SXSW ‘17 Announces THE DISASTER ARTIST Premiere and Midnight Selections

In five weeks, film, music and general debauchery will descend upon Austin, TX, guaranteeing a splendid time for attendees and rage-inducing traffic for locals. SXSW ’17 has already promised badge holders a bevy of delights, and today they added to the cinematic buffet with their Midnight genre selections, certain to shock the hell out those of us still sober enough to stay awake.

Most intriguing is Joe Lynch’s office-set slaughter fest, Mayhem, and prom night acid trip, The Honor Farm (whose synopsis reads like my last days in high school). As usual – Meredith, Evan and myself will be bringing you reviews in-between a hefty dose of partying and celebrity watching. March 10th can’t come soon enough!

FEATURES

MIDNIGHTERS

68 Kill

Director: Trent Haaga, Screenwriters: Trent Haaga based on the novel by Bryan Smith

Chip's problem is that he can't say no to beautiful women. This weakness gets him into a world of trouble when he agrees to help his girlfriend steal $68,000. Cast: Matthew Gray Gubler, Annalynne McCord, Alisha Boe, Sheila Vand, Sam Eidson, Lucy Faust, Eric Podner, Peter James, Hallie Grace Bradley, James Moses Black (World Premiere)

Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon: 10th Anniversary Screening

Director: Scott Glosserman, Screenwriters: David Stieve, Scott Glosserman

At SXSW in 2006 AICN's Quint wrote: "...it just had its world premiere at the Alamo a few hours ago. I hope to see this one get picked up, but I guarantee this one will make it." 10 years after its 2007 theatrical, the 35mm print returns to the fest! Cast: Nathan Baesel, Angela Goethals, Robert Englund, Scott Wilson, Zelda Rubinstein, Kate Lang Johnson, Britain Spellings, Bridgett Newton, Ben Pace

Game of Death (Canada, France)

Directors: Laurence "Baz" Morais, Sebastien Landry, Screenwriters: Laurence "Baz" Morais, Sebastien Landry, Edouard Bond and adapted by Philip Kalin-Hajdu

In the middle of small-town nowhere, seven friends are forced to kill or be killed when they play the Game of Death. When faced with their own mortality, will they turn on each other to survive? Cast: Sam Earle, Victoria Diamond, Emelia Hellman, Catherine Saindon, Nick Serino, Erniel Baez D., Thomas Vallieres, Jane Hackett (World Premiere)

The Honor Farm

Director/Screenwriter: Karen Skloss

After prom night falls apart, Lucy finds herself at very different kind of party… On a psychedelic trip that could be a dangerous trap. Cast: Olivia Applegate, Louis Hunter, Dora Madison, Liam Aiken, Katie Folger, Michael Eric Reid, Mackenzie Astin, Michelle Forbes, Josephine McAdam, Christina Parrish (World Premiere)

Lake Bodom (UK)

Director: Taneli Mustonen, Screenwriters: Taneli Mustonen, Aleksi Hyvärinen

Reconstructing a legendary campsite murder turns fatal when the girls decide to rewrite history. As night falls, turns out not all of them are there to play. Cast: Nelly Hirst-Gee, Mimosa William, Mikael Gabriel, Santeri Mäntylä

Mayhem

Director: Joe Lynch, Screenwriter: Matias Caruso

After being framed for corporate espionage on the same day that a mysterious virus is unleashed on his company, attorney Derek Cho is forced to savagely fight tooth and nail for not only his job but his life. Cast: Steven Yeun, Samara Weaving, Dallas Mark Roberts, Caroline Chikezie, Mark Stewart Frost, Kerry Fox, Lucy Chappell, Steven Brand (World Premiere)

Meatball Machine Kodoku (Japan)

Director: Yoshihiro Nishimura, Screenwriters: Yoshihiro Nishimura, Sakichi Sato

A long-awaited sequel to the internationally acclaimed full-throttle splatter sci-fi action horror Meatball Machine directed by Yoshihiko Nishimura, an acclaimed makeup artist and special effects designer (“Godzilla Resurgence”). Cast: Yoji Tanaka, Yurisa, Takumi Saito (World Premiere)

PIG: The Final Screenings

Director: Adam Mason

A savage satire of gender politics in America, Adam Mason is guaranteed to shock and offend with Pig. Created with actor and long time collaborator Andrew Howard, Pig is a virtuoso piece of pure cinema. Cast: Andrew Howard, Guy Burnet, Lorry Stone, Juliet Quintin-Archard, Molly Black (World Premiere)

Tragedy Girls (Canada, USA)

Director: Tyler MacIntyre, Screenwriters: Chris Lee Hill, Tyler MacIntyre, based on an original screenplay by Justin Olson

A twist on the slasher genre following two budding teenage sociopaths who use their online show about real-life tragedies to send their small Midwestern town into a frenzy, cementing their legacy as modern horror legends. Cast: Brianna Hildebrand, Alexandra Shipp, Craig Robinson, Josh Hutcherson, Kevin Durand, Jack Quaid, Timothy V. Murphy, Nicky Whelan, Austin Abrams, Kerry Rhodes (World Premiere)

Two Pigeons (UK)

Director: Dominic Bridges, Screenwriter: Rae Brunton

A wide-boy estate agent unknowingly shares his home with a malicious tenant, one with a totally surprising agenda. Two Pigeons is a dark urban morality tale with an underlying streak of jet black comedy. Cast: Mim Shaikh, Javier Botet, Mandeep Dhillon, Kola Bokinni, Michael McKella (World Premiere)

HEADLINER

Big names, big talent: Headliners bring star power to SXSW, featuring red carpet premieres and gala film events with major and rising names in cinema.

The Disaster Artist

Director: James Franco, Screenwriters: Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, based on the book The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside the Room

This is a true story about the making of The Room – the cult classic described as the “Citizen Kane of bad movies”. Cast: James Franco, Dave Franco, Seth Rogen, Josh Hutcherson, Ari Graynor, Jacki Weaver, Alison Brie (World Premiere)

We gonna see any of you folks at SXSW this year? Excited about any specific titles mentioned above? Sound off in the comments below!