SXSW continues to up its game
Hollywood stars to unveil their latest projects at annual film festival
LOS ANGELES The 26th edition of the SXSW Film Festival will feature movies directed by Harmony Korine and Olivia Wilde, an untitled romantic comedy starring Seth Rogen and Charlize Theron and a concert film with comedian Kathy Griffin.
The annual gathering in Austin, Texas, which starts on March 8, will open with Jordan Peele’s Us, which was previously announced. The thriller stars Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke and Elisabeth Moss.
There will be 102 features and TV episodes featured over nine days.
In recent years, SXSW has upped its game as a festival that covers a lot of ground.
It reliably launches a few spring studio hits, such as last year’s A Quiet Place and Blockers, and also discovers under-the-radar storytellers. For attendees, there’s also keynote addresses with filmmakers and actors.
The standouts in this year’s lineup include Korine’s The Beach Bum, a much-anticipated comedy starring Matthew Mcconaughey, Snoop Dogg and Zac Efron.
Wilde makes her directorial debut with Booksmart, a comedy about two responsible high school girls who try to cram all the partying they missed into one night.
On the documentary front, there’s Kathy Griffin: A Hell of a Story, the standup comedian’s concert film that chronicles her life after a photo shoot gone wrong involving Donald Trump.
And there’s Running With Beto, about Beto O’rourke’s Texas campaign that came up short to topple Ted Cruz in the Senate.
“We focus on curating the most compelling work that awe have access to,” said Janet Pierson, the head of SXSW Film.
“We want transformational activity to happen for the filmmakers. We want them to get other work.”
How did the festival get Jordan Peele’s new movie? “We begged,” she said.
Variety