In little over a months the city will swell as South by Southwest takes over downtown Austin. And the over 200,000 expected festival attendees have no shortage of events to attend: Today, SXSW released its film lineup, totaling 109 features.
Film Conference and Festival Producer Janet Pierson writes that this year’s lineup “embraces love and the need/search/desire for connection.”
As a sign of the festival’s ever-growing international popularity, the selection committee received a record 5,682 submissions; that figure is seven percent higher than in 2012.
The 20th anniversary of theSouth by Southwest Film Conference and Festival will feature 68 first-time filmmakers and 69 world premieres during the nine-day festival, beginning March 8.
Some of the headliners at this year’s event include: “Hawking,” a look at the life of Stephen Hawking; “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone,” a comedy starring Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Olivia Wilde and Jim Carrey; and Texas-natives Lyle Lovett and Willie Nelson in “When Angels Sing.”
Set in Austin, “TheBounceback” is one among the 18 selections in the Narrative Spotlight category; the world premiere is an “outrageous comedy about love and revenge in Texas.”
The festival received over 614 submissions from international filmmakers. Among the selected foreign films is the UK feature “Everyone’s Going to Die,” in which “sexy beavers on roller-skates” play a role in the story about “coming home, getting by and the redemptive power of feeling you’re not alone.”
The full lineup can be found on the SXSW website.
