A second wave of film and television programming has been announced for this year’s South by Southwest Conference and Festivals, with highlights including the series debuts of “Swarm” and Steven Yeun starring “Beef” on opening and closing night, respectively.
A full list of honorees in the visions, global presented by MUBI, 24 beats and festival favorites categories was also unveiled in tandem with additions to previously announced sections.
“The second wave of our lineup signals that the countdown to SXSW is on! The hype train is officially leaving the station, baby!” said Claudette Godfrey, V.P. of film and TV at SXSW. “From thought-provoking documentaries and thrilling television series, to hotly anticipated studio tentpoles and micro-budget dramas, we strive to showcase the best of a diverse range of work, and couldn’t be more proud of this year’s lineup.”
From co-creators Donald Glover and Janine Nabers comes the March 10 world premiere of “Swarm,” which follows a woman named Dre (Dominique Fishback) whose all-consuming reverence for a fictional pop star takes a dark turn. Chloe Bailey, half of the musical duo Chloe X Halle and a recurring star on “Grown-ish,” will also perform in the project alongside “Snowfall” star Damson Idris.
“Beef” also falls under the categorization of dark comedy, though the show’s narrative revolves around how a road rage incident between two strangers permanently alters their lives forever. Steven Yeun, Ali Wong, Maria Bello, Joseph Lee and Justin H. Min are among performers taking center stage in the series under the guidance of showrunner Lee Sung Jin. The first episode will premiere globally March 18.
Headliner presentation “Tetris” stars Taron Edgerton in the story of the American video game salesman who discovered Tetris in 1988 and the drama behind bringing it to the U.S.
The 2023 festival includes 108 features, including 73 world premieres, three international premieres, nine North American premieres and six U.S. premieres, as well as 15 television premieres.
This year’s celebration also marks the first-ever offering of opening and closing night premieres for TV programming. “Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” was previously revealed as the festival’s opening night feature, but the closing night film has yet to be announced.
SXSW 2023 is set for March 10-19 in Austin, Texas. For the updated lineup of film and TV programming, see below.
HEADLINERS
“Bottoms” – World Premiere
“Tetris” – World Premiere
NARRATIVE SPOTLIGHT
“Appendage” – World Premiere
“Blackberry” (Canada) – North American Premiere
“Cora Bora” – World Premiere
“Hail Mary” – World Premiere
“The Long Game” – World Premiere
“National Anthem” – World Premiere
“Northern Comfort” (Germany, Iceland, United Kingdom) – World Premiere
“Peak Season” – World Premiere
“This Closeness” – World Premiere
“War Pony” – North American Premiere
“You Sing Loud, I Sing Louder” – World Premiere
documentARY SPOTLIGHT
“Art for Everybody” – World Premiere
“Black Barbie: A documentary” – World Premiere
“Citizen Sleuth” – World Premiere
“Satan Wants You” (Canada) – World Premiere
“This World is Not My Own” – World Premiere
“Wild Life” – Texas Premiere
“You Can Call Me Bill” – World Premiere
MIDNIGHTERS
“Furies” (Vietnam) – Festival Premiere
VISIONS
“The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster” (World Premiere)
“Anhell69” (Colombia) – U.S. Premiere
“The Artifice Girl” – U.S. Premiere
“Caterpillar” – World Premiere
“Chronicles of a Wandering Saint” (Argentina, U.S.) – World Premiere
“Molli And Max In The Future” – World Premiere
“Secaderos” (Spain, U.S.) – International Premiere
“Until Branches Bend” (Canada, Switzerland) – U.S. Premiere
“With Love and a Major Organ” (Canada) – World Premiere
“The Young Wife” – World Premiere
24 BEATS PER SECOND
“299 Queen Street West” (Canada) – World Premiere
“Hung Up on a Dream” – World Premiere
“Joan Baez I Am A Noise” – North American Premiere
“Louder Than You Think” – World Premiere
“Love to Love You, Donna Summer” – U.S. Premiere
“Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes” – World Premiere
“Rebelión” (Colombia) – North American Premiere
“Revival69: The Concert That Rocked the World” (Canada, France) – U.S. Premiere
GLOBAL Presented by MUBI
“Ek Jagah Apni” (India) – North American Premiere
“Kite Zo A” (Canada, Haiti) – International Premiere
“My Drywall Cocoon” (Brazil) – World Premiere
“The Ordinaries” (Germany) – U.S. Premiere
“Sister & Sister” (Panama) – World Premiere
FESTIVAL FAVORITES
“Fancy Dance” – Texas Premiere
“Food and Country” – Texas Premiere
“Fremont” – Texas Premiere
“Going Varsity in Mariachi” – Texas Premiere
“Is There Anybody Out There?” (United Kingdom) – Texas Premiere
“It’s only Life After All” – Texas Premiere
“Kokomo City” – Texas Premiere
“Little Richard: I Am Everything” – Texas Premiere
“No Ordinary Campaign” – Texas Premiere
“Plan C” – Texas Premiere
“Robert Irwin: A Desert of Pure Feeling” – Texas Premiere
“The Starling Girl” – Texas Premiere
“STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie” – Texas Premiere
TV PREMIERES
“American Born Chinese” – World Premiere
“A Small Light” – World Premiere
“Beef” – World Premiere
“The Big Door Prize” – World Premiere
“Love & Death” – World Premiere
“The Luckiest Guy in the World: The Bill Walton Story” – World Premiere
“Lucky Hank” – World Premiere
“Rabbit Hole” – World Premiere
“Swarm” – World Premiere
TV SPOTLIGHT
“Demascus” – World Premiere
“Shatter Belt” – World Premiere
documentARY SHORTS COMPETITION
“How to Rig an Election: The Racist History of the 1876 Presidential Contest” – World Premiere
XR EXPERIENCE SPOTLIGHT
“From the Main Square” (Germany) – U.S. Premiere
“J. Balvin Futurum: A VR Concert Experience”
“MLK: Now is the Time”
“Symbiosis” (Netherlands)
XR EXPERIENCE SPECIAL EVENTS
“metaverse Music Concert” – World Premiere
