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The News Reel - Thursday, July 9, 2009

jim — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:52:15 -0500

Cinematical points out that Hulu is currently hosting the first 8 minutes of The Hurt Locker, a spolight premiere at SXSW 2009. Mild spoilers, but that's sort of the point.

IFC.com features a fascinating, provocative comparison of two of the big releases of the week, both of which enjoyed a SXSW presence. Brüno and Humpday are both on release from tomorrow.

The Financial Times also takes a look at Bruno, with another mention for Jeffery Levy-Hinte's Soul Power, a US premiere at SXSW 2009.
Both films feature again, in the latest edition of The Guardian's Film Weekly Podcast.

Check out this review of Eric Kutner & Adam Goldstein's The Snake, a special screening at SXSW 2009.

Congratulations to SXSW alum Katherine Dieckmann (Diggers, 2007), whose latest feature, Motherhood has just been picked up by iDeal Partners Film Fund and Killer Films.

End of Day Friday is Deadline for Programming Proposals

hugh — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:36:38 -0500

Over the last few weeks, SXSW has received lots of great ideas for panels at the 2010 event. But, we know that the SXSW community is stocked with many many more amazing brainstorms about the most relevant concepts, issues, innovations, improvements, and changes with regards to new media, music and film. So, if you are part of this international community and you have a great panel idea for next spring, then we want to hear from you ASAP! Please send us your idea via the SXSW Panelpicker interface. And please hurry -- this interface closes at 11:59 pm Central Time on Friday, July 10.

Panel Proposal Deadline is Friday, July 10

hugh — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:07:50 -0500

One of the biggest strengths of SXSW is the creativity and innovation of the worldwide community that attends the event every March in Austin. The intellect of this audience is one of the reasons we give these people so much power in terms of panel programming.

If you have a great idea for a panel or a solo presentation at SXSW, then we want to hear from you. Please submit your idea via the PanelPicker interface by the end of the day on Friday, July 10. Get more information on how this process works by reading the PanelPicker FAQ.

Photo by Mary Sledd

The News Reel - Wednesday, July 08, 2009

jim — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 11:36:20 -0500

SXSW 2008 world premiere New Orleans Mon Amour hits VOD, via Cinetic Film Buff. The film will be available from July 15, with a subsequent roll out on iTunes and Amazon VOD. More info at Variety.

San Jose's Mercury News takes a closer look at "wizard wrock", as featured in the Harry Potter fan doc We Are Wizards, a world premiere at last year's SXSW. Find out what the fuss is about by watching the whole thing at Hulu right now.

As today is actually humpday, why not check out Interview Magazine's interview with Lynn Shelton, director of SXSW 2009 spotlight premiere Humpday.

Director Kathryn Bigelow reveals her five favorite films to Rotten Tomatoes. Bigelow's latest, The Hurt Locker was a spotlight premiere at SXSW 2009 and is currently on release. Meanwhile, Film School Rejects have just posted a new clip and some posters from the film.

The inescapable Brüno is on his way to world domination, but before that happens, watch this interview with creator Sacha Baron Cohen on last night's Letterman. SXSW 2009 played host to a special sneak peek of footage from Brüno, which is released on Friday.

The News Reel - Tuesday, July 7, 2009

jim — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 11:54:35 -0500

IndieWIRE takes a look at the ups and downs of the last 6 months in the specialty box office. Plenty of SXSW films among the ups, including Moon and The Hurt Locker, who are both "en route to healthy final tallies".

Congratulations to all the SXSW 2009 films that won awards in the Incredibly Strange section of the New Zealand International Film Festival. The twist? Er...the festival hasn't opened yet. More info here (via Facebook - requires login).

A world premiere at SXSW way back in 2004, Yasuaki Nakajima's sci-fi opus After The Apocalypse is finally available to a wider audience. Thanks to Cinetic, you can get it now at iTunes and Amazon.

Variety has just posted a new review of SXSW 2009 world premiere Brock Enright: Good Times Will Never Be The Same.

New Yorkers, head out this Friday for a Rooftop Films screening of SXSW 2009 award winner and world premiere The Way We Get By. If that's not enough, follow it up on Saturday with 45365, which also received its world premiere, and an award, at SXSW 2009.

Four More Days To Submit Panel Ideas For SXSW 2010!

melissa — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 11:24:29 -0500

Have a great panel or presentation idea for SXSW 2010? Send it in now! You don't have much time left. The deadline to submit ideas for the Music, Film and Interactive Conferences is this Friday, July 10th!

Here's a tip: The competition for panel slots at SXSW Interactive is tough (given how many proposals the event has already received) -- so if you want to increase your chances, submit an idea for Music or Film.

Make sure you read the FAQ for all the info you need and hurry up and submit!

The News Reel - Monday, July 6, 2009

jim — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:49:01 -0500

Don't miss another chance to catch Gary Hustwit's SXSW world premiere Objectified, which begins a 3 day run from tonight at the Alamo Ritz. The event is presented by the AIGA Design Series.

The New York Times tackles a couple of SXSW 2009 films, in the form of Lynn Shelton's spotlight premiere, Humpday, and Jeffrey Levy-Hinte's US premiere, Soul Power.

Daryl Wein's SXSW 2008 world premiere Sex Positive gets a closer look at Houston's Examiner. They're also drawing attention to another doc, The Way We Get By, a world premiere at this year's SXSW.

Yet another SXSW 2009 world premiere, Trust Us, This Is All Made Up is featured today as SpoutBlog posts an interview with director Alex Karpovsky.

The News Reel - Friday, July 3, 2009

jim — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:48:24 -0500

A new interview with director Bradley Beesley has cropped up on his Sweethearts of The Prison Rodeo website. The doc was a world premiere at SXSW 2009.

Jennifer Steinman's SXSW 2009 world premiere Motherland has been announced for an August 26 release by burgeoning digital distro outfit Gigantic Digital.

New York magazine talks to Youssou N'Dour, star of SXSW 2009 premiere
Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love.

Anvil! The Story of Anvil continues to entrance audiences around the country. Check out some regional reviews here, here and here.

Twitch has posted a new French trailer for Ong Bak 2, which played at SXSW 2009 as part of SXSW Presents: Fantastic Fest @ Midnight.

The News Reel - Thursday, July 2, 2009

jim — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:44:53 -0500

Crawford director David Modigliani has just launched Flow Nonfiction, a commercial production arm with collaborators Matt Naylor and David Rice. For more info, check out the official site for flownonfiction.com. Crawford was a world premiere at SXSW 2008.

Anyone who saw 500 Days of Summer at SXSW 2009 may remember that Zooey Deschanel's apparent resemblance to a 'Jenny Beckman' is "purely accidental". Well, Cinematical has kindly lifted the lid on the enigma of Jenny Beckman, who it seems is very much a real person.

Meanwhile, Hollywood Reporter suggests that 500 Days of Summer is spearheading an an industry-wide foray into "smart, quirky movies for a sophisticated young audience."

"'Jesus Camp' meets 'Lost in La Mancha'"
Indeed. SXSW 2007 world premiere Audience of One is available next month on DVD. More details here.

SXSW Brings the Sun to Roskilde Music Festival

melissa — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:58:25 -0500

We are excited to announce our unique partnership with the Roskilde Festival and Austin-based Sol Design Lab, in a mutual exchange that will explore both the artistic and practical applications of clean energy. At this year’s Roskilde Festival, (July 2 - 5, 2009) outside Copenhagen, Denmark, the SXSW sponsored SolarPump™ will make its debut. Incorporating cutting-edge solar technology and the adaptive re-use of a classic symbol of American fuel culture, this innovative Solar Charging station will power electric scooters that members of the media can use to travel back and forth from the Media Village (in the center of the festival grounds) to the Press Center about a mile away (where the media can use the facilities to file stories). The SolarPump™ will also serve as a practical and eye-catching tool to educate festival-goers about the possibilities of Solar Power, from both a technological and a creative point of view.

Designed by Austin-based Sol Design Lab, the SolarPump™ project is part art, part education and part practicality. It was created in February 2009, when Beth Ferguson, (a MFA candidate at the University of Texas at Austin), debuted it as her graduate project, with the intention of helping people re-imagine the future of transportation by showing solar powered mobility in action. Using the reclaimed body of a 1950’s gas station pump retrofitted with solar panels, she installed an innovative system to harness solar energy to charge electric scooters, laptops, cell phones, cameras, etc. (any item that uses a standard electric plug). In consultation with SXSW staff, Ferguson redesigned and modified the Pump to be truly portable, temporary and suitable for outdoor events. The Pump was fabricated and assembled by Ferguson’s Sol Design Lab in consultation with Austin Energy, Lighthouse Solar and with assistance from the University of Texas Department of Art. The batteries and electric scooters are being supplied locally in Denmark, and Roskilde is providing space and other support for the assembly on-site.

SXSW would like to thank the following for their support: Austin Energy, Department of Art & Art History at the University of Texas at Austin, Lighthouse Solar and Maverick Solar.

From left to right - Designer Beth Ferguson and Lula Marcondes, of Sol Design Lab, and Rick Mansfield from the University of Texas at Austin Art Department surround the SolarPump™ produced for the 2009 Roskilde Festival.