For the past two days, the iconic Austin venue Mohawk played host to the annual House of Vans, featuring a mix of primarily rock and hip hop acts – some well established and plenty emerging. But it was the surprise addition of At The Drive-In during the event’s first night that proved to be the…
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Austin, Texas based outfit Spoon proved to be one of the hottest tickets this week at SXSW as they performed a residency of intimate shows at The Main (Formerly Emo’s) in the heart of their hometown. Across three nights at the venue, which wrapped up earlier tonight, the band played different setlists featuring tracks old…
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The MTV Woodies were hosted by Rick Ross for SXSW 2017, as punters were treated to some performances by established and emerging artists from across the hip hop, pop and rock realms. Taking out the four awards for this year were The Chainsmokers (“Woodie of the Year”), Ed Sheeran (“Cover Woodie” for his cover of Little Mix‘s “Touch”), Khalid (“Woodie to Watch”) and PARTYNEXTDOOR (“Songwriter of…
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This week, the annual SXSW Film Festival took place, with award winners just announced. Featuring an all-star jury including Kristen Bell, Becky Cloonan and more, the jury selected winners across a variety of categories including Narrative Feature, Film Design, Short Film Making, Documentary Feature and Excellence in Poster and Title Design among others. The 2017…
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Saint Heron descended upon the Coppertank for SXSW 2017, with Solange herself performing a brilliant headline set to mark the first day of YouTube’s programming. Joining the Saint Heron queen on stage throughout the day were some of 2017’s buzz names including Aminé, JAIN, James Hersey and Earthgang – sticking to YouTube’s directive of spotlighting some of…
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When I was nineteen I spent three straight days without sleeping. I had just moved to Tokyo and couldn’t cope with the light pollution or the sounds from the trains that ran behind my flat. I would spend the nights listening to relaxing music and watch films during the day. On the third morning at…
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Media Temple hosted their annual SXSW Interactive Closing Party on Tuesday night at Austin, Texas’ prolific Stubbs’ concert venue. The event was filled with a lot of rock, rage and the perfect dose of nostalgia. Pennywise and Jimmy Eat World headlined the annual close out to the Interactive portion of the festival. Past headliners have included…
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Based on award winning Greek-Australian author Christos Tsiolkas’ short story Porn 1, Adult is an unflinching portrayal of the adult film industry and the mark its key figures leave on their loved ones. Set in a time long ago when the humble VHS was still a thing, Writer/Director Jamieson Pierce’s short centres on elderly Greek…
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There’s no doubt about it, Netflix are on a path to global domination. With a slew of well received original TV programming to their name already, the streaming giant have now turned their attention to taking on the film industry and the Hollywood studio system. The exceptional biopic The Most Hated Woman in America is…
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This one looks saucy! The first trailer for action thriller Atomic Blonde has been released ahead of its SXSW debut and it looks brilliant. Starring Charlize Theron as Lorraine Broughton, the film sees the undercover MI6 agent sent to Berlin during the Cold War to investigate the murder of a fellow agent and recover a missing list…
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Bonnie is young and worldly, holds a job as an architect and lives in NYC. She has good friends, a pretty good social life and is in a stable relationship with a man who is equally as upwardly mobile, enjoying the same perks as anyone with a career in a city able to hold the…
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During a special Q&A at the Lionsgate Lounge at SXSW, two-time Academy Award winner Justin Hurwitz hit the stage and the piano to discuss the processes behind composing the music for La La Land. At the end of the almost hour long talk, which included a number of brief performances from Hurwitz as he detailed how…
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One of the most anticipated panels at SXSW this year was one featuring the cast and showrunner of the acclaimed HBO comedy series Veep, which returns for a ten episode sixth season on April 16th. The panel, which was the show’s first at SXSW, featured writer/executive producer David Mandel, executive producer/star Julia Louis-Dreyfus and cast…
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A delightfully nasty horror movie that draws on real-life inspiration, Lake Bodom hopes to be more than just a Friday The 13th-type slasher, in large part to its true crime connection, but ultimately can’t overcome its conventionality – not that there’s anything wrong with that. What still remains one of Europe’s greatest unsolved mysteries, the…
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Porn is a big business. In just six years the planet has watched over a million years’ worth of videos and 100 billion pages are visited and streamed annually. But is there a dark side to the industry? Ovidie, a French journalist and former porn-star attempts to answer this question in her documentary film, Pornocracy,…
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As Donald Trump continues promoting his idea of building a wall between the US and Mexico it’s heartening to see that there are some people taking a different approach. Through The Repellent Fence: A Land Art Film is a documentary about a land art installation that attempted to reinforce the notion that borders are an…
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It’s hard not to feel a large sense of relief after reaching the end of Mark Webber‘s latest directorial piece that is Flesh and Blood. Not because the film was a tough watch (which in a way, it is), but rather because you are given the chance to leave the cinema and return to what…
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When Mara (Jessica Kaye) returns to her childhood home of Belize bringing her lover Aaron (Daniel Ahearn) with the hope to reconnect with her estranged father and brother who live there. After landing, she is met with the heart-breaking news that her father has just passed away, shortly before his 70th birthday. Mara is distraught but does…
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From writer, photographer and filmmaker Theo Anthony, Rat Film is a documentary that hooks you in and deserves a pedestal. The feature-length film focuses on rats and their lives as a way to explore Baltimore’s urban history and how humans interact with their world. It is clever yet confronting to see rats up close and…
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If there was one thing Jiro Dreams of Sushi did, it was set a precedent that documentaries can be about literally anything. The evidence is in cable broadcasting and the phenomena of reality TV series. There are entire channels dedicated to reality TV programs, filling endless time slots with narratives on cat trainers or house…
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Assuredly disturbing and revelling in its ability to flip the conventions of the serial killer genre, Ben Young‘s debut feature Hounds of Love is one for those that appreciate their stories without gloss. Counterbalancing its Christmas setting with a tale unflinching in its disturbing nature, this Australian thriller manages to escape the confinements of the “torture porn”…
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More juicy showcases are being revealed for SXSW, with Pandora’s updated showcases featuring Jimmy Eat World, Future Islands, and Australia’s Tkay Maidza. The music discovery platform Pandora has lined up four days of superb showcases, which they will be livestreaming, along with artist interviews, on the Pandora at SXSW station. Tune in from March 13-16th to get the lowdown,…
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It’s no grand overstatement – the House of Vans parties at SXSW are legendary. You stand the chance of seeing the likes of Erykah Badu play the intimate outdoor stage alongside Kelela and Grouplove. Inside, the party continues while the drinks flow. Mohawk plays the perfect host and has been one of our favourite haunts…
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It’s SXSW time again and as Austin gears up for the influx of thousands upon thousands of people from all over the world ready to call the Texan city home until March 19th, we’ve got our sights firmly planted on the global music program that has once again, pulled together hundreds of artists primed for…
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Kicking off in Austin tomorrow, this year’s SXSW has one of their most eclectic line-ups ever, full of hidden treasures through the entire line-up. Trying to cut it down to just ten picks of the event proved impossible, so here are our 11 picks of the films you can’t miss at South by Southwest 2017:…
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US network AMC have revealed its biggest ever presence at SXSW in Austin, Texas, with a pop-up Los Pollos Hermanos restaurant from Better Call Saul amongst its most prominent activation at the iconic festival. The network also will have presence from their brand new series The Son and returning favourite Preacher – which originally premiered…
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The musical mecca that is SXSW is fast nearing, with an amazing suite of showcases announced for the Mazda Studio at Empire, presented by SPIN, Stereogum and VIBE. Sharing the stage with some massive acts, including Danny Brown, Mastodon, The New Pornographers, Beach Slang and Chastity Belt, is Australia’s own Tkay Maidza, a mammoth accomplishment for the South Australian artist….
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Melbourne’s Josh Cashman is another talented Aussie artist set for his SXSW debut in Austin this month; ahead of all the chaos, we check in to see how the new few weeks are lined up for him! Have you played SXSW before? How are you anticipating heading to Austin? This is my first time! Excited, nervous, a whole…
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Elle Graham, aka Woodes, is headed to Austin for her first SXSW, despite being well-seasoned traveller to the US, this month. Already an exciting name on the Australian scene, Woodes’ music is bound to go down a treat with the Americans as part of the strong alternative and electronic contingent of Australians set to be on…
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The Oh Yeah Wow team have been behind some intriguing and entertaining pieces of film for the likes of Gotye and The Paper Kites in the past, but most recently, their attention has been turned to the story of a woman and her love for a parasite. The brains behind Millington‘s music video for “Being”, in competition at SXSW…
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