto, David Torras, Screenwriter: Esteve Soler
7 Reasons to Run Away takes a critical look at today’s society and puts the values it transmits into question. Cast: Sergi Lopez, Emma Suarez, Lola Dueñas, Alex Brendemuhl, Alain Hernandez, Francesc Orella (World Premiere)
Body At Brighton Rock
Director/Screenwriter: Roxanne Benjamin
An inexperienced park employee discovers a body on a remote mountain trail and must stay with it overnight in the wilderness, facing her darkest fears in the process. Cast: Karina Fontes, Casey Adams, Emily Althaus, Brodie Reed, Martin Spanjers, John Getz, Miranda Bailey, Susan Burke, Matt Peters (World Premiere)
Boyz in the Wood (United Kingdom, U.S.)
Director/Screenwriter: Ninian Doff
When four city-bred schoolboys embark on a traditional Duke of Edinburgh Award camping trip that takes them deep into the Scottish Highlands, they find themselves chased by a deranged masked couple with aims of culling this teenaged “wildlife”. Cast: Eddie Izzard, Kate Dickie, James Cosmo, Kevin Guthrie, Jonathan Aris, Alice Lowe, Samuel Bottomley, Viraj Juneja, Rian Gordon, Lewis Gribben (World Premiere)
Daniel Isn’t Real
Director: Adam Egypt Mortimer, Screenwriters: Brian DeLeeuw, Adam Egypt Mortimer
Troubled Luke suffers a violent family trauma and resurrects his childhood imaginary friend to help him cope. Charismatic and full of manic energy, “Daniel” helps Luke to achieve his dreams, before pushing him into a desperate fight for his own soul. Cast: Patrick Schwarzenegger, Miles Robbins, Sasha Lane, Hannah Marks, Mary Stuart Masterson (World Premiere)
Darlin’
Director/Screenwriter: Pollyanna McIntosh
In this visually inventive sequel to The Woman, a feral teenage girl is taken into strict Catholic care and prepared for her First Holy Communion. Cast: Lauryn Canny, Bryan Batt, Nora-Jane Noone, Cooper Andrews, Pollyanna McIntosh (World Premiere)
Girl On The Third Floor
Director/Screenwriter: Travis Stevens
Don Koch tries to renovate a rundown house with a sordid history for his growing family, only to learn that the house has other plans. Cast: Phil Brooks, Trieste Kelly Dunn, Sarah Brooks, Elissa Dowling, Karen Woditsch, Travis Delgado, Marshall Bean, Anish Jethmalani, Bishop Stevens, Tonya Kay (World Premiere)
I See You (United Kingdom, U.S.)
Director: Adam Randall, Screenwriter: Devon Graye
Strange occurrences plague a small town detective and his family as he investigates the disappearance of a young boy. Cast: Helen Hunt, Jon Tenney, Judah Lewis, Owen Teague, Libe Barer, Greg Alan Williams, Erika Alexander, Allison King (World Premiere)
Snatchers
Directors: Stephen Cedars, Benji Kleiman, Screenwriters: Stephen Cedars, Benji Kleiman, Scott Yacyshyn
After a popular teen has sex for the first time, she finds herself pregnant — with an alien. With no one to turn to but her nerdy ex-best-friend, she’ll have to risk her neck — and social status — to fight the freaky extraterrestrial threat. Cast: Mary Nepi, Gabrielle Elyse, Austin Fryberger, JJ Nolan, Nick Gomez, Ashley Argota, Amy Arburn, Amy Landecker, Rich Fulcher (World Premiere)
Tales from the Lodge (United Kingdom)
Director/Screenwriter: Abigail Blackmore
When a group of old friends spend the night telling stories of murders, ghosts, zombies and possessions they soon become aware of another tale unfolding around them. And this one is real. Cast: Mackenzie Crook, Dustin Demri-Burns, Laura Fraser, Sophie Thompson, Johnny Vegas, Kelly Wenham (World Premiere)
Tone-Deaf
Director/Screenwriter: Richard Bates, Jr.
Two generations collide with terrifying results in this home invasion horror film that is also a darkly comedic critique of the bizarre cultural and political climates in the United States. Cast: Amanda Crew, Robert Patrick, Kim Delaney, Hayley Marie-Norman, Ray Wise, Johnny Pemberton, Keisha Castle-Hughes, AnnaLynne McCord, Nelson Franklin, Ronnie Gene-Blevins (World Premiere)
FESTIVAL FAVORITES
Acclaimed standouts and selected premieres from festivals around the world.
Apollo 11
Director: Todd Douglas Miller
A look at the Apollo 11 mission to land on the moon led by commander Neil Armstrong and pilot Buzz Aldrin.
Aquarela (Germany, United Kingdom)
Director: Victor Kossakovsky, Screenwriters: Victor Kossakovsky, Aimara Reques
Aquarela is a deeply cinematic journey through the transformative beauty and raw power of water. Filmed at 96 frames per second, it’s a visceral wake-up call that humans are no match for the sheer force and will of Earth’s most precious element.
Greener Grass
Directors/Screenwriters: Jocelyn DeBoer, Dawn Luebbe
A deliciously twisted comedy set in a demented, timeless suburbia where every adult wears braces on their straight teeth, couples coordinate meticulously pressed outfits, and coveted family members are swapped in more ways than one in this competition for acceptance. Cast: Jocelyn DeBoer, Dawn Luebbe, Beck Bennett, Neil Casey, Mary Holland, D’Arcy Carden, Dot-Marie Jones, Janicza Bravo, Jim Cummings, Lauren Adams
Her Smell
Director/Screenwriter: Alex Ross Perry
A self-destructive punk rocker struggles with sobriety while trying to recapture the creative inspiration that led her band to success. Cast: Elisabeth Moss, Cara Delevingne, Dan Stevens, Amber Heard, Agyness Deyn, Gayle Rankin, Ashley Benson, Eric Stoltz, Dylan Gelula
The Hottest August (Canada, U.S.)
Director: Brett Story
A film about climate change, disguised as a portrait of collective anxiety.
The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley
Director/Screenwriter: Alex Gibney
Elizabeth Holmes was once the world’s youngest self-made billionaire, heralded as the next Steve Jobs. Then, overnight, her $10-billion-dollar company dissolved. The rise and fall of Theranos is a window into the psychology of fraud.
Knock Down the House
Director: Rachel Lears Screenwriters: Rachel Lears, Robin Blotnick
Four women run for Congress, overcoming personal adversity to battle powerful political machines across the country. One of their races will change the country forever.
Little Monsters (Australia)
Director/Screenwriter: Abe Forsythe
A washed-up musician teams up with a plucky schoolteacher and a despicable kid’s show personality to protect a Kindergarten class from a sudden outbreak of zombies. Cast: Lupita Nyong’o, Alexander England, Josh Gad
Maiden (United Kingdom)
Director/Screenwriter: Alex Holmes
In a moving portrait of resilience, Alex Holmes chronicles the unprecedented journey of 24-year-old Tracy Edwards and the first all-female sailing crew to enter the Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race.
The Mountain
Director: Rick Alverson, Screenwriters: Rick Alverson, Dustin Guy Defa, Colm O’Leary
A well known physician, in the decline of his career, takes a young man on a desperate tour of rural mid-century hospitals, advocating for a new controversial procedure. Cast: Tye Sheridan, Jeff Goldblum, Hannah Gross, Denis Lavant, Udo Kier
Pahokee
Directors: Ivete Lucas, Patrick Bresnan
In a small agricultural town in the Florida Everglades, hopes for the future are concentrated on the youth. Four teens face heartbreak and celebrate in the rituals of an extraordinary senior year.
Raise Hell: The Life & Times of Molly Ivins
Director: Janice Engel, Screenwriters: Janice Engel, Monique Zavistovski
Six-feet of Texas trouble, Molly Ivins, a legendary journalist and a warrior for the Bill of Rights, fought Good Old Boy corruption with razor-sharp wit that left both sides of the aisle laughing and craving ink in her columns. Raise Hell y’all!
Sister Aimee
Directors/Screenwriters: Samantha Buck, Marie Schlingmann
After faking her own death, America’s most famous evangelist finds herself on a wild road trip towards Mexico, haunted not only by the police but by her own persona. Cast: Anna Margaret Hollyman, Michael Mosley, Andrea Suarez Paz, Julie White, Amy Hargreaves, Macon Blair, Lee Eddy, Blake Delong, John Merriman, Nathan Zellner
Them That Follow
Directors/Screenwriters: Britt Poulton, Dan Madison Savage
Set deep in the wilds of Appalachia, where believers handle death-dealing snakes to prove themselves before God, Them That Follow tells the story of a pastor’s daughter who holds a secret that threatens to tear her community apart. Cast: Olivia Colman, Kaitlyn Dever, Alice Englert, Jim Gaffigan, Walton Goggins, Thomas Mann, Lewis Pullman
The Weekend
Director/Screenwriter: Stella Meghie
A comedian hauls the baggage of her defunct relationship on a weekend getaway with friends, which happens to include her ex-boyfriend and his new girlfriend. Cast: Sasheer Zamata, Tone Bell, Dewanda Wise, Y’Lan Noel, Kym Whitley
24 BEATS PER SECOND
Showcasing the sounds, culture and influence of music and musicians, with an emphasis on documentary.
Amazônia Groove
Director/Screenwriter: Bruno Murtinho
Leaving Belem and crossing much of the Para State Amazon region, its towns and riverside villages, Amazônia Groove reveals artists and their traditions, faith and mysticism, music and life that pound in the northern region of Brazil. (North American Premiere)
Bluebird
Director: Brian Loschiavo
Discover the origin stories of megastars like Garth Brooks and Taylor Swift while following emerging singer-songwriters as they chase their dreams inside The Bluebird Cafe, Nashville’s accidental landmark that has altered the course of music history. (World Premiere)
The Boy Band Con: The Lou Pearlman Story
Director: Aaron Kunkel
The Boy Band Con: The Lou Pearlman Story charts the life and crimes of boy band impresario Lou Pearlman. The film tracks his life from discovering NSYNC and Backstreet Boys, to his perpetration of one of the largest ponzi schemes in US history. (World Premiere)
Boy Howdy! The Story of CREEM Magazine
Director: Scott Crawford, Screenwriters: Scott Crawford, Jaan Uhelszki
Ripping back the curtain on legendary rock rag CREEM Magazine’s wild and disruptive newsroom; a dysfunctional band of unruly outsiders who weren’t all that different from the artists they covered. (World Premiere)
Brainiac: Transmissions After Zero
Director: Eric Mahoney
The film explores the seminal 90’s band Brainiac from Dayton, OH and its creative force Tim Taylor. Just days before signing a major record contract Taylor was killed in a bizarre auto accident leaving his family and bandmates to pick up the pieces. (World Premiere)
Carmine Street Guitars (Canada)
Director: Ron Mann, Screenwriter: Len Blum
Five Days in the life of Greenwich Village guitar shop Carmine Street Guitars.
The Chills: The Triumph and Tragedy of Martin Phillipps (New Zealand)
Director: Julia Parnell, Rob Curry
New Zealand music genius Martin Phillipps fights his creative demons, conquers the music world, inspires a generation, and then retreats into depression, addiction and anonymity. (World Premiere)
David Crosby: Remember My Name
Director: A.J. Eaton
David Crosby reflects on his life of music stardom, while forging new paths to relevancy at his age of 77 in this deeply personal documentary. (World Premiere)
Everybody’s Everything
Directors: Sebastian Jones, Ramez Silyan
Everybody’s Everything is the story of artist Lil Peep (Gustav Ahr) from his birth in Long Island and meteoric rise as a genre blending pop star & style icon, to his death due to an accidental opioid overdose in Arizona at just 21 years of age. (World Premiere)
Iris: A Space Opera by Justice (France)
Directors: Andre Chemetoff, Armand Beraud
Iris is a film adaptation of Justice’s Woman World Wide live show from 2017–2018, which is widely regarded as the greatest live electronic concert created. Recorded in an empty and invisible space, Iris focuses on the impressive production and music. (World Premiere)
The Gift: The Journey of Johnny Cash
Director: Thom Zimny, Screenwriter: Warren Zanes
Johnny Cash stands among the giants of 20th century American life. But his story remains tangled in mystery and myth. This documentary brings Cash the man out from behind the legend. (World Premiere)
Mr. Jimmy
Director: Peter Michael Dowd
Dowd Akio Sakurai has dedicated his life to honoring Jimmy Page. For 30 years he recreated vintage Zeppelin concerts note-for-note in small Tokyo clubs. Moving to L.A. to pursue his tribute dream, cultures clash and Akio’s idyllic vision meets reality. (World Premiere)
Nothing Stays The Same: The Story of The Saxon Pub
Director: Jeff Sandmann, Screenwriters: Jeff Sandmann, Jeffrey Brown, Lisa Kay Pfannenstiel
Nothing Stays the Same celebrates the last 30 years of live music in Austin, while also examining the challenges faced by musicians and music venues in one of the fastest-growing cities in the country, all through the lens of the legendary Saxon Pub. (World Premiere)
Show Me The Picture: The Story of Jim Marshall (United Kingdom)
Director: Alfred George Bailey
Jim Marshall was a maverick with a camera. An outsider who captured the heights of Rock’N’Roll music and the seismic changes of an era, from the Beatles and Jimi Hendrix, to the civil rights movements and some of the most iconic moments of the 60’s. (World Premiere)
Strange Negotiations
Director: Brandon Vedder
A documentary exploring the existential, artistic and family life of musician and former evangelical, David Bazan (Pedro The Lion), set against America’s own crisis of faith highlighted during the 2016 presidential election. (World Premiere)
Teen Spirit (United Kingdom)
Director/Screenwriter: Max Minghella
The film follows Violet, a shy teenager who enters an international singing competition with the help of an unlikely mentor. Driven by a pop-fueled soundtrack, Teen Spirit is a visceral and stylish spin on the Cinderella story. Cast: Elle Fanning, Zlatko Buricteent, Rebecca Hall (U.S. Premiere)
Who Let The Dogs Out (Canada)
Director: Brent Hodge, Screenwriters: Brent Hodge, John Diemer, Jasleen Kaur
The origin story of the smash hit “Who Let the Dogs Out” goes back further than anyone could have imagined; steeped in legal battles, female empowerment and artist integrity, which beckons the question: will we ever know who let the dogs out? (World Premiere)
Wild Rose (United Kingdom)
Director: Tom Harper, Screenwriter: Nicole Taylor
A musician from Glasgow dreams of becoming a Nashville star. Cast: Jessie Buckley, Julie Walters, Sophie Okonedo (U.S. Premiere)
GLOBAL
A diverse selection of international filmmaking talent, featuring innovative narratives, artful documentaries, premieres, festival favorites and more.
Aleksi (Serbia)
Director/Screenwriter: Barbara Vekarić
A character piece about funny and troubled girl in her 20s, forced to move back in with her overbearing family. Cast: Tihana Lazović, Goran Marković, Sebastian Cavazza, Nataša Janjić, Jason Mann, Aljoša Vučović, Neda Arnerić, Leon Lučev (North American Premiere)
Aurora (Finland)
Director/Screenwriter: Miia Tervo
Aurora, a commitment-phobic party animal, meets Iranian Amir one night at a hot-dog stand in Lapland. Amir is running from death and Aurora is running from love. They need each other in order to finally stop running. Cast: Mimosa Willamo, Amir Escandari, Oona Airola, Hannu-Pekka Björkman, Miitta Sorvali (North American Premiere)
Being Impossible (Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of)
Director: Patricia Ortega, Screenwriters: Patricia Ortega, Enmanuel Chávez
A young woman discovers she was submitted to several surgeries to correct her intersexual body as a baby. She has to find her own self outside gender binaries. (North American Premiere)
Cachada: The Opportunity (El Salvador)
Director/Screenwriter: Marlén Viñayo<
Five Salvadoran saleswomen want to take their cruel life stories to the stage. During the rehearsal process of their play, they’ll discover themselves as victims and victimizers in a cycle of violence that has plagued their families for generations. (World Premiere)
Days of the Whale (Colombia)
Director/Screenwriter: Catalina Arroyave Restrepo
Two young graffiti artists of Medellín defy a criminal gang when they decide to paint the mural of a whale over a threat written in a wall. Cast: Laura Tobón, David Escallón, Carlos Fonnegra, Christian Tappan, Julián Giraldo, Natalia Castaño, Margarita Restrepo (World Premiere)
La Mala Noche (Ecuador, Mexico)
Director/Screenwriter: Gabriela Calvache
She is the perfect woman until she decides to be free. Cast: Nöelle Schönwald, Cristian Mercado, Jaime Tamariz, Ariana Freire (World Premiere)
Vai (New Zealand)
Directors: Nicole Whippy, ‘Ofa-Ki-Levuka Guttenbeil-Likiliki, Matasila Freshwater, Amberley Jo Aumua, Mīria George, Marina Alofagia McCartney, Dianna Fuemana, Becs Arahanga
Vai is a portmanteau feature film by nine Polynesian directors and filmed on seven different pacific islands. It is about the journey of empowerment through culture, over the lifetime of one woman, Vai. (World Premiere)
X&Y (Denmark, Sweden)
Director: Anna Odell, Screenwriters: Anna Odell, Jakob Beckman
Swedish director and visual artist, Anna Odell (The Reunion), conducts a social experiment in which she aims to challenge the gender roles that men and women have in the society of today. Cast: Anna Odell, Mikael Persbrandt, Trine Dyrholm, Vera Vitali, Shanti Roney, Sofie Gråbøl, Jens Albinus, Thure Lindhardt (North American Premiere)
SPECIAL EVENTS
Live soundtracks, cult re-issues & much more. Our Special Events section offers unusual, unexpected and unique one-off film events.
Broad City Finale Screening
Created by, written by and starring Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer, the critically acclaimed Broad City follows Abbi and Ilana as they navigate life in New York, capturing their hookups, relationships, crappy jobs, and, ultimately, their badass friendship. In the final season, Ilana starts her own business and learns about her ancestors, while Abbi turns 30 and…tries to pull off a hat. And finally, we say goodbye to Abbi, Ilana and this iconic series. Join Abbi and IIana for a special sneak screening of the final three episodes of the series. Cast: Abbi Jacobson, Ilana Glazer, Arturo Castro, John Gemberling, Hannibal Buress, Paul W. Downs, Susie Essman.
Cobra Kai Season 2 Outdoor Screening
We are proud to present a special screening of the second season of Cobra Kai, the hit YouTube Premium Original Series, starring Ralph Macchio and William Zabka. Exclusively premiering at SXSW, YouTube and Sony Pictures Television will screen the first two episodes of the second season followed by a Q&A panel with series stars Ralph Macchio (Daniel LaRusso), William Zabka (Johnny Lawrence) and Martin Kove (Kreese) along with the Cobra Kai series creators and executive producers Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg.
Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate SXSW Event
Showrunner and best-selling author Neil Gaiman is joined by director Douglas Mackinnon and cast including Michael Sheen, David Tennant, and Jon Hamm to give attendees the most in-depth look at Good Omens to date and watch never-before-seen exclusive clips from the entire series. The six-episode series coming to Amazon Prime Video is based on the beloved satirical novel Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. Good Omens is a dark, comedic story set in modern-day Britain that centers on a fussy angel Aziraphale (played by Sheen) and the loose-living demon Crowley (played by Tennant) as they join forces to prevent the coming of the Apocalypse.
How Rednecks Saved Hollywood with Joe Bob Briggs
Director/Screenwriter: Joe Bob Briggs
America’s drive-in movie critic uses 200 video clips and photos to tell the 500-year history of the American redneck in a multimedia comedy performance.
Love, Death & Robots
Showrunners: David Fincher, Tim Miller, Josh Donen, Jennifer Miller
Love, Death & Robots, an animated anthology series presented by Tim Miller and David Fincher, is a genre orgy of Not-Suitable-For-Mainstream shorts. (World Premiere)
Followed by extended Q&A with with Tim Miller and David Fincher.
Ra: Path of the Sun God
Director: Lesley Keen
Austin based electronic and experimental label Holodeck Records is partnering with Austin Film Society for a special live re-score screening of the 1990 animated film Ra: Path of the Sun God, a beautiful re-telling of one of Ancient Egypt’s most famous myths.
Rebel Without A Crew: Filmmaking Master Class with Robert Rodriguez
Join Robert Rodriguez as he gives a master-class in micro-budget guerilla filmmaking, featuring behind the scenes moments from his new $7,000 film, RED 11. The event will be followed by the World Premiere of RED 11.
Shangri-La ( Work-in-Progress)
Directors: Morgan Neville, Jeff Malmberg
An intimate look at the creative process through the lens of legendary music producer Rick Rubin.
True Stories
Director: David Byrne, Screenwriters: Stephen Tobolowsky, Beth Henley, David Byrne
David Byrne’s 1986 musical comedy, inspired by theater director Robert Wilson, tabloid newspapers, and filmmakers Robert Altman and Federico Fellini, remains a unique artistic vision that celebrates the singular citizens of a fictional Texas town. David Byrne will appear in-person for Q&A following screening of new 4K restoration.
NARRATIVE SHORTS
A selection of original, well-crafted films that take advantage of the short form and exemplify distinctive and genuine storytelling.
Bodega
Director/Screenwriter: Rebecca Halfon
A Syrian deli owner and two teen girls with a fake ID find common ground on one winter night in Brooklyn. (World Premiere)
Framework (Switzerland)
Director: Jasmin Gordon, Screenwriter: Julien Bouissoux
It’s summertime in rural France. A charismatic stranger happens upon three teenage boys. He has a gun in his car. Are they ready to go for a ride? (North American Premiere)
Fuck You (Sweden)
Director/Screenwriter: Anette Sidor
Alice is together with Johannes but she doesn’t have enough space to be herself. On a night out with friends, she steals a strap-on and challenges her boyfriend’s thoughts about girls.
Heroines
Director: Katia Badalian, Screenwriters: Sara Bower, Katia Badalian
A young girl with blooming awareness, Nina, interacts with her crass neighbor who explains the tangled world of intimacy and love. Drawing on her own experiences, Nina understands more than she thought.
Incel
Director/Screenwriter: John Merizalde
After countless failed attempts at finding love, a reclusive young man turns to an anonymous community of the “involuntarily celibate” for help, but instead finds himself increasingly pushed towards extremism.
The Jog
Director/Screenwriter: Joseph Lee Anderson
A man gets the news of a lifetime, but his morning jog doesn’t go as planned. (World Premiere)
Lavender
Director/Screenwriter: Matthew Puccini
A young gay man grows increasingly entangled in the marriage of an older couple.
Liberty
Director/Screenwriter: Faren Humes
Alex and Milagros deal with great life upheaval as they prepare to dance at their community’s redevelopment groundbreaking ceremony. (World Premiere)
Little Grey Bubbles (Canada)
Director/Screenwriter: Charles Wahl
Devastated by her best friend’s death, Kim travels from NYC to Canada to attend his funeral. There she meets his family and friends and awkwardly tries to explain how she had never met him in person because their friendship was exclusively online. (North American Premiere)
Lockdown
Directors/Screenwriters: Celine Held, Logan George
Struggling with feelings for her best friend, 14 year-old Marie stages an almost perfect plan.
Manila is Full of Men Named Boy
Director: Andrew Stephen Lee, Screenwriters: Andrew Stephen Lee, Neda Jebelli, Emre Gulcan
An estranged son buys a child that can drink and smoke to impress his father. However, when the patriarch embraces his new grandson as the favorite, what determines who is more valuable of attention? (U.S. Premiere)
May
Director/Screenwriter: Julian Turner
A weary white French professor and a young black drug dealer share an impalpable connection on a single night in Philadelphia. (World Premiere)
Milton
Director/Screenwriter: Tim Wilkime
A guy makes a bad first impression when he meets his girlfriend’s family as they gather at her grandfather’s deathbed. (World Premiere)
Nice Talking to You
Director: Saim Sadiq, Screenwriters: Saim Sadiq, Joseph Capotorto
Two strangers form a silent bond in the world’s loudest city. (World Premiere)
The Orphan (Brazil)
Director/Screenwriter: Carolina Markowicz
Jonathas has been adopted but then returned due to his ‘different’ way. Inspired by true events.
Outdooring
Director/Screenwriter: Maxwell Addae
A young man attends his new nephew’s baby naming ceremony with a plan to steal the money collected from family and friends to run away and keep a deep secret hidden from them. (World Premiere)
Snare (Australia)
Director: Madeleine Gottlieb, Screenwriters: Madeleine Gottlieb, James Fraser
It’s 1997. Distorted guitars rule the world. In an ageing Chinese restaurant, a father and his punk-rock son struggle with their familial roles as they realise they each desperately need something from one other. (World Premiere)
Something Like Loneliness
Directors: Seth Epstein, Ben Epstein, Screenwriters; Seth Epstein, Ryan Dowler
Upstairs-downstairs neighbors barter sounds captured in food storage containers. With the sounds come fragments of past relationships and the hopes and disappointments that remain. (World Premiere)
Stepdaddy
Director: Lisa Steen, Screenwriter: Anna Greenfield
Two estranged friends rediscover their profound incompatibility over dinner, only to learn that the one thing they share might force them together, forever. (World Premiere)
Sundays
Director/Screenwriter: José Andrés Cardona
Jonny teaches Tommy how to drive.
Virgins4Lyfe (Norway)
Director: Thea Hvistendahl, Screenwriters: Sofia Lersol Lund, Thea Hvistendahl
The friendship of two Norwegian girls are put to the test. While one holiday in Southern Europe they both want to explore their own sexuality, but only one of them seem to succeed. (North American Premiere)
Washed Away
Director/Screenwriter: Ben Kallam
A teenage girl in an evangelical church youth group must deal with the fallout when her trust is publicly betrayed. (World Premiere)
Youth (Egypt)
Director/Screenwriter: Farida Zahran
A teenage girl takes a step toward adulthood in contemporary Cairo. (World Premiere)
DOCUMENTARY SHORTS
Slices of life from across the documentary spectrum.
All Inclusive (Switzerland)
Director/Screenwriter: Corina Schwingruber Ilić
Under the spell of mass entertainment on the high seas.
Anas v. the Giant
Director: Adrienne Collatos
What happens when an 18-year-old who thought he had nothing more to lose, becomes embroiled in fake news on Facebook? (World Premiere)
Exit 12
Director: Mohammad Gorjestani
After two tours in Fallujah in the Iraq war, US Marine Roman Baca came home a different person. To deal with the effects of war, Roman turned to an unlikely place, ballet.
Ghosts of Sugar Land
Director: Bassam TariqIn
Sugar Land, Texas, a group of young Muslim-American men ponder the disappearance of their friend “Mark,” who is suspected of joining ISIS.
Guns Found Here
Director: David Freid
A surprisingly non-fictional tragicomedy about how America traces a gun involved in a gun crime back to its owner.
In the Dark
Director: Jessie King
Reading isn’t natural. It’s a struggle for each of us to master, but those with dyslexia fight to read their entire lives. In the Dark is about performance, persistence and Phyllis, a woman in Austin, Texas, who says she can reverse dyslexia. (World Premiere)
Life in Miniature (United Kingdom)
Director: Ellen Evans
A celebration of one woman’s mission to document the everyday, as she carves a place for herself in the precious world of miniatures.
Lowland Kids
Director: Sandra Winther
As climate change erases the Louisiana coast, the last two teenagers on Isle de Jean Charles fight to stay on an island that’s been their family home for generations. (World Premiere)
The Separated
Director: Jeremy Raff
An unflinching look at one family’s experience being forcibly separated at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Trans In America: Texas Strong (United Kingdom, U.S.)
Director: Daresha Kyi
An intimate portrait of Kimberly and Kai Shappley in Texas: a Christian mother rejects her community’s beliefs as her 7-year-old transgender daughter navigates life at school, where she’s been banned from the girls’ bathroom.
The Trial (United Kingdom, U.S.)
Director: Johanna Hamilton
Meet the lawyers tasked with defending 9/11 suspects against the U.S. government.
ANIMATED SHORTS COMPETITION
An assortment of stories told using traditional animation, computer-generated effects, stop-motion, and everything in-between.
The Coin
Director/Screenwriter: Siqi Song
In Chinese New Year holidays, finding the coin inside the dumplings means having a blessed year ahead. A young woman loses a jar on her journey to a new country, which contains the lucky coins she has been collecting growing up. Her new life begins with a search to find the coin. (World Premiere)
Facing It (United Kingdom)
Director: Sam Gainsborough, Screenwriters: Sam Gainsborough, Louisa Wood
As Sean anxiously awaits a meeting in the local pub, he is forced to explore his own unhappy memories and relationships in an evening that will that will leave him changed forever. (U.S. Premiere)
Guaxuma (Brazil)
Director/Screenwriter: Nara Normande
Tayra and I grew up on a beach in the north east of Brazil. We were inseparable. The sea breeze brings me back happy memories.
Je sors acheter des cigarettes (France)
Director: Osman Cerfon
Jonathan, twelve years old, lives with his sister, his mother and also some men. They all have the same face and nest in closets, drawers, TV set… (North American Premiere)
Las Del Diente
Director/Screenwriter: Ana Perez Lopez
Three women discuss the social pressure of having kids while celebrating the uniqueness of their bodies during flamenco covens.
Obon (Germany)
Directors: André Hörmann, Samo (Anna Bergmann), Screenwriter: André Hörmann
Akiko Takakura survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima — in the midst of total destruction she finds a moment of happiness.
Reneepoptosis
Director: Renee Zhan
Three Renees go on a quest to find God, who is also Renee. As they traverse the great mountains and valleys of Renee, they discover all the joys, mysteries, and sadnesses of being Renee.
Skybaby
Director: Julian Glander
Look at clouds. You’re 12.
Slug Life (United Kingdom)
Director/Screenwriter: Sophie Koko Gate
Tanya has finally created the perfect sexual partner, who happens to be a beautiful giant slug. (North American Premiere)
Wild Love (France)
Directors: Paul Autric, Quentin Camus, Maryka Laudet, Léa Georges, Zoé Sottiaux, Corentin Yvergniauz
Alan and Beverly, away hiking on a romantic getaway, cause the death of a marmot without noticing it. But this incident will not stay unpunished… (U.S. Premiere)
MIDNIGHT SHORTS
Bite-sized bits for all of your sex, gore, and hilarity cravings.
La Bête (France)
Director/Screenwriter: Filippo Meneghetti
A village far away in time and land. Nearby, in a forest thought to be haunted, a child falls into a pit. His grandfather, an old and nearly blind shepherd, tries to convince the villagers to go rescue him, facing the darkness of the night and their. (World Premiere)
Bronzed
Director/Screenwriter: Mike Egan
Neo-sun worshiper Martin prepares to appease the solar Gods with ritual human sacrifice. But first he needs a spray tan. (World Premiere)
Deep Tissue
Director/Screenwriter: Meredith Alloway
A girl orders a special massage. (World Premiere)
The Do It Up Date
Directors: Emily Ting, Andrew Barchilon, Screenwriter: Josh Fadem
Kip and Shayla go on a big date! (World Premiere)
First Kiss
Director/Screenwriter: Emily Hagins
When two anxious teens sneak away from a Halloween party to share their first kiss, they soon realize someone…or something…may be watching them.
How To Be Alone
Director/Screenwriter: Kate Trefry
One woman’s simple, three-step guide to surviving a night on your own. (World Premiere)
It’s Not Custard (United Kingdom)
Director/Screenwriter: Kate McCoid
Louise, a teenager suffering unrelenting acne and continual bullying, is granted a delicious revenge. (U.S. Premiere)
Montana, GA
Director/Screenwriter: Ryan Dickie
In the middle of nowhere, three best friends grow closer when a chill vacation weekend turns supernatural. (World Premiere)
Other Side of the Box
Director: Caleb J. Phillips, Screenwriters; Caleb J. Phillips, Nick Tag
A couple receives a terrifying gift from an old friend. (U.S. Premiere)
Right Place, Wrong Tim (United Kingdom)
Director/Screenwriter: Eros Vlahos
England’s 2nd most popular sitcom ‘Right Place, Wrong Tim’ is besieged by bloodthirsty killer clones live on air. Starring Asa Butterfield, Ella Purnell & Adam Buxton.
The Video Store Commercial (Canada)
Directors: Cody Kennedy, Tim Rutherford, Screenwriter: Tim Rutherford
A desperate video store owner hires a crew to shoot a commercial in his shop. (World Premiere)
TEXAS SHORTS
An offshoot of our regular narrative shorts program, composed of work shot in, about, or somehow relating to the Lone Star state.
Chicle (Gum)
Director: Lizette Barrera, Screenwriters: Lizette Barrera, Renier Murillo, Vittoria Rodriguez, Katy Atkinson, Elyssa Chapa
An ill-tempered teenager attempts to find peaceful solitude on the day of her grandfather’s passing until an estranged friend pays her a visit. (World Premiere)
A Good Son
Director/Screenwriter: Suzanne Weinert
When Tommy, 75, asks his son Mike to put a Hefty bag over his head and suffocate him to death, neither believes the other will really go through with it. Until MIke’s son Chris, 17, devises a plan that will satisfy both his father and grandfather. (World Premiere)
I Am Mackenzie
Director: Artemis Anastasiadou, Screenwriter: Brittany Worthington
Caught among toxic masculinity, a sequin dress and a teenage crush, a teen skater, growing up in rural Texas, will have sex for the first time in the back of their dad’s truck. (World Premiere)
A Line Birds Cannot See
Director: Amy Bench
Separated from her mother at the border, a determined 12-year-old sets out across the desert with only a plastic sack, survives starvation on the streets of Ciudad Juarez, and escapes kidnappers to find her mother and a place where they can be safe. (World Premiere)
Mack Wrestles
Directors: Erin Sanger, Taylor Hess
Mack Beggs broke records and changed history when he won the Texas state title as a transgender wrestler. Now with high school ending and college on the horizon, the sports champion and national activist, must grapple with what comes next. (World Premiere)
Sweet Steel
Director/Screenwriter: Will Goss
A depressed man puts off an important task. (World Premiere)
Sweet Sweet Kink: A Collection of BDSM Stories
Director: Maggie M. Bailey
Sweet Sweet Kink takes a sweet, sweet peek into the kinky world of bondage, dominance, and sadomasochism through stories of intimate connection, consensual exploration, and deep self-reflection. (World Premiere)
Yirga
Director/Screenwriter: B.B. Araya
Before she can leave town for a fresh start, Yirga must get one problem out of her head. (World Premiere)
TEXAS HIGH SCHOOL SHORTS
A preview of the next filmmaking generation, as Texas High Schoolers present shorts of five minutes or less.
Abby
Directors: Tyniya Perryman, Brenna Rinehart, Screenwriter: Tyniya Perryman
Being a kid can be a little lonely sometimes, but this young girl has her best friend, Abby. (World Premiere)
Astray
Director: Mystery Clemons, Screenwriters: Mystery Clemons, Shannon Angeletti
A young man stumbles upon an unexpected situation finding one in need. The two build upon their friendship after the young man helps with his situation. After the young man realizes his friend is a bad influence he gets caught up in his past. (World Premiere)
BlueInk
Directors: Miranda Potter, Jade Jess, Screenwriter: Jade Jess
A victim of human trafficking tells her story. (U.S. Premiere)
By the Pool
Director/Screenwriter: Neo Bramlett
A high school student tells his friend about an awkward experience he had. (World Premiere)
Double Cross
Director/Screenwriter: Amiri Scrutchin
In a championship basketball game, our hero goes through a spiritual experience to gain an immense power to overpower his adversary. (World Premiere)
Fifteen
Director/Screenwriter: Louisa Baldwin
Fifteen is the story of first love for two teenage girls.
Forbidden Fruit
Director/Screenwriter: Sophia Rigg
A cat and her witch encounter a strange, sinister presence in the forest. (World Premiere)
Galene (China)
Director/Screenwriter: Emily Ma
A teenage girl manages her stress through the power of the ocean. (World Premiere)
A Grand Gesture
Directors: Tanish Venkatesh, Tyniya Perryman, Screenwriter: Tanish Venkatesh
Two best friends, Harold and Gunter, form a plan to win back Gunter’s ex-girlfriend. (World Premiere)
Infallible
Director/Screenwriter: Emma Evans
A girl obsessed with secret agents has the chance to become one, until she realizes that things are not as they seem. (World Premiere)
Learning to Swim
Director/Screenwriter: Susannah Joffe
This experimental drama covers the relationship between romance and substance between two teens.
The Making of Chase Humes
Director: Grace Humes
A student who has come out as transgender, talks about experiences and hardships he’s had through his journey.
Pájaro
Directors/Screenwriters: Kayla Kummerl, Krista Kummerl, Richard Ahn
“The caged bird sings / with a fearful trill / of things unknown / but longed for still / and his tune is heard / on the distant hill / for the caged bird / sings of freedom.” -Maya Angelou (World Premiere)
A Pinch of Love
Director/Screenwriter: Cassie Greer
After letting their relationship drift apart, a young newlywed couple attempt to rekindle the relationship they once had.
Revue
Director/Screenwriter: Myles Kovalik
An experimental short on gender and gender relationships in the modern entertainment industry. (World Premiere)
Sex is Weird
Director/Screenwriter: Michael Payton
When her well-intentioned boyfriend suggests sex, a teenage girl opens up about baggage from a past sexual experience. He is receptive to her words, and the two agree that sex can wait until the time is right.
Trepidation
Director/Screenwriter: Zachary Goodwin
A look into the anxiety a teenage high school girl feels towards the possibility of a school shooting. (World Premiere)
Yellow Fever
Director/Screenwriter: Michelle Liang
Five friends fight over who gets to pay the bill at dinner.
VIRTUAL CINEMA
The immersive arts are finding new ways to enhance our ability to perceive the world that surrounds us, and in many instances they are redefining how we experience the world. The 25 projects presented in our Virtual Cinema emphasize storytelling, ingenuity and also showcase how other industries are embracing this new medium. Presented by Bose.
-22.7°C (France)
Director: Jan Kounen, Screenwriter: Molécule
Guided by the sounds, we explore the powerful nature of the polar regions and face our inner self until we enter a state of harmony. (World Premiere)
Ahorse! (Netherlands)
Director: Wendy Gutman, Screenwriters: Lenina Ungari, Wendy Gutman, Edwin Gardner
A playful cinematographic VR installation inviting us to experience the various phases of what we see as reality. Ahorse! takes us on a journey through the development of human perception using as its vehicle the history of our vision of the horse. (North American Premiere)
The Atomic Tree
Directors: Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee, Adam Loften, Screenwriters: David Haskell, Adam Loften, Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee
The Atomic Tree is a virtual reality journey into the memories of one of the most revered trees in the world — a 400-year-old Japanese White Pine bonsai that survived the atomic blast in Hiroshima. (World Premiere)
Border Stories
Director: Nonny de la Pena
Border Stories puts people along the US-Mexico border to not only experience real stories but to make their own volumetric pieces that can be created online using Emblematic Group’s webVR platform REACH and shared with a simple web link. (World Premiere)
Chronicle of a Vanished City (Colombia)
Director: Jorge Caballero, Screenwriters: Jorge Caballero, Anna Giralt
An experience in virtual reality within the most typical streets of Bogota city, told through seven stories of one of the pioneers of the “red chronicle” in Colombia, José Joaquín Jiménez “Ximénez”. A trip through a vanished city. (World Premiere)
Cypher
Directors: Guvenc Ozel, Benjamin Ennemoser
Cypher is a shape-shifting sculptural installation that creates an interactive and cinematic experience through synchronizing virtual reality, robotics and sensor interaction. (World Premiere)
Diorama №4: Die Fernweh Oper (Netherlands)
Director: Daniel Ernst, Screenwriter: Maud Vanhauwaert (song lyrics)
In Die Fernweh Oper you will visit a perpetual opera performed by a star in the form of a 50 ft tall opera singer named Asteria, who sings especially for you. Just as with the stars you see at night, she has already died light years ago. (World Premiere)
Eclipse (France)
Directors: Jonathan Astruc, Aymeric Favre, Screenwriter: Frederic Cussey
> Eclipse is a collaborative hyper reality VR experience. For 40 minutes, four players embody the crew of Eclipse II, sent in space to rescue a previous space crew who disappeared. The set up integrates 4D effects and full body awareness. (North American Premiere)
Eleven Eleven (United Kingdom, U.S.)
Showrunner: Mehrad Noori, Screenwriter: Lucas Taylor
A ground-breaking, feature-length science fiction story, written and designed for VR and AR, Eleven Eleven is a multi-linear narrative experience inspired by immersive theatre, from NBCUniversal International Networks. (World Premiere)
Forest
Directors: Kelsey Boncato, Daniel Oldham
A meditative visual music experience in a hand-drawn landscape of ancient bristlecone pine trees, sculpted organic matter, and transmuted earthy-electro sounds; get lost in an interactive sacred space. (World Premiere)
Girl Icon
Director: Sadah Espii Proctor
Around the world, over 130 million girls do not go to school. Step into the life of Rani, a girl from India who is part of a growing movement of girls inspired by Malala Yousafzai to change their path and become educated community leaders. (World Premiere)
Gloomy Eyes (Argentina, France)
Directors/Screenwriters: Jorge Tereso, Fernando Maldonado
Gloomy Eyes is a 3D real-time animated VR experience in 6DOF.
Home After War (India)
Directors: Gayatri Parameswaran, Felix Gaedtke, Screenwriter: Gayatri Parameswaran
What if your home becomes the place you fear? An Iraqi father returns to Fallujah to face the threat of improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Join him in his home and discover the unfolding of a tragic event. (North American Premiere)
Incitement ( Netherlands)
Director/Screenwriter: Wiebe van den Ende
When Sara returns from a business trip only to announce she has more travel lined up, her boyfriend Luis comes clean for a very peculiar reason. (World Premiere)
Kaleidoscope Funding Showcase
The Kaleidoscope Funding Showcase features new projects currently in-development by some of the world’s most innovative XR Creators. Meet the artists, see work-in-progress, and help fund the next wave of great XR projects.
Last Whispers: An Immersive Oratorio
Director: Lena Herzog
At an unprecedented speed, we are losing our linguistic diversity — and the very means by which we know ourselves. This immersive oratorio is an invocation of the languages that have gone extinct and an incantation of those that are endangered.
The Making Of (Taiwan)
Director/Screenwriter: Midi Z
In front of the VR camera are the actors playing in the film while the crew are shooting the scene behind the VR camera. Midi Z and his crew are filming the other crew on both sides of the camera. (North American Premiere)
Mars Home Planet
Directors: Brian Frager, David Witters, Screenwriter: Leland Frankel
The year is 2176, and you are the newest resident of the thriving Martian community. The planet is still hostile to human life, yet we have carved out a habitable section of the red planet, finally transforming ourselves into a multi-planetary species. (U.S. Premiere)
Mechanical Souls (France, Taiwan)
Director: Gaëlle Mourre, Screenwriters: L.P. Lee, Gaëlle Mourre
Glimpse of a soul in a mechanical heart. Produced by Digital Rise and Serendipity Films.
Mercy
Director: Armando Kirwin
Mercy is the story of a young woman from Cameroon who journeys from her village to a hospital ship docked on the nearby coast in order to receive a life-saving surgery. (World Premiere)
Metro Veinte: Cita Ciega (Argentina)
Director: Maria Belen Poncio, Screenwriters: Rosario Perazolo Masjoan, Ezequiel Lenardón, Elisa Gagliano, Agustin Peralta Pando, Maria Belen Poncio
Juana, an 18 year-old girl bound to a wheelchair, is anxious to explore her sexuality.
Nothing to be Written (United Kingdom)
Director: Lysander Ashton, Screenwriter: Mark Grimmer
Moving, haunting and emotive, Nothing to be Written tells the stories behind ‘field postcards’ one of the few communication options in WWI between soldiers and their families. Part artwork, part documentary, NTBW pushes the boundaries of mobile VR. (U.S. Premiere)
Re-Animated (Denmark, United States)
Director: Jakob Kudsk Steensen, Re-Animated is a virtual reality and video installation that investigates extinction, preservation, and immortality. It is a virtual ecosystem based on real plant and animal specimens that mixes primal habitats with emerging ecological realities. (North American Premiere)
Runnin’
Directors: Kiira Benzing, Reggie Watts, Screenwriter: Kiira Benzing
This interactive dance experience takes you on a journey of musical expression. Play along with music in a record store and be transported to a retro-future dance party. Show off your moves on a dance floor with a troupe of dancers and Reggie Watts.
Send Me Home
Director: Cassandra Evanisko
Send Me Home is a 360 portrait of Rickey Jackson, one of the longest-serving exonerees in U.S. history, in his surreal, new life post-prison.
Traverse
Director: Jessica Brillhart
Traverse is a platform for spatial audio experiences. Using a mobile device and audio-driven AR technology, each Traverse experience takes an audio recording and makes it something you can physically move through. (World Premiere)
About SXSW
SXSW dedicates itself to helping creative people achieve their goals. Founded in 1987 in Austin, Texas, SXSW is best known for its conference and festivals that celebrate the convergence of the interactive, film, and music industries. An essential destination for global professionals, the event features sessions, showcases, screenings, exhibitions, and a variety of networking opportunities. SXSW proves that the most unexpected discoveries happen when diverse topics and people come together. SXSW 2019 will take place March 8–17, 2019. For more information, please visit sxsw.com. To register for the event, please visit sxsw.com/attend.