SXSW Film Festival Announces Midnight Features, Shorts Program

News

Last week, the South by Southwest Film Festival announced a selection of the feature films that will be screening during the week-long conference in Austin, Texas. Noticeably missing were the titles included in the Midnighters and SXFantastic line-up.

The Midnighters line-up has previously introduced the film world to directors such as Ti West, Eli Roth and Scott Glosserman. The SXFantastic sidebar is another, complimentary series of midnight films programed by Fantastic Fest, the world famous Austin-based genre film festival that takes place during the fall. Last year, the festival saw the world premiere of Gareth Edwards’ Monsters and A Serbian Film.

Here is the full line-up of the Midnighters and SXFantastic sections:

MIDNIGHTERS

Attack The Block (UK-England)
Director & Writer: Joe Cornish
A funny, frightening action adventure movie that pits a teen gang against an invasion of alien monsters. It turns a tower block into a sci-fi playground. It’s inner city versus outer space. Cast: Jodie Whittaker, John Boyega, Alex Esmail, Franz Drameh, Leeon Jones, Simon Howard, Luke Treadaway, Jumayn Hunter and Nick Frost (World Premiere)

The Divide (US-Canada)
Director: Xavier Gens, Writers: Karl Mueller & Eron Sheean
To survive the end of the world…you must first survive each other. Cast: Michael Biehn, Milo Ventimiglia, Lauren German, Rosanna Arquette, Courtney B. Vance (World Premiere)

Hobo With a Shotgun
Director: Jason Eisner, Writer: John Davies
A Hobo finds himself in an urban hell. When he witnesses a brutal robbery, he realizes the only way to deliver justice is with a shotgun. Cast: Rutger Hauer, Gregory Smith, Molly Dunsworth, Brian Downey, Nick Bateman

Insidious
Director: James Wan, Writer: Leigh Whannell
Dark spirits have possessed the home of a family whose son has fallen into a coma.  Trying to save him, the family moves only to realize that it was not their house that was haunted. Cast: Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Lin Shaye, Ty Simpkins, Barbara Hershey (U.S. Premiere)

Phase 7 / Fase 7 (Argentina)
Director & Writer: Nicolas Goldbart
Coco just moved to his new apartment with 7-month pregnant wife. When the building is in quarantined for a deadly flu. The neighbors became unexpected enemies. Cast: Daniel Hendler, Federico Luppi, Jazmin Stuart, Jose “Yayo” Guridi (North American Premiere)


SXFANTASTIC

Cold Sweat / Sudor Frio
Director: Adrián Garcia Bogliano, Writers: Adrián Garcia Bogliano, Ramiro García Bogliano, Hernán Moyano
What do you do if you are a right-wing Argentinean terrorist and your state-sanctioned organization is disbanded?  We can’t say, but it involves chat rooms, bare breasts and a generous slathering of nitro-glycerine. Cast: Facundo Espinosa, Marina Glezer, Camila Velasco, Omar Musa, Noelia Vergini (International Premiere)

George the Hedgehog / Jeż Jerzy (Poland)
Director: Wojciech Wawszczyk, Writer: Rafał Skarżycki
Jez Jerzy is a skateboarding hedgehog who likes to drink beer and fondle breasts.  He finds it hard to pursue his passions, however, while being tormented by neo-nazi skinheads, mad scientists and a drooling, flatulent clone of himself. Cast: Borys Szyc, Maria Peszek, Maciej Maleńczuk, Sokół, Michał Koterski (International Premiere)

KILL LIST (UK)
Director: Ben Wheatley, Writers: Ben Wheatley & Amy Jump
A dark and twisted horror from the mind of director Ben Wheatley. Cast: Neil Maskell, Michael Smiley, MyAnna Buring (World Premiere)

Little Deaths (UK)
Directors & Writers: Sean Hogan, Andrew Parkinson & Simon Rumley
A psychosexual horror anthology comprised of three separate stories dealing with the twin themes of sex and death. Cast: Kate Braithewaite, Daniel Brocklebank, Brendan Gregory, Siubhan Harrison, Jodie Jameson (North American Premiere)

The FP
Directors & Writers: Jason Trost & Brandon Trost
For years an underground war has raged for dominance over the town of Frazier Park between two clans. Dominance isn’t determined through fistfights or petty brawls, but the dancing video game Beat-Beat Revelation. Cast: Jason Trost, Lee Valamassy, Caitlyn Folley, Art Hsu, Nick Principe (World Premiere)

Also missing were the 150 short films that will screen as part of twelve overall shorts programs. For more information about the SXSW Film Lineup (including features and  the complete list of shorts), visit www.sxsw.com/film. For more information about SXFantastic and Fantastic Fest, visit www.fantasticfest.com/sxfantastic/.

The SXSW Film Festival will begin Friday, March 11, 2011 with the opening night film, Duncan Jones’ Source Code. Inside Pulse will be present at the festival all week — providing news, reviews and interviews with the filmmakers in attedence.

Robert Saucedo is an avid movie watcher with seriously poor sleeping habits. The Mikey from Life cereal of film fans, Robert will watch just about anything — good, bad or ugly. He has written about film for newspapers, radio and online for the last 10 years. This has taken a toll on his sanity — of that you can be sure. Follow him on Twitter at @robsaucedo2500.