Film News: SXSW Film & TV Festival Features of Interest
South by Southwest® (SXSW®) Conference and Festivals (March 10-19, 2023) has announced the 2023 Film & TV Festival Lineup, including all Visions, Global presented by MUBI, 24 Beats, and Festival Favorites plus numerous additions to Headliners, TV Premieres, Narrative and Documentary Spotlight, and other sections. The festival also announced that Janine Nabers, Donald Glover’s Swarm, and Lee Sung Jin’s Beef would be the Opening and Closing Night TV premieres. The Film & TV Festival’s opening night film is Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. This year’s Closing Night Film will be announced closer to the event.
The 2023 Film & TV program includes 108 features including 73 World Premieres, 3 International Premieres, 9 North American Premieres, 6 U.S. Premieres, 16 Texas Premieres + 63 Short Films, 20 Music Videos, 15 TV Premieres, 7 Independent TV Pilots, and 34 XR Experience projects.
Feature Highlights: Opening Night: Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, directed by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley; Evil Dead Rise, directed by Lee Cronin; Flamin’ Hot, directed by Eva Longoria; Problemista, directed by Julio Torres; Bottoms, directed by Emma Seligman; Furies, directed by Veronica Ngo; Down Low directed by Rightor Doyle; The New Americans: Gaming a Revolution, directed by Ondi Timoner, It Lives Inside, directed by Bishal Dutta, Self Reliance, directed by Jake Johnson; Parachute, directed by Brittany Snow; STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie, directed by Davis Guggenheim; Tetris, directed by Jon S. Baird; Love to Love You, Donna Summer, directed by Roger Ross Williams and Brooklyn Sudano; and Wild Life, directed by Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi.
TV Highlights: Opening Night: Janine Nabers and Donald Glover’s Swarm; Closing Night: Lee Sung Jin’s Beef; Boots Riley’s I’m a Virgo; Zoe Lister Jones’ Slip; Tearrance Arvelle Chisholm’s Demascus; Tara Hernandez and Damon Lindelof’s Mrs. Davis; David West Read’s The Big Door Prize; Aaron Zelman and Paul Lieberstein’s Lucky Hank; Steve James’ The Luckiest Guy in the World: The Bill Walton Story; and Kelvin Yu’s American Born Chinese.
Below is a short list of films that are screening during the festival:
THE LONG GAME — Directed by Julio Quintana | Written by Julio Quintana, Jennifer C. Stetson & Paco Farias [World Premiere — Narrative Spotlight — Acquisition]
Synopsis: When JB Peña moves to the small town of Del Rio, TX to take over as the school district’s superintendent, his dreams of joining the prestigious, all-white Del Rio Country Club are immediately squashed. However, soon he meets a group of high schoolers who happen to caddy at the club—they too are prohibited from playing the same course because of the color of their skin. So JB and them band together, at first with the aim of winning tournaments and making it to State, but quickly learn that there’s a lot more to aim for—and a lot more on the line—when a team of Mexican-American teens competes and wins in this exclusive world. Based on “Mustang Miracle” by Humberto G. Garcia.
Produced by Javier Chapa, Ben Howard, Marla Quintana, Dennis Quaid, Laura Quaid and stars Jay Hernandez, Dennis Quaid, Cheech Marin, Julian Works, Jaina Lee Ortiz, Brett Cullen, Oscar Nuñez, Richard Robichaux, and Paulina Chávez.
Screenings:
Public 1 Premiere Screening – Sunday, March 12, 2023 at 11:45am CT at Paramount Theatre
Public 2 Screening – Wednesday, March 15, 2023 at 5:45pm CT at The Long Center
THE HERRICANES — Directed by Olivia Kuan [World Premiere — Documentary Spotlight — Acquisition]
Produced by James Lee Hernandez, Brian Lazarte, Lisa France, James Short, Olivia Kuan, Justin Baldoni & Andrew Calof and starring Linda Carpenter, Dan Pastorini, Jen Welter, Anise Parker, Vivian Acosta, Colette Smith & Phoebe Schecter
Synopsis: The Houston Herricanes was a women’s full-tackle football team from the 1970s whose fight to play the game continues to resonate with female athletes today.
Screenings:
Public 1 Premiere Screening – Saturday, March 11, 2023, at 11:45am CT at ZACH Theatre
Public 2 Screening – Tuesday, March 14, 2023 at 11:45am CT at Alamo Lamar A
Public 3 Screening – Thursday, March 16, 2023 at 3:45pm CT at Violet Crown Cinema 1
Public 4 Screening – Thursday, March 16, 2023 at 4:15pm CT at Violet Crown Cinema 3
PEAK SEASON — Written by Henry Loevner | Directed by Henry Loevner & Steven Kanter
World Premiere — Narrative Spotlight — Acquisition [Produced by Lovell Holder, Patrick Ward, Henry Loevner, Steven Kanter]
Starring Claudia Restrepo, Derrick DeBlasis, Ben Coleman, Fred Melamed, Stephanie Courtney, Will Neff, Caroline Kwan, Ron Hanks, Gadiel Del Orbe, Natasha Dewhurst
Synopsis: New York yuppies Amy & Max arrive in the wealthy resort town of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, for a summer vacation. Amy wants to enjoy a romantic getaway with her fiancé. But Max neglects Amy to spend the week working, leaving her to wander town alone. Amy finds a friend in Loren, a local wilderness guide who takes her fly fishing. She’s immediately drawn to this magnetic, free-spirited stranger. Both lonely and lost in their own lives, Amy & Loren share an instant connection. When Max is called away on business, Amy & Loren spend the week together exploring the Tetons. As her bond with Loren grows into something more than friendship, Amy questions whether she’ll return to NYC with Max.
Screenings:
Public 1 Premiere Screening – Sunday, March 12, 2023, at 11:15am CT at Violet Crown Cinema 2
Public 2 Screening – Sunday, March 12, 2023 at 11:45am CT at Violet Crown Cinema 4
Public 3 Screening – Monday, March 13, 2023 at 5:15pm CT at Satellite Venue: AFS Cinema
Public 4 Screening – Tuesday, March 14, 2023 at 7:45pm CT at Alamo Lamar C
PAY OR DIE — Directed by Rachael Dyer & Scott Alexander Ruderman
World Premiere — Documentary Feature Competition — Acquisition
Produced by Rachael Dyer, Scott Alexander Ruderman, Yael Melamede
Executive produced by Sarah Silverman, Amy Zvi, Russell Long, Douglas Choi, Martina Bassenger, Marci Wiseman, Dawn Bonder, Sarah Lucas, Zak Kilberg, Trish Adlesic, Lauran Bromley
Synopsis: Today, nearly 2 million Americans are being held for ransom. Without insulin, they’ll be dead in days. “Pay or Die” follows three families on the receiving end of these ransom notes, revealing the brutal reality of life with chronic illness in the wealthiest country in the world. From a mother and daughter struggling to rebuild their lives after losing their home when they had to spend their rent money on insulin, to a young adult diagnosed with type 1 diabetes during the COVID-19 pandemic, to a Minnesota family thrust into the national spotlight when their 26-year-old son dies from rationing his insulin, “Pay or Die” lays bare the human cost of America’s insulin affordability crisis.
Screenings:
Public 1 Premiere Screening – Saturday, March 11, 2023, at 3:15 pm CT at Alamo Lamar E
Public 2 Screening – Monday, March 13, 2023, at 3:00 pm CT at Alamo Lamar
Public 3 Screening – Thursday, March 16, 2023, at 2:30 pm CT at Alamo Lamar B
FANCY DANCE — Directed by Erica Tremblay | Written by Erica Tremblay & Miciana Alise
Texas Premiere — Festival Favorites — Acquisition [Produced by Deidre Backs, Erica Tremblay, Heather Rae, Nina Yang Bongiovi, Tommy Oliver and Executive produced by Bird Runningwater, Charlotte Koh, Forest Whitaker]
Starring Lily Gladstone, Isabel Deroy-Olson, Ryan Begay, Shea Whigham, Audrey Wasilewski
Synopsis: Following her sister’s disappearance, a Native American hustler kidnaps her niece from the child’s white grandparents and sets out for the state powwow in hopes of keeping what is left of their family intact.
Screenings:
Public 1 Premiere Screening – Friday, March 10, 2023, at 5:15 pm CT at Alamo Lamar C
Public 2 Screening – Saturday, March 11, 2023, at 5:30 pm CT at Satellite Venue: AFS Cinema
Public 3 Screening – Wednesday, March 15, 2023, at 2:30 pm CT at Alamo Lamar B
SXSW 2023 will take place March 10 – 19, 2023. For more information, please visit sxsw.com.
Source: SXSW