SXSW

CHICAGO – Season 14 of Chicago’s Asian Pop-Up Cinema (APUC) continues with the Midwest Premiere of “Islands” – written and directed by Martin Edralin – streaming on APUC’s website from April 1st-3rd, 2022, and featuring a post-film Q&A from Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com.

CHICAGO – Of all the films of the recent 2022 SXSW Festival, one documentary stood out as a profile of empathy. Co-directors Zara Katz and Lisa Riordan Seville presented “A Woman on the Outside,” an overview of a Philadelphia activist who advocates for prison reform while actually having – within her own story – three male family members in and out of incarceration.

CHICAGO – As the 2022 SXSW Festival wraps up this weekend, many filmmakers brought their new works, and one that stood out is a new documentary on Voyager, the space probes (1 & 2) that were launched in 1977 and still miraculously are exploring the interstellar galaxy. Filmmaker Billy Miossi profiles the crew keeping tabs on the probes in “it’s Quieter in the Twilight.”

CHICAGO – Groundbreaking filmmakers often start at the South by Southwest Festival. Influencers like the Duplass brothers, Chicago’s Joe Swanberg and Lena Dunham got their first prominent notices at the fest. In that spirit, the 2022 SXSW Grand Jury Awards were announced on March 15th.

CHICAGO – The 2022 SXSW Festival opened Friday with in person events for the first time in THREE years, with its unique mix of music, film, VR and associative networking opportunities. The Opening Night Film on Friday was the Asian American sci-fi film “Everything Everywhere at Once.” There are also participatory online opportunities, for information on joining in, click SXSW2022.

CHICAGO – Filmmaker Kelley Kali just scored a major award at the recent South by Southwest (SXSW) Festival, Grand Jury Recognition for Multi-Hyphenate Storytelling, for a film that she co-wrote, co-directed and acted in the lead role. “I’m Fine (Thanks for Asking)” is a vivid portrait of another America that is happening now.

CHICAGO – Getting his debut film – “Our Father” – into the 2021 South by Southwest (SXSW) Festival was a major achievement for writer/director Bradley Grant Smith, and puts the spotlight on his emerging talent and perspective. Smith is also a musician … he provided the soundtrack for the film as well.

CHICAGO – The virtual/online 2021 SXSW Festival wrapped up on March 20th, after a compacted five day run. The Award Winners were announced on March 19th, and contained themes of redemption, joy, loneliness and reckoning.

CHICAGO – The latest cinematic visionaries are often discovered at the South by Southwest Festival. Filmmakers like the Duplass brothers, Chicago’s Joe Swanberg and Lena Dunham got their first prominent notices at the fest. In that spirit, the 2021 SXSW Grand Jury Awards were announced on March 19th.

CHICAGO – The virtual/online 2021 SXSW Festival began on March 16th, and continues through March 20th. The independent films in the festival touch upon relationships, mother-to-society, sister-to-sister and adult-woman-to-younger-self. Three more film capsules are below.