SXSW 2024 promises to kick up the coolness factor with more content than ever. This year films from every genre and corner of the world assemble to provide festival audiences thrills and chills, laughter and loss, mysteries and mayhem. Cinephiles look to SXSW for cool, creative, and wow films they can discuss all year. The 2024 edition will not disappoint. Here is a list of films we’re keeping our eyes on.

DICKWEED

Two people got kidnapped. One man lost his dick. No-one got any money. This heist-gone-horribly-wrong led one Newport Beach detective on an international manhunt for the most twisted criminal he’d ever hunted. In 2012, Michael, a local weed dispensary owner, got home from work and plopped down on the sofa like any other weeknight. Three hours later he was zip-tied and eating dirt as three men tried to beat him into admitting where he’d buried the million dollars. And he would have gladly told them rather than endure what happened next. The only problem was, he hadn’t buried a million dollars, and after they tortured him and left him to die, he still had no idea who these men were.

I know. This sounds more like a mockumentary than a real-life occurrence. I had to go back and check twice to make sure I was reading the category correctly. SXSW 2024 documentary Dickweed delivers one of the most insane true-crime stories you will ever witness. Twists and turns and utterly unbelievable, this mysterious case will bewilder and entertain. Jonathan Ignatius Green does not disappoint. Get ready to tell everyone about this film, and be prepared for them to think you’re making it all up.

Director/Writer: Jonathan Ignatius Green (The Pez Outlaw, Social Animals) 

Producers: David Ricksecker, Jefferis Gray

Executive Producers: Amy Bandlien Storkel, Bryan Storkel

Running Time: 90 minutes

Film Screenings

ADRIANNE AND THE CASTLE

Inventive and whimsical, Adrianne & The Castle is a true story of great love and loss. Alan St-George is a mascot-maker and artist in rural Illinois who hand-made an ornate and elaborate castle with his late wife Adrianne. Since her death in 2006 he continues to put the finishing touches on Havencrest Castle, which stands as a “temple” dedicated to their transcendent love.

In one of the most stunning love stories ever told, director Shannon Walsh introduces us to a couple like no other, whose fairytale relationship lives on in an extraordinary mansion. 

Director: Shannon Walsh (The Gig Is Up, Illusions Of Control) 

Producer: Ina Fichman (Fire of Love, The Oslo Diaries)

Running Time: 86 mins

Film Screenings

TIMESTALKER

“Timestalker” follows hapless heroine Agnes through time as she repeatedly falls for the wrong guy, dies a grim death, gets reincarnated a century later, before meeting him again and starting the cycle anew. It is one story told over many periods, all with the messy thrills and spills that come with daring to follow your heart. Or maybe your loins…
Agnes’ only hope in avoiding this violent fate is by finally reaching spiritual enlightenment; but how can she ever wise up when she’s destined to be a fool for love? Some lessons are just too hard to learn in one lifetime.

As a self-proclaimed Whovian, you had me at time-hopping. But a unique twist on angsty love is one of the many reasons why audiences come to SXSW 2024. This genre obliterating narratives promises to be one of the year’s best. And if you aren’t already familiar with Alice Lowe, boy are you in for a treat.

Directed by: Alice Lowe
Written by: Alice Lowe
Staring: Alice Lowe, Jacob Anderson, Aneurin Barnard, Tanya Reynolds, Nick Frost

Film Screenings

Darkly funny and in three distinct acts of wackiness, AUDREY is everything you want it to be and way more.

Director:

Natalie Bailey

Screenwriter:

Lou Sanz

Principal Cast:

Jackie Van Beek, Josephine Blazier, Hannah Diviney, Jeremy Lindsay Taylor

Film Screenings

RESYNATOR

In unearthing the Resynator, the revolutionary synthesizer her late father invented in the 1970s, filmmaker Alison Tavel not only revives his mission to share it with the world, she unexpectedly forges a deep bond with the father she never got the chance to know. What starts as a curious resurrection of her dad’s invention soon becomes an insatiable, globe-trotting quest to unearth an authentic portrait of a man she never met. Featuring Peter Gabriel, Fred Armisen, Gotye, Grace Potter and more.

Director:

Alison Tavel

Principal Cast:

Alison Tavel, Grace Potter, Peter Gabriel, Jon Anderson, Fred Armisen, Money Mark, Gotye, Mike Gordon, Brian Kehew, Christian Castagno

Film Screenings

Resynator at Alamo Lamar 4

Mar 10, 2024

6:00pm—7:36pm

Resynator at Rollins Theatre at The Long Center

Mar 13, 2024

6:00pm—7:36pm

Resynator at Satellite Venue: AFS Cinema

Mar 16, 2024

12:00pm—1:36pm

MALTA

Set in Bogotá, this captivating female character study narrates the story of a young Colombian woman who dreams of escaping her suffocating urban reality and traveling the world. However, an unexpected relationship with an unlikely man will make her question her true motives for leaving. 

A quiet purpose-seeking film with relatable themes is all you need to know about Malta. It will hit you no matter your personal background.

Director:

Natalia Santa

Principal Cast:

Estefanía Piñeres, Patricia Tamayo, Emmanuel Restrepo, Diego Cremonesi, Ángela Rodríguez, Edwin Riveros, Tonatiuh Ramírez , Raúl Cuellar

Film Screenings

Mar 9, 2024

2:15pm—3:52pm

Malta at Violet Crown Cinema 3

Mar 9, 2024

2:45pm—4:22pm

Malta at Violet Crown Cinema 2

Mar 11, 2024

3:15pm—4:52pm

Malta at Violet Crown Cinema 4

Mar 11, 2024

3:45pm—5:22pm

Malta at Alamo Lamar 8

Mar 14, 2024

9:45pm—11:22pm

NATATORIUM

Natatorium follows eighteen-year-old Lilja who visits Áróra and Grímur, her estranged grandparents, in the city as she undergoes auditions for an international art performance group. When her father, Magnús and his younger sister Vala, two of Áróra’s and Grimur’s four children, find out about Lilja’s stay in the family house, a sense of panic arises. When the family gathers in the home to celebrate Lilja’s acceptance into the art group, a dark secret emerges, and soon a seemingly normal family celebration turns into a horrifying tragedy that nobody could have foreseen.

Director:

Helena Stefánsdóttir

Screenwriter:

Helena Stefánsdóttiir

Principal Cast:

Ilmur María Arnarsdóttir, Arnar Dan Kristjánsson, Elin Petersdottir, Kristín Pétursdóttir, Stefania Berndsen, Stormur Jón Kormákur Baltasarsson, Jónas Alfreð Birkisson, Valur Freyr Einarsson

Film Screenings

DEAD MAIL

On a desolate, Midwestern county road, a bound man crawls towards a remote postal box, managing to slide a blood-stained plea-for-help message into the slot before a panicking figure closes in behind him. The note makes its way to the county post office and onto the desk of Jasper, a seasoned and skilled “dead letter” investigator, responsible for investigating lost mail and returning it to its sender. As he investigates further, Jasper meets Trent, a strange yet unassuming man who has taken up residence at the men’s home where Jasper lives. When Trent unexpectedly shows up at Jasper’s office, it becomes clear he has a vested interest in the note, and will stop at nothing to retrieve it.

 

Directors: Kyle McConaghy, Joe DeBoer

Principal Cast: Sterling Macer, Jr., John Fleck, Susan Priver, Micki Jackson, Nick Heyman, Tomas Boykin

Film Screenings 

I LOVE YOU FOREVER

The current dating landscape is bleak at best, and no one is more aware of this than Mackenzie, a disillusioned 25-year old law student whose love life consists of non-committal hookups and situationships from hell. When she has a “real life meet-cute” with Finn, a handsome and charming journalist, she starts to believe true love may actually exist. However, when the honeymoon phase wanes and the cracks begin to show, Mackenzie is forced to come to terms with whether or not she is to blame or if her love is actually too good to be true. 

Directed & Written by: Cazzie David, Elisa Kalani

Starring: Sofia Black-D’Elia, Ray Nicholson, Jon Rudnitsky, Cazzie David, Raymond Cham Jr.

Film Screenings

GRAND THEFT HAMLET

January 2021. The UK is in its 3rd lockdown and all entertainment venues remain closed. For theatre actors Sam and Mark, the future looks bleak. As the pandemic drags on, Mark – single and childless – is increasingly socially isolated, while Sam panics about how he is going to support his young family. They spend their days in the online digital world of Grand Theft Auto and when they stumble across a theater, they suddenly have an idea to stage a full production of Hamlet within the game. This film charts their ridiculous, hilarious and moving adventure as they battle violent griefers and discover surprising truths about life, friendship and the enduring power of Shakespeare.

As a theatre major and Shakespeare nerd, the concept of this documentary sounds insane in the best way possible. Navigating multiple genres, audiences, and emotions, GRAND THEFT HAMLET will undoubtedly be the talk of the festival.

Directed by: Pinny Grylls and Sam Crane
Written by: Pinny Grylls and Sam Crane
Starring: Sam Crane, Mark Oosterveen, Jen Cohn

Film Screenings

DESERT ROAD

A woman crashes her car and walks down the road for help – only to find no matter which way she walks she ends up back at her crashed car again

Sci-fi me up any day of the week! Desert Road is a genre thriller, sort of immediately one of our not-so-secret favorite kinds of films here at Reel News Daily. We said what we said. Do not think for one moment you know where this script is going.

Written and Directed By: Shannon Triplett

Produced By: Steven Schneider, Josh Clayton, Kirk Martin, Alec Roth, Lauren Bates, Sam Cohan, Roy Lee

Starring: Kristine Froseth, Frances Fisher, Beau Bridges, Ryan Hurst, D.B. Woodside, Max Mattern, Rachel Dratch, Edwin Garcia II

Film Screenings

FLY

To stand on the edge of a cliff and throw your body into the wind, one has to be willing to lose everything. That could mean the love of your life, or it could be the life you love. Over seven years, FLY follows three couples entwined in the world of BASE jumping risk everything for the rush of feeling truly alive.

This thrilling doc dives heads first (no pun intended) into the intense world of base jumping. You’ve probably seen scary footage of base jumping gone awry, but we’ve never considered how this dangerous pastime affects those who jump together. 

Directed by

Shaul Schwarz and Christina Clusiau

Produced by

Christina Clusiaz and Shaul Schwarz

Film Screenings

WE CAN BE HEROES

From directors Carina Mia Wong and Alex Simmons, WE CAN BE HEROES perfectly captures and celebrates the small, fleeting, but profoundly formative moments that make up the most intense years of adolescence, with a little help from foam swords.

Any self-proclaimed nerd has a space in their heart for LARP. If you think you’re too cool for such a thing, think again. If you’re part of any fandom and you have ever dressed up, well guess what? Get ready to fall in love with this film.

Directors:

Carina Mia Wong, Alex Simmons

Principal Cast:

Dexter, Cloud, Abby, Miranda, Kate, Max, Luisa (formerly Alex), Eli, Adelaide, Judson

Film Screenings

SECRET MALL APARTMENT

In 2003, eight Rhode Island artists created a secret apartment inside the busy Providence Place Mall and lived there for four years, filming everything along the way. They snuck in furniture, tapped into the mall’s electricity, and even constructed a wall, smuggling in more than two tons of cinderblock. Far more than just a wild prank, the secret apartment became a deeply meaningful place for its inhabitants. 

An honest-to-goodness “damn the man” attitude takes center stage in Workman’s documentary. With sitdown interviews and never-before-seen footage of the infamous hideaway, this doc exposes the hearts of artists and the lengths they will go to create.

Director:

Jeremy Workman

Film Screenings

CLEMENTE

Roberto Clemente is one of baseball’s most iconic figures. As the first high-profile Latino player to play in MLB in the United States, Roberto’s extraordinary career opened the door for generations of Latino baseball players to come. However, it is Roberto’s remarkable life off the field that defined his legacy. His fearless fight for social justice and racial equality. His fierce commitment to society’s marginalized and under-represented. His sacrificial death for the victims of the 1972 Nicaraguan earthquake. This is the story of a man who showed that a life lived with passion and conviction can truly change the world. This is the story of an icon.

This baseball legend changed the face of the game. Fans and history buffs alike will be drawn to this in-depth doc.

Director:

David Altrogge

Executive Producer:

Richard Linklater, Roberto Clemente Jr., Luis Roberto Clemente, Enrique Roberto Clemente, Laura Heberton, Duane Rieder, & Jim Evans

Principal Cast:

Vera Clemente, Roberto Clemente Jr., Luis Roberto Clemente, Enrique Clemente, Rita Moreno, Michael Keaton, Tom Morello, Francisco Lindor, Yadier Molina, Bob Costas

Film Screenings

SEW TORN

SEW TORN is a dark comedy thriller written and directed by Freddy Macdonald. Breakout actress Eve Connoly stars as Barbara, ‘The Mobile Seamstress,’ who is struggling to keep her fabric shop alive. After a botched sewing appointment, she unexpectedly stumbles upon a drug deal gone bad. Barbara has three choices: commit the “perfect” crime, call the police or run away. 

A hilarious “what-if” comedy sure to entertain with endless creativity and fantastic performances from Freddy MacDonald. You’ll be surprised how this narrative strings you along. *nudge, nudge, wink, wink*

Director:

Freddy Macdonald

Principal Cast:

Eve Connolly, Calum Worthy, John Lynch, K Callan, Ron Cook, Thomas Douglas, Werner Biermeier, Veronika Herren-Wenger, Caroline Goodall

Film Screenings

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