The two words I was hearing on everyone's lips here in Austin - at least on Friday and Saturday - were
spring and
break, and it was difficult to respond to this with anything but full and enthusiastic agreement. Given the sunny 80-degree weather, and Austin's slacker charm welcoming the mass of excited filmmakers and industry attendees, the vacation connotation was obvious.
Despite the casual vibe here, navigating SXSW is not for the laid-back. With a strong lineup of concurrent premieres, panels and films in competition (and with theaters filling up quickly) attendees have their hands full. The pre-screening and sidewalk chatter is overwhelmingly positive, and there's simply more to see than time permits.
As expected, the world premiere of
Manufacturing Dissent last night drew both long lines and a heated Q&A. Filmmakers
Debbie Melnyk & Rick Caine took the wide range of questions and criticisms in stride, but it remains to be seen how the conversation about the film's merits will develop, especially amidst the pandora's box of ethical questions about non-fiction filmmaking it opens.
Michael Tucker & Petra Epperlein's The Prisoner, Or: How I Planned to Kill Tony Blair received a strong response following its at-capacity screening this morning, and many people (myself included) are looking forward to SXSW favorite
Joe Swanberg's Hannah Takes The Stairs, which has its premiere at the Paramount this evening.
But the laid-back energy that kicked off the fest has certainly picked up. With this morning's arrival of clouds and then rain (not to mention our collective loss of an hour's worth of sleep), SXSW07 settled into a more rigorous and frenzied pace, as it moves into night #3.
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posted by Durier Ryan @ 3/11/2007 02:04:00 PM
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