Among the hundreds of films offered during the 2024 SXSW Film & Television Festival were the Texas filmmakers who showcased their films (and took home awards) last month. Many talented artists represented the creative community in Austin and across the state.
Among all the films that took home audience awards during SXSW 2024, five were made by AFS filmmakers and their teams. Congratulations to the artists. Here are the film titles and the categories:
24 Beats Per Second:
FADERS UP: THE JOHN AIELLI EXPERIENCE (dir. David Hartstein and Sam Wainwright Douglas)
Festival Favorite:
SING SING (dir. Greg Kwedar, prod. Monique Walton and Clint Bentley)
Texas Shorts:
SANGRE VIOLENTA/SANGRE VIOLETA (dir. Arturo Jiménez and Edna Diaz)
Documentary Spotlight:
CLEMENTE (prod. by AFS Board Member Mike Blizzard, executive produced by Richard Linklater)
Narrative Feature (Jury Award):
BOB TREVINO LIKES IT (dir. former AFS intern Tracie Laymon)
I saw four out of five of these films and can honestly state they are deserving of the awards they won. I will write more extensively about the films I viewed but I loved CLEMENTE (Documentary Spotlight) and highly anticipate viewing the film at any future screening opportunity. It is a film I highly recommend for family viewing to learn about the late baseball star’s life and career. His sons attended the premiere.
Bob Trevino Likes It stars John Leguizamo and is a very touching film story with great performances. It won the Jury Award and look forward to viewing the film again with friends who will see another side of the actor’s range, aside from the well-known comedic talent he is. He was at the Zach Theater for the premiere of te film.
SANGRE VIOLENTA/SANGRE VIOLETA – Texas Shorts category and shows the activism in Mexico when so many women stood up against the violence. The film premiered at the festival and then Austin based Cine las Americas hosted a community event for the filmmakers and a screening of the short.
Sing Sing is a Festival Favorite that I viewed at the Zach Theater with the filmmakers and cast in attendance, including Coleman Domingo. It is a film from A24 and is continuing to be screened at various film festivals after SXSW. As far as I can tell, it will have a theatrical release, perhaps this summer, and is also a film that I highly recommend. We will provide updates on this film release when received in the future. The trailer is available in some theaters now.
The 2024 AFS Grant for Feature Films has started on April 16th and you will be able to submit your feature-length narrative and documentary films (40 minutes or longer) to be considered for this unique funding opportunity. This cycle of the AFS Grant also includes special awards for filmmakers in the DFW area as well as first-time filmmakers of color. If you’re curious about applying or have questions about the process, look for updates on the AFS website. They also offer free webinars hosted by the AFS Artist Development staff. The AFS Grant for Feature Films will be accepting applications from April 16–June 6 (at 11:59 PM CT). For more information, visit Austinfilm.org
Source: SXSW, AFS, IMDb