Photos by Pooneh Ghana more ›

The 2011 Austin Film Festival is drenched in docs, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. The Marquee Screening category is made up of a chunk of compelling nonfiction—previewed here—that then spills over into the genre-specific Documentary Feature Competition category. more ›

This Sunday Austin Film Festival will host A Conversation in Film: Making Your First Feature. Leading said conversation will be writers/directors Brian Scott Hunt (Savior Red), Storme Wood (Paradise Recovered) and Stephen Belyeu (Dig). All three recently finished making their first feature films. more ›

It's the first Indie Picks column of the year and both of the new releases worth talking about in town debuted locally at the Austin Film Festival last fall. Just be warned that if you watch these two movies back to back, you may need to spend some time with a therapist. more ›

The Austin Film Festival is in full swing, as evidenced by the badges swinging around the necks of thousands pale-skinned film geeks sprinting from panel to theater to round table. Austinist is proud to be among their ranks. Between glad-handing with like-minded people and scarfing complimentary snacks, we have managed to hit up a few events. We have learned, and we have been entertained (you could even say we’ve been, um,” infotained.” Uh, right?) Amidst all the running, note taking, and battling for good seats at the hottest tickets of the fest, we have gleaned a few thoughts, ideas, musings, and observations. Herewith, our thoughts from the front lines (contributed by film writers Matthew Frederick and Nick Barbieri and news editor Elizabeth S). more ›

Peter is one of four zany East Texas outsiders that travel with musician Country Willie in a shoddy “Green Hell” bus so that Willie can jam out with Legendary Stardust Cowboy (who inspired David Bowie with Ziggy Stardust…at least with his word choice). Each eccentric has his own unique reason for traveling to California in Rainbows End, one of eight intriguing offerings in Austin Film Festival’s Documentary Feature Competition. more ›

This documentary explores the gang culture of the late 60’s and early 70’s. Using incredible “you are there” footage and present day interviews with some of the gangs’ leaders, director Shan Nicholson digs deep into this world. They struggled to survive, then to conquer, and later, to make peace, eventually finding comfort in a new type of music that would come to be called “hip hop.” more ›

It’s all Hollywood Weird and true love with Bernardo Puccio and Orin Kennedy in Austin Film Festival Marquee Screening An Ordinary Couple. The documentary, co-presented by aGLIFF, began when Pucio and Kennedy visited the Hollywood Forever Cemetery to design, create, and oversee the construction of their massive future resting place. An odd, meaningful moment and/or a great excuse for the well-versed hosts to throw a unique, fabulous party? Both, we think. On top of a 12-foot monument, the internment plans included a life story film that inspired cemetery videographer Jay Gianukos to channel his documentarian skills and further explore the kooky, whimsical Pucio/Kennedy relationship. more ›

As the people start to flock into town and more and more talk around town is about the upcoming Austin Film Festival, we are starting to get really excited. There are some incredibly talented people and equally amazing movies coming to town, and more premieres than you can shake a stick at (um, not that you’d want to. Why is that an expression?). And when you’re not at a conference or your last film’s final credits have rolled…it’s time to party! No need to check your schedule. We’ve got all the info you need on all the big events. Read on… more ›

Pixar, through their partnership with Walt Disney, have released some of the most successful and iconic animated films of all time. Over the last fifteen years, they've used state of the art computer animation to craft stories of toys, cars, fish, monsters, cooking rats, and bugs that have connected with adult audiences just as much (if not more so) than their intended demographic. more ›

Austin seems to be a town that really relishes the excitement of a quality horror movie as it is home to the annual Dismember the Alamo and one of the world’s largest genre festivals, Fantastic Fest. AFF is no exception when it comes screening terrifying flicks that keep us on the edge of our seats or cause us to jump completely out of them. Here are five of the darker films you can look forward to at this year’s festival. more ›

In 2006, on an investigative assignment for the Texas Observer, Austin journalist Emily Pyle had one of those life-changing experiences she could not leave behind. Long after meeting her deadline for the piece, which focused on a riot at a state-run youth detention center in the Rio Grande Valley, she could not get the images of the place and its residents out of her mind. Though the Texas Youth Commission-- which runs the facility Pyle visited as well as several others around the state— is supposed to provide a rehabilitative alternative to youth incarceration, Pyle noted the joint sure looked like an adult prison, replete with orange jumpsuits for the students/inmates. Pyle began to dig deeper, and learned some disheartening facts about TYC, which, not long after the riot was making headlines for all the wrong reasons—plagued by scandals of mistreatment of the youths. She decided to shed light on the system by making a documentary, and went on to interview several incarcerated youths. Burned: Life In and Out of Texas' Youth Prisons, tells the stories of two of those kids and their struggles in a system begging for reform. The film will be playing this weekend at the Austin Film Festival. Here, Pyle talks about her experience making Burned—you can check out a preview of the film here. more ›

Sure, it’s called the Austin Film Festival, has “film” right there in the title, and so it stand to reason that it’s going to be all about movies. But it also says “Austin” and what is this town about if not music? And obviously, it’s possible to combine the two. Want proof? We put together a list of the music-related films that caught our eye this year. more ›

In addition to film premieres, parties and conference panels, Austin Film Festival is also known for offering special screenings accompanied by commentary from the people involved in the film or television show at hand. This year is no exception, and it looks like the "Austin Film Festival presents..." schedule will offer some pretty fun finds. Here's a look at what to expect. more ›

With the 2010 Austin Film Festival just a few days away, we're taking a few moments to examine the films being screened as we put our schedules together. more ›

There are over 30 films in the Marquee category at this year's Austin Film Festival, so it won't be possible to see all of them...but we're going to try to see as many as possible! Here are our picks (in no certain order) from the bunch. more ›

With the 17th Annual Austin Film Festival just 15 days away, the majority of the schedule has already been announced. Today, the festival organizers unveiled their selections to open and close the festival. more ›

Find out who will win the title of “Funniest Filmmaker in Austin” this Saturday, when a panel of judges - including Emmy award winner Chuck Sklar - apply their laugh-tallying expertise to the witty, hilarious or otherwise humor-inclined finalists chosen by the folks behind the Austin Film Festival. more ›

Austin Film Festival is giving away a prize a day to people who buy their film passes between now and Aug. 2. All you have to do is buy two passes online (which cost just $42 each and will admit you to eight nights of screenings), and you’ll be entered into the daily drawing. more ›

It's been 10 years since the smash hit Bring It On high kicked its way into theaters, and it is still as sassy as it was then. Sometimes shocking in its subject matter, especially considering that it was rated PG-13 (perhaps it could have been even better with a R, but that may have killed it's teen market), Bring It On follows a pretty stereotypically affluent and white-washed cheerleading squad as they discover that all of their brilliant routines from previous years had been stolen from their inner city rivals, and their subsequent mission to crush them in an upcoming competition with fresh cheers. With a snarky and satirical script, writer Jessica Bendinger turned what could have been a rote teen movie into something much more fun and memorable. As part of their Conversations in Film series, the Austin Film Festival is bringing Bendinger to the Alamo Lake Creek tonight along with a special screening of Bring It On. more ›

Animal lovers, general do-gooders and anyone who likes to party for a good cause should plan to attend Thursday night’s Fur & Film Fete, a yearly event that raises funds for Emancipet. more ›

Kids are endlessly creative and/or insane, and anyone who has hung out with a 10-year-old for more than a minute knows that the stories they craft are sometimes more bizarre than anything a seasoned wordsmith could ever come up with. The Austin Film Festival's Summer Film Camp allows budding filmmakers to express those words through moving pictures and specifically in this case, through moving clay. The video is only 5 minutes and 52 seconds long, and the four short films contained therein are totally worth a watch. Our favorite happens to be the incredibly wacky Sacred Cupcake, by no-doubt-future-auteurs Colin, Connor and Sam, although all of the participants are to be commended for their super cool work. more ›

Anyone that’s ever driven around Texas knows one thing for sure -- it’s friggin’ HUGE. Seriously. We’ve been all over this damn state at one time or another, and we feel like we have a pretty good idea of the geography. But we’ve never seen any place like Virgil, Texas. Now’s your chance to see this incredibly interestingly oddball (and totally fictional) town in David Byrne’s musical feature film, True Stories. The Austin Film Festival screens this 1986 cult classic as part of their Made in Texas Film series. The film screens at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum’s Texas Spirit Theater tonight at 7:30. more ›

Whether you’re a longtime Austinite with many years of “it was much cooler back in the day” to speak of, or you’ve just moved here to join the beardeoisie, you probably have some film school friends who love the Coen brothers. From the whip-smart pacing and whacked-out dialog of Raising Arizona to the intense emotion and sheer badass-ness of No Country for Old Men, these guys have become film legends. more ›

What is it about summer camp movies that makes us so jealous our parents never sent us off for a few weeks of minimally-supervised, life-affirming fun? The films we’ve seen always seem to be filled with mischief, merriment and near-miracles – food fights hilariously erupt, unlikely friendships are forged and even the nerdiest of nerds manage to get kissed for the first time. more ›

Just when you think perfectly blonde, perfectly nice, perfectly married Olive and Dax are about to get on your nerves with all their perfect perfectness, they start acting like normal, insecure people and begin to screw each other over. more ›

Grocery stores are the great equalizer—pretty much every one in America frequents one, be they monolithic or modest. And after you have purchased your snacks and sundries, there is generally one question that remains: do you want to carry your wares home in paper or plastic? Granted, in Austin the swing is towards "neither" with our cloth bag revolution, but across the country you will find dutiful baggers, sackers, or whatever you choose to call them, packing up jars, cans and bread, hopefully with the later after the former. Sounds like the stuff of legend, right? You wouldn't think so, but in the Austin Film Festival documentary feature Paper or Plastic?, those disregarded courtesy clerks finally get their moment in the sun. more ›

It is said that there is one being out there in this grand universe that is the perfect compliment to our person; a "twin flame" of sorts, and only when we meet shall our fires burn the brightest. Well, we think we have found our soul mate and its name is the 6th Annual Austin Film Festival Film & Food Party. We're serious. Basically, if we were reincarnated, we think we would come back as the AFF Film & Food Party, because this event brings together what really defines who we are at our core: people who live to eat delicious food, and people who love to watch flickering lights on cinema screens. Truly, that is pretty much all we need to survive. The great news is that since the AFF F&F Party, which will be shaking up the Driskill Hotel on Wednesday, October 15 at 7pm, is really just a concept as opposed to a physical being, you can also share in the joys of its bountiful awesomeness. We'll try to conceal our jealousy. more ›