SXSW Film and TV 2018 Lineup: Jordan Peele, Female Directors, and More Lead Latest Announcement
The SXSW Conference and Festivals has announced its features lineup and opening night film, plus a selection of episodic titles for the 25th edition of the Film Festival, running this March in Austin, Texas. This year’s festival will open with John Krasinski’s Paramount-produced “A Quiet Place,” playing as part of the festival’s Headliners section. Elsewhere, the film lineup is stacked with a number of offerings from female filmmakers, including its Narrative Feature Competition, which includes eight films (out of ten) directed or co-directed by women, from Megan Griffiths’ “SADIE” to Stacy Cochran’s “Write When You Get Work.”
Other sections of the festival also include a heavily female bent, including three films in the Headliners section (which currently includes five titles), and the Narrative Spotlight section, which includes new films from Lynn Shelton, Miranda Bailey, Julia Hart, and Suzi Yoonessi. Those titles are joined by a slew of other SXSW regulars, including the Duplass brothers, Jody Hill, and Andrew Bujalski. The Festival Favorites section also boasts a number of buzzy titles that premiered at other events, including Sundance films like “Eighth Grade,” “Won’t You Be My Neighbor,” “American Animals,” “On Her Shoulders,” and “Damsel.” (SXSW typically screens 14 holdovers from Sundance.)
“2018 marks the 25th edition of the SXSW Film Festival and my tenth year at the helm. As we look back on the body of work of talent discovered, careers launched and wonderful films we’ve enjoyed, we couldn’t be more excited about the future,” said Janet Pierson, Director of Film in an official statement. “This year’s slate, while peppered with works from many of our alumni, remains focused on new voices, new directors and a range of films that entertain and enlighten.”
Also this year, the festival is launching a new Independent Episodic section, an expansion on its Episodic section launched in 2014, thus beefing up its television-centric offerings. Of the currently announced titles, few are as intriguing as “The Last O.G.,” Jordan Peele‘s episodic follow-up to his smash hit “Get Out,” which stars Tracy Morgan and Tiffany Haddish. The festival will also play home to a “This Is Us” event as part of its Special Events section, though details on that (and other TV picks) are currently being kept under wraps.
Midnighters, Shorts, Virtual Cinema, Independent Episodics, Title Sequences, Music Videos and late-breaking Features will be announced on February 7. Check out the full lineup, with all information provided by SXSW, below. This year’s festival runs March 9 – 18 in Austin, Texas.
NARRATIVE FEATURE COMPETITION
Ten world premieres; ten unique ways to celebrate the art of storytelling. Selected from 1,408 narrative feature submissions in 2017.
“Family”
Director/Screenwriter: Laura Steinel
When an emotionally stunted 30 year-old woman is tasked with watching her awkward and bullied 12 year old niece for the week, she finds her life unfurling when the girl runs away to be a juggalo. Cast: Taylor Schilling, Bryn Vale, Brian Tyree Henry, Jessie Ennis, Blair Beeken, Matt Walsh, Allison Tolman, Eric Edelstein, Kate McKinnon, Fabrizio Guido (World Premiere)
“First Match”
Director/Screenwriter: Olivia Newman
Hardened by years in foster care, a teenage girl from Brooklyn’s Brownsville neighborhood decides that wrestling boys is the only way back to her estranged father. Cast: Elvire Emanuelle, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Colman Domingo, Jharrel Jerome, Jared Kemp (World Premiere)
“Jinn”
Director/Screenwriter: Nijla Mu’min
A shape-shifting, pepperoni-loving, black teenage Instagram celebrity explores her identity and sexuality in the midst of her mother’s conversion to Islam. Cast: Zoe Renee, Simone Missick, Kelvin Harrison, Jr., Hisham Tawfiq, Kelly Jenrette, Dorian Missick, Ashlei Foushee, Maya Morales, Damien D. Smith (World Premiere)
“The New Romantic” (Canada)
Director/Screenwriter: Carly Stone
Frustrated with the lack of chivalrous guys her own age, a college senior gives up on dating for love to date an older man in exchange for gifts instead. Cast: Jessica Barden, Hayley Law, Brett Dier, Timm Sharp, Avan Jogia, Camila Mendes (World Premiere)
“SADIE”
Director/Screenwriter: Megan Griffiths
While her father is away serving in the military, Sadie battles to preserve his place on the home front when her mother takes an interest in a new man. Cast: Melanie Lynskey, Sophia Mitri Schloss, John Gallagher Jr., Danielle Brooks, Tony Hale, Keith Williams, Tee Dennard (World Premiere)
“Shotgun”
Directors/Screenwriters: Hannah Marks, Joey Power
A young couple’s relationship develops quickly when one of them is diagnosed with a life-changing illness. Cast: Maika Monroe, Jeremy Allen White, DeRon Horton, Marisa Tomei, Sasha Lane, Joe Keery, Gina Gershon, Dean Winters, Olivia Luccardi (World Premiere)
“Summer ’03”
Director/Screenwriter: Becca Gleason
On her deathbed, Jamie’s grandmother leaves her with two pieces of information: one involves a baptism, the other a blowjob. This sets Jamie and her family on an emotional roller coaster ride while she falls for the wrong guy at the wrong time. Cast: Joey King, Andrea Savage, Paul Scheer, Jack Kilmer, Erin Darke, Stephen Ruffin, Kelly Lamor Wilson, Logan Medina, June Squibb (World Premiere)
“Thunder Road”
Director/Screenwriter: Jim Cummings
Officer Arnaud loved his Mom. Cast: Kendal Farr, Jim Cummings, Nican Robinson, Jocelyn DeBoer, Macon Blair, Bill Wise, Jordan Fox, Chelsea Edmondson (World Premiere)
“The Unicorn”
Director: Robert Schwartzman, Screenwriters: Nick Rutherford, Kirk C. Johnson, Will Elliott
Facing the fourth year of their engagement, an indecisive couple is thrust into the most uncomfortable night of their lives by intentionally and unintentionally involving a third party in their relationship. Cast: Lauren Lapkus, Nick Rutherford, Lucy Hale, Beck Bennett, Dree Hemingway, Beverly D’Angelo, John Kapelos, Maya Kazan, Darrell Britt-Gibson, Kyle Mooney (World Premiere)
“Write When You Get Work”
Director/Screenwriter: Stacy Cochran
Write When You Get Work is a comedy of money and access, a NY love story set in the Bronx and at a pricey school for girls on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Years after they’ve parted ways, Jonny Collins pursues Ruth Duffy for love — and profit. Cast: Emily Mortimer, Finn Wittrock, Rachel Keller, Scott Cohen, Jessica Hecht, James Ransone, Andrew Schulz, Tess Frazer, Afton Williamson, Zarif Kabier (World Premiere)
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE COMPETITION
Ten world premieres: ten real world stories that demonstrate innovation, energy and bold voices. Selected from 1,050 feature documentary submissions in 2018.
“Chi-Town”
Director: Nick Budabin
An underdog basketball player from Chicago goes on a meteoric rise to become one of the best college point guards in the nation. But while he pursues dreams of the NBA, his success contrasts with the effects of gun violence on his friends back home. (World Premiere)
“Garry Winogrand: All Things are Photographable”
Director: Sasha Waters
Freyer Artist. Iconoclast. Man of his time. All Things are Photographable is a revealing documentary portrait of the life and work of acclaimed photographer Garry Winogrand – the epic storyteller in pictures of America across three turbulent decades. (World Premiere)
“The Gospel of Eureka”
Directors: Michael Palmieri, Donal Mosher, Screenwriter: Donal Mosher
Faith, love and civil rights collide on voting day in a small Southern town that hosts a famous performance of the last days of Christ and an infamous gospel drag show. The new documentary by the award winning directors of October Country. (World Premiere)
“¡Las Sandinistas!” (Nicaragua, United States)
Director: Jenny Murray
¡Las Sandinistas! uncovers the disappearing stories of women who shattered barriers to lead combat and social reform during Nicaragua’s 1979 Sandinista Revolution, and who continue to lead Nicaragua’s current struggle for democracy and equality. (World Premiere)
“People’s Republic of Desire” (China)
Director: Hao Wu
In China’s popular live-streaming showrooms, three millennials – a karaoke singer, a migrant worker and a rags-to-riches comedian – seek fame, fortune and human connection, ultimately finding the same promises and perils online as in their real lives. (World Premiere)
“Social Animals”
Director: Jonathan Green, Screenwriters: Carol Martori, Jonathan Green, Peter Garriott
A daredevil photographer, an aspiring swimsuit model, and a midwest girl next door are all looking for the same things from their Instagram accounts––a little love, acceptance and, of course, fame––and they’ll do just about anything to get it. (World Premiere)
“This One’s For The Ladies”
Director: Gene Graham
This One’s For The Ladies explores the sexual and social identity of contemporary black America through intimate, eye opening and often hilarious accounts from women and men who find love and community in the underground world of exotic dancing. (World Premiere)
“TransMilitary”
Directors: Gabriel Silverman, Fiona Dawson, Screenwriters: Jamie Coughlin, Gabriel Silverman
At a time when transgender people are banned from serving in the U.S. military, four of the thousands of transgender troops risking discharge fight to attain the freedom they so fiercely protect. (World Premiere)
“Weed The People”
Director: Abby Epstein
Weed the People captures the uplifting and heart-wrenching struggles of families who treat their cancer-stricken children with marijuana, some with astonishing results. (World Premiere)
“The World Before Your Feet”
Director: Jeremy Workman
For over 6 years, Matt Green, 37, has been walking every street in New York City – a total of more than 8000 miles. The World Before Your Feet tells the story of one man’s unusual quest and the journey of discovery, humanity, and wonder that ensues. (World Premiere)
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.
“A Quiet Place”
Director: John Krasinski, Screenwriters: Bryan Woods, Scott Beck, and John Krasinski, Producers: Platinum Dunes
If they can’t hear you, they can’t hunt you. Cast: Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Noah Jupe, Millicent Simmonds (World Premiere)
“Blockers”
Director: Kay Cannon, Screenwriters: Brian Kehoe, Jim Kehoe, Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg, Eben Russell
When three parents discover their daughters’ pact to lose their virginity at prom, they launch a covert one-night operation to stop the teens from sealing the deal. Cast: Leslie Mann, Ike Barinholtz, John Cena, Kathryn Newton, Geraldine Indira Viswanathan, Gideon Adlon (World Premiere)
“Boundaries”
Director/Screenwriter: Shana Feste
Laura and her troubled son Henry are forced to drive her estranged, pot-dealing, carefree father Jack across country after being kicked out of a nursing home. Cast: Vera Farmiga, Christopher Plummer, Lewis MacDougall, Bobby Cannavale, Kristen Schaal, Dolly Wells, Yahya Abdul-Mateen, Christopher Lloyd, Peter Fonda (World Premiere)
“PARADOX”
Director/Screenwriter: Daryl Hannah
A loud Poem. A whimsical western tale of music and love. Cast: Neil Young, Lukas Nelson, Micah Nelson, Corey McCormick, Anthony LoGerfo, Tato Melgar, Willie Nelson, Charris Ford, Dulcie Clarkson Ford (World Premiere)
“Final Portrait” (United Kingdom, United States)
Director/Screenwriter: Stanley Tucci
Final Portrait is the story of the touching and offbeat friendship between world renowned artist Alberto Giacometti and American writer and art-lover James Lord, based on Lord’s memoir. Cast: Geoffrey Rush, Armie Hammer, Clémence Poésy, Tony Shalhoub, Sylvie Testud (North American Premiere)
NARRATIVE SPOTLIGHT
High profile narrative features receiving their World, North American or U.S. premieres at SXSW.
“6 Balloons”
Director/Screenwriter: Marja Lewis Ryan
Over the course of one night, a woman drives across LA with her heroin addict brother in search of a detox center, with his two year old daughter in tow. Cast: Abbi Jacobson, Dave Franco, Charlotte Carel, Madison Carel, Jane Kaczmarek, Dewan Owens, Tim Matheson, Jen Tullock, Maya Erskine, Heidi Sulzman (World Premiere)
“All Square”
Director: John Hyams, Screenwriter: Timothy Brady
A down-on-his-luck bookie befriends an ex-girlfriend’s son and gets the bright idea to take bets on his youth league baseball games; only to realize he’s killed what’s pure about the sport as the games turn ugly when money is on the line. Cast: Michael Kelly, Josh Lucas, Pamela Adlon, Tom Everett Scott, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Harris Yulin, Yeardley Smith, Jesse Ray Sheps, Jay Larson, Craig Walker (World Premiere)
“Anchor and Hope” (Spain)
Director/Screenwriter: Carlos Marques-Marcet
When the best friend of a bohemian lesbian couple agrees to be their surrogate, the three friends set out on an unconventional journey to start a family. Cast: Natalia Tena, Oona Chaplin, David Verdaguer, Geraldine Chaplin (North American Premiere)
“A Bluebird in My Heart” (Belgium, France)
Director/Screenwriter: Jérémie Guez
Attempting to lead a quiet reformed life, an ex-con finds refuge in a motel run by a single mother and her daughter Clara. The peace and freedom he has found in this safe haven disappears when Clara is assaulted, forcing him to face his old demons. Cast: Roland Moller, Veerle Baetens, Lola Le Lann, Lubna Azabal (World Premiere)
“The Breaker Upperers” (New Zealand)
Directors/Screenwriters: Jackie van Beek, Madeleine Sami
Two women run a business breaking up couples for cash but when one develops a conscience their friendship unravels. Cast: Jackie van Beek, Madeleine Sami, Celia Pacquola, James Rolleston, Ana Scotney (World Premiere)
“Fast Color”
Director: Julia Hart, Screenwriters: Julia Hart, Jordan Horowitz
In this genre-bending supernatural drama, a woman is forced to go on the run when her extraordinary abilities are discovered. Years after having abandoned her family, the only place she has left to hide is home. Cast: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Lorraine Toussaint, Saniyya Sidney, Christopher Denham, David Strathairn (World Premiere)
“First Light” (Canada)
Director/Screenwriter: Jason Stone
A close encounter with mysterious lights sends two teens on the run after one discovers she has extraordinary but dangerous powers. Cast: Stefanie Scott, Theodore Pelerine, Said Taghmaoui (World Premiere)
“The Legacy of a Whitetail Deer Hunter”
Director: Jody Hill
The great hunter Buck Ferguson (Josh Brolin) and his trusted cameraman Don (Danny McBride) set out for an epic weekend adventure to reconnect with Buck’s young son (Montana Jordan). Cast: Josh Brolin, Danny McBride, Scoot McNairy, Montana Jordan (World Premiere)
“Neurotic Quest for Serenity” (Brazil)
Directors/Screenwriters: Paulinho Caruso, Teodoro Poppovic
Kika is going through a lot. She’s a famous actress. She has millions of fans. She’s about to star in a post apocalyptic soap opera. And she has obsessive compulsive disorder. Cast: Tatá Werneck, Vera Holtz, Bruno Gagliasso, Daniel Furlan (North American Premiere)
“Outside In”
Director: Lynn Shelton, Screenwriters: Lynn Shelton, Jay Duplass
An ex-con struggling to readjust to life in his small town forms an intense bond with his former high-school teacher. Cast: Jay Duplass, Edie Falco, Kaitlyn Dever, Ben Schwartz (U.S. Premiere)
“Support The Girls”
Director/Screenwriter: Andrew Bujalski
The general manager at a highway-side ‘breastaurant’ has her incurable optimism and faith–in her girls, her customers, and herself–tested over the course of a long, strange day. Cast: Regina Hall, Haley Lu Richardson, Shayna McHale, James LeGros, Dylan Gelula, AJ Michalka, Brooklyn Decker, Lea DeLaria, Jana Kramer, John Elvis (World Premiere)
“Unlovable”
Director: Suzi Yoonessi, Screenwriters: Mark Duplass, Sarah Adina Smith, Charlene deGuzman
A sex- and love-addicted woman learns what real intimacy is when she starts making music with a reclusive man. Cast: Charlene deGuzman, John Hawkes, Melissa Leo, Paul James, Ellen Geer, Gigette Reyes (World Premiere)
“A Vigilante”
Director/Screenwriter: Sarah Daggar Nickson
A once abused woman, Sadie (Olivia Wilde), devotes herself to ridding victims of their domestic abusers while hunting down the husband she must kill to truly be free. Cast: Olivia Wilde, Morgan Spector, Kyle Catlett, CJ Wilson, Tonye Patano, Chuck Cooper, Betsy Aidem, Jusy Marte (World Premiere)
“Who We Are Now”
Director/Screenwriter: Matthew Newton
Beth, recently released from prison, tries to get custody of her son again and find her way back into the outside world, along the way realizing who she is isn’t about where she’s been, it’s about where she’s going. Cast: Julianne Nicholson, Emma Roberts, Zachary Quinto, Jess Weixler, Jimmy Smits, Jason Biggs, Lea Thompson, Scott Cohen, Octavia Chavez-Richmond, J. Mallory McCree (U.S. Premiere)
“Wild Nights With Emily”
Director/Screenwriter: Madeleine Olnek
Molly Shannon plays Emily Dickinson in Wild Nights With Emily, a humorous drama. This independent film explores her vivacious, irreverent side that was covered up for years — most notably Emily’s lifelong romantic relationship with another woman. Cast: Molly Shannon, Amy Seimetz, Susan Ziegler, Brett Gelman, Jackie Monahan, Kevin Seal, Dana Melanie, Sasha Frolova, Lisa Haas, Al Sutton (World Premiere)
“WILDLING”
Director: Fritz Bohm, Screenwriters: Fritz Bohm, Florian Eder
A blossoming teenager uncovers the dark secret behind her traumatic childhood. Cast: Bel Powley, Brad Dourif, Liv Tyler, Collin Kelly-Sordelet, James Le Gros, Troy Ruptash, Arlo Mertz, Aviva Winick (World Premiere)
“You Can Choose Your Family”
Director: Miranda Bailey, Screenwriter: Glen Lakin
A seventeen-year-old boy blackmails his father after discovering his secret second family. Cast: Jim Gaffigan, Logan Miller, Anna Gunn, Samantha Mathis, Alex Karpovsky, Hayes MacArthur, Michelle Hurd (World Premiere)
DOCUMENTARY SPOTLIGHT
Shining a light on new documentary features receiving their World, North American or U.S. premieres at SXSW.
“Agave: The Spirit of a Nation” (Mexico, United States)
Directors: Nicholas Kovacic, Matthew Riggieri, Screenwriter: Chantal Martineau
In Mexico, families have passed down the tradition of distilling agave for generations and now, this once obscure Mexican drink is everywhere. Discover, how one delicate plant has carried the weight of a nation and the people trying to protect it. (World Premiere)
“Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes”
Director: Robert Bader, Screenwriters: Robert S. Bader, Dick Cavett
The life and times of Muhammed Ali shown through the lens of his numerous appearances on The Dick Cavett Show. The film features new interviews with Dick Cavett, Rev. Al Sharpton, and Larry Merchant, as well as archival material from the Cavett Show. (World Premiere)
“Alt-Right: Age of Rage”
Director/Screenwriter: Adam Bhala Lough
In the first year of Trump’s Presidency, Daryle Lamont Jenkins, an Antifa activist, combats the rise of the Alt-Right movement, while Richard Spencer, an Alt-Right leader, fights to gain ground, culminating in a tragic showdown in Charlottesville. (World Premiere)
“The Bill Murray Stories: Life Lessons Learned From A Mythical Man”
Director: Tommy Avallone, Screenwriters: Tommy Avallone, Max Paolucci
One man’s journey to find meaning in Bill Murray’s many unexpected adventures with everyday people, rare and never-before seen footage of the comedic icon participating in stories previously presumed to be urban legend. (World Premiere)
“Brewmaster”
Director/Screenwriter: Douglas Tirola
Brewmaster follows a young ambitious New York lawyer who struggles to chase his American dream of becoming a brewmaster and a Milwaukee-based professional beer educator, as he attempts to become a Master Cicerone. (World Premiere)
“Daughters of the Sexual Revolution: The Untold Story of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders”
Director: Dana Adam Shapiro
Daughters of the Sexual Revolution is the never-before-told story of Suzanne Mitchell, the fiercely-loyal den mother of the original Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. (World Premiere)
“The Dawn Wall” (Austria, United States)
Directors: Josh Lowell, Peter Mortimer
Legendary free climber Tommy Caldwell tries to get over heartbreak by scaling 3000ft of an impossible rock face: the Dawn Wall of El Capitan. (North American Premiere)
“From All Corners” (Japan)
Director: Ryusuke Okajima
Fuyuki Shimazu, the cardboard picker and artist, creates wallets made from used cardboard which he picks up from 25 countries. His wallets travel around the world to advocate the concept of “upcycling” which is the mind beyond recycling or re-use. (World Premiere)
“Getting Over”
Director/Screenwriter: Jason Charnick
A man discovers a box of interviews with his father, a lifelong heroin addict who died of AIDS in 1997. What he finds will uncover generations of family secrets, forcing him to redefine his own past, doubt his present, and question his future. (World Premiere)
“Nossa Chape” (Brazil, Colombia, United States)
Directors/Screenwriters: Jeff Zimbalist, Michael Zimbalist
Nossa Chape tracks the rebuilding of the Chapecoense football club in Brazil after an airplane carrying the team crashed on November 28th, 2016, and left all but three of the players dead. (World Premiere)
“Operation Odessa”
Director: Tiller Russell
The stranger-than-fiction true story of a Russian mobster, a Miami playboy, and a Cuban spy who teamed up in the early 90’s to sell a Soviet submarine to the Cali Carte. (World Premiere)
“Take Your Pills”
Director: Alison Klayman
Every era gets the drug it deserves. In America today, where competition is ceaseless from school to the workforce and everyone wants a performance edge, Adderall and other prescription stimulants are the defining drugs of this generation. (World Premiere)
“Time Trial” (United Kingdom)
Director: Finlay Pretsell
Time Trial takes us into the final races of cyclist David Millar’s career, leading to his last encounter with the Tour de France. The film reveals how the human spirit is driven by forces deeper than success and glory. (North American Premiere)
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