With just over five weeks to go before the Austin Film Festival kicks off, the AFF team today released the lineup for their big, 20th anniversary gig.
Some 70 features and 100 shorts comprise this year’s slate, which also boasts a record number of U.S. and world premieres. The Coen brothers‘ Inside Llewyn Davis – which stars Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund, and Justin Timberlake – is the Centerpiece Film, but theirs aren’t the only big names in this year’s lineup. See also: Benedict Cumberbatch, Brad Pitt, and Michael Fassbender (Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave); Idris Elba (Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom); Dame Judi Dench (Philomena); Bryan Cranston (Cold Comes the Night); and many more.
AFF’s impressive conference slate, including such panelists as Jenji Kohan, Rian Johnson, and David Shore, is already up online, as is the list of awards recipients (Vince Gilligan, Jonathan Demme, Callie Khouri).
See the full film slate below, and start planning.
Marquee Screenings
•Inside Llewyn Davis – Joel and Ethan Coen (writer/directors); Oscar Isaac and T Bone Burnett in attendance
• 12 Years a Slave – John Ridley (writer), Steve McQueen (director)
• Nebraska – Bob Nelson (writer), Alexander Payne (director); Will Forté in attendance
• August: Osage County – Tracy Letts (writer), John Wells (director)
• Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom – William Nicholson (writer), Justin Chadwick (director)
• Philomena – Steve Coogan (writer), Jeff Pope (writer), Stephen Frears (director)
• Big Sur – Michael Polish (writer/director); Josh Lucas, Jean Marc-Barr and John Robbins in attendance
• Winter in the Blood – Ken White (writer), Alex and Andrew Smith (writer/directors); cast in attendance
• Child of God – James Franco (writer/director), Vince Jolivette (writer)
• HBO’s Whoopi Goldberg Presents Moms Mabley – Whoopi Goldberg (director)
• Mystery Road – Ivan Sen (writer/director)
• If You Build It – Patrick Creadon (director)
• Last I Heard – David Rodriguez (writer/director); Paul Sorvino in attendance
• Yuma – Wojciech Gajewicz (writer), Piotr Mularuk (writer/director)
• Number 10 Blues/Goodbye, Saigon – Norio Osada (writer/director) – U.S. Premiere
• Mom, Dad, I’m Muslim – Anat Tel Mendelovich (writer/director) – U.S. Premiere
Narrative Feature Competition
• Beside Still Waters – Chris Lowell (writer/director), Mohit Narang (writer)
• Crackheads – Tim Tsiklauri (writer/director), Andy Sophocleous (writer) – U.S. Premiere
• Finding Neighbors – Ron Judkins (writer/director) – World Premiere
• Jack, Jules, Esther and Me – Daniel Poliner (writer/director) – World Premiere
• A Leading Man – Steven J. Kung (writer/director)
• The Maid’s Room – Michael Walker (writer/director)
• The Odd Way Home – Rajeev Nirmalakhandan (writer/director) Jason Ronstadt (writer) – World Premiere
• Siren – Jesse Peyronel (writer/director) – U.S. Premiere
Documentary Feature Competition
• All of Me – Alexandra Lescaze (director)
• Dog Days – Kasey Kirby, Laura Waters Hinson (directors) – World Premiere
• Icebound – Daniel Anker (director) – U.S. Premiere
• Living Dolls – Maureen Judge (director) – World Premiere
• Political Bodies – Christopher Englese (director) – World Premiere
• Take Away One – William Lorton (director) – World Premiere
• The Project – Shawn Efran (director)
• 120 Days – Ted Roach (director) – World Premiere
Heart of Film
• A Birder’s Guide to Everything – Luke Matheny (writer), Rob Meyer (writer/director)
• Circle the Wagen – Ryan Steven Green (writer/director)
• Favor – Paul Osborne (writer/director)
• Forever’s End – J.C. Schroder (writer/director)
• Girl on a Bicycle – Jeremy Leven (writer/director)
• Great Chicken Wing Hunt – Matt Reynolds (writer)
• How to Follow Strangers – Chioke Nassor (writer/director)
• La Navaja de Don Juan – Tom Sanchez (writer/director) – World Premiere
• The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne – Kirk Marcolina and Matthew Pond (directors)
• Light Years – Matthew Mullen (writer), Maggie Kiley (writer/director) – World Premiere
• Scrapper – Brady Hall (writer/director); Aidan Gillen in attendance
• Sole Survivor – Ky Dickens (writer/director)
• That Burning Feeling – Jason James (writer/director) – U.S. Premiere
Comedy Vanguard
• Cavemen – Herschel Faber (writer/director); Chad Michael Murray in attendance – World Premiere
• Coffee, Kill Boss – Sigurd Ueland (writer), Nathan Marshall (director); Eddie Jemison in attendance – World Premiere
• G.B.F. – George Northy (writer), Darren Stein (director)
• The Golden Scallop – Kevin Harrigan (writer), Joseph Laraja (director)
• Hellaware – Michael M. Bilandic (writer/director)
• I’m Dating You Not – Pablo Flores (writer), Guillermo Groizard (director) – U.S. Premiere
• The Little Tin Man – Dugan Bridges, Matthew Perkins (writers), Matthew Perkins (director)
• Mop King – Ace Dixon (writer/director) – World Premiere
Dark Matters
• Blood Punch – Eddie Guzelian (writer), Madellaine Paxson (director) – World Premiere
• Dark Mountain – Tara Anaïse (writer/director) – U.S. Premiere
• Dug Up – Dustin Rikert (writer/director) – World Premiere
• Innocence – Hilary Brougher (writer/director), Tristine Skyler (writer) – World Premiere
• OXV: The Manual – Darren Paul Fischer (writer/director) – U.S. Premiere
Texas Independents
• Dear Sidewalk – Jake Limbert (writer), Jake Oelman (director) – World Premiere
• Little Hope Was Arson – Theo Love (director)
• The Road to Livingston – Erik Mauck (director), Chelsea Hernandez (director) – World Premiere
• Sombras de Azul – Kelly Daniela Norris (writer/director) – World Premiere
Write/Rec
• Always Learning – Robert Krakower (writer/director) – World Premiere
• The Bloc – Max Sturgeon (writer/director) – World Premiere
• Drones – Matt Witten (writer), Rick Rosenthal (director) – U.S. Premiere
• The Fable of Shannon Cable – Vinnie Hogan (writer/director) – World Premiere
• Handy – Vincenzo Cosentino (writer/director) – World Premiere
• Not Safe for Work – Ryan Balas (writer/director) – World Premiere
• Speak Now – Erin Cardillo (writer), Noah Harald (director) – World Premiere
• 3 References – James Christopher (writer/director) – World Premiere
Correction: The original version of this article misspelled the name of Max Sturgeon’s feature.
For more on the Austin Film Festival, visit www.austinfilmfestival.com.
This article appears in September 13 • 2013.