SXSW Film Festival kicks off this weekend on Friday, March 13th with a lot of excitement and anticipation. Hosted in Austin, Texas during a prime time for spring break, it is always a great convergence of entrepeurnial synergy, eccentric local and global programming, and fun parties. What I love about this festival is how it screens movies from big film festivals including Sundance and Berlin while setting the tone for movies while exploring creativity within film. Last year felt like a game changer for the film portion of a festival usually overshadowed by the Interactive and Music portions of the large event. With people complaining about SXSW jumping the shark, it is still vital for the movies.
Very Early Oscar Buzz Was Established Here
Boyhood and Grand Budapest Hotel played very well here during the very early stages of the Oscar race. (Maybe the appearance of awards gurus like Ann Thompson of IndieWire and Dave Karger of Fangdago that provided the unexpected Oscar magic.) It is amazing to realize that two directors in a conversation were both nominated for the Best Director Oscar the following year: Richard Linklater and Wes Anderson! Things like this are rare at SXSW, but the industry needs to take note to program their movies here. We wont know what movies fullfill this role until much later during the year.
World Premieres of Big and Small Comedy Hits!
SXSW is an ideal place to launch comedies. Both Chef and Neighbors had big world premieres here and became word of mouth summer comedies for audiences. It was a blast sitting in those audiences realizing both would be embraced by crowds of people. This year, we have Get Hard starring Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart as well as Judd Apatow’s Trainwreck. Spy with Melissa McCarthy and Jason Statham looks like it has potential as well. All look rather promising which should garner alot of laughs. They will find their audiences during their wide releases.
Neo-Cult Movies Screened Here
Every year SXSW introduces cult classics to the movie world. Movies that garnered a cult following played here including the hilarious What We Do In The Shadows (finally being released which is highly recommended), the edgy abortion comedy Obvious Child, the quirky hipster vampire tale Only Lovers Left Alive, and the action packed The Raid 2.
SXSW Film Festival always offers unique and fun cinematic expereiences and I can’t wait to discover new movies.
