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SXSW 2019

SXSW saves a spot for European titles

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- Kicking off tomorrow, the Austin-based festival is welcoming several films hailing from the Continent

SXSW saves a spot for European titles
7 Reasons to Run Away (From Society) by Esteve Soler, Gerard Quinto and David Torras

Having recently become an unmissable event within the US independent film world, the SXSW Film Festival is ready to kick off again in Austin, Texas. From 8-16 March, the gathering is set to host the premieres of eagerly awaited US films such as Us (the new film by Jordan Peele, after his breakout Get Out), The Beach Bum [+see also:
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 and Booksmart (the directorial debut by actress Olivia Wilde). However, in the midst of this US indie frenzy, a batch of European films will also be delighting audiences at the gathering.

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Known for its bold, festive, genre-orientated stylistic choices, the gathering is welcoming some shining examples of this kind of cinema in the Midnighters section, such as the Spanish title 7 Reasons to Run Away (From Society) [+see also:
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, directed by Esteve Soler, Gerard Quinto and David Torras, an anthology film that takes a critical look at today’s society, starring Sergi López, Emma Suárez and Lola Dueñas. The UK is well represented here with Boyz in the Wood [+see also:
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, directed by Ninian Doff, an anarchic comedy starring Eddie Izzard, Kate Dickie, James Cosmo, Kevin Guthrie and Alice Lowe, as well as I See You [+see also:
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, a thriller helmed by Adam Randall, and Tales from the Lodge [+see also:
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, a horror flick directed by Abigail Blackmore.

The Narrative Feature Competition, which is usually completely dedicated to US titles, has this year selected two debut features with European involvement: Ireland’s Extra Ordinary [+see also:
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, a supernatural comedy directed by filmmaking duo Mike Ahern and Enda Loughman, and the Australian-French co-production Alice [+see also:
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, an intimate drama directed by Josephine Mackerras.

The Documentary Feature Competition welcomes two British titles: For Sama [+see also:
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interview: Waad Al-Kateab, Edward Watts
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]
, directed by Waad Al Khateab and Edward Watts, portraying the life of a woman over a period of five years during the uprising in Aleppo, and Nothing Fancy: Diana Kennedy by Elizabeth Carroll, about the titular author, researcher and cook.

In the Narrative Spotlight section, the directorial debut by British actor Tom Cullen (Weekend [+see also:
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, Downton Abbey), Pink Wall [+see also:
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, will bring six years in a relationship between a woman and a man, as well as the pressures of the gender expectations surrounding it, to the screens. The UK-US co-production The Day Shall Come [+see also:
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, a comedy directed by Chris Morris, is also being world-premiered in the section. The Narrative Documentary section is welcoming the Dutch title Bellingcat — Truth in a Post-Truth World [+see also:
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by Hans Pool and the German title Sunset over Hollywood [+see also:
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]
 by Uli Gaulke.

The Visions section, dedicated to audacious and risk-taking filmmakers, will screen the Belgian-Dutch co-production Sakawa [+see also:
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by Ben Asamoah, which world-premiered at the latest IDFA, and Romantic Comedy by British filmmaker Elizabeth Sankey, as well as the Russian film One Man Dies a Million Times by Jessica Oreck.

The European contingent of feature films at the festival is rounded off by the pictures in the Global, Festival Favorites and 24 Beats per Second sections, including titles such as Barbara Vekarić’s Aleksi [+see also:
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, Miia Tervo’s Aurora [+see also:
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interview: Miia Tervo
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]
and Anna Odell’s X&Y [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Anna Odell
film profile
]
.

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