South by Southwest was in full swing in Austin, TX from March 9 to 18, 2018, and Canada was part of this year’s cinematic action. We’ had 16 Canadian films and projects, including three new features: First Light, The New Romantic, and What Keeps You Alive. All three features made their world premieres at the SXSW Film Festival!
Directed and written by B.C.-bred filmmaker Colin Minihan, What Keeps You Alive was part of SXSW Film Festival’s Midnighters section. This thriller is about two women, married to each other, whose first anniversary trip to the country turns into violence and betrayal against one another.
On a lighter note, SXSW was a bit of a family affair this year for sister and brother Carly Stone, director and writer (story by Kyle Mann) of The New Romantic, and Jason Stone director and writer of First Light. Each sibling had a separate world premiere feature at the festival! The New Romantic was part of the Narrative Feature Competition and won the Special Jury Recognition for First Feature at SXSW! This romantic comedy was part of the Telefilm Canada Feature Comedy Exchange and tells the story of a college student who opts for a sugar daddy/ sugar baby relationship. Our Canadian filmmaking talents are working with hot actors like Jessica Barden (known for The End of the F***ing World), Camila Mendes (Riverdale), and Canadian actress Hayley Law (Riverdale), who all star in the film!
As for First Light, that screened in the SXSW Film Festival’s Narrative Spotlight section, this science fiction feature follows two teens who run away after an encounter with “mysterious lights” that gave one of them special powers.
This year, the RDV CANADA bungalow offered a flurry of fun stuff: screenings, virtual and augmented reality projects, and live performances by Canadian musicians Milk & Bone, Pierre Kwenders, and Kardinal Offishall. Each day, from March 11-13th, RDV Canada was a one-stop-shop for more than 500 canucks interested in partnering with Canada’s awesome audiovisual industry and its diverse talent; or simply a fans of great movies, music, and stories.
Special mentions go out to…
- The New Romantic won special Jury Recognition for First Feature
- My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes won Best Documentary Short
- Milk wins Best Midnight Short
See some of our highlights!