SXSW 2015: All Our Coverage + Top Picks

What was your overall favorite film?
By Zach Gayne

From reading the premise of Manson Family Vacation, I was really hoping it would deliver as the standout film of SXSW, but admittedly, I was skeptical. Thankfully, the film surpassed all my expectations. Knowing the creative team behind it, I was anticipating a smart film, but what I did not predict was that it’d also end up being the most touching film I caught all week.

Who gave the best performance?
By Zach Gayne

While I wouldn’t call this the best performance in the Academy sense, I am still tickled by Reggie Watts’ role as the headily progressive artist of Benjamin Dickinson's Creative Control. Watts, who is often the funniest part of IFC’s Comedy Bang Bang, brings Dickinson's intentionally pretentious dialogue to life in a way no one else could, providing some of the best scenes in an already incredibly cool film that I can’t recommend highly enough.

What was your top discovery of the fest?
By Zach Gayne

Being a die-hard rockumentary fan, I've come to really appreciate the midpoint of SXSW, where the film section gradually transitions into music. This is where the fest has wisely chosen to premiere its music documentaries, which, this year proved to be an incredibly fruitful selection.

Within the same day, I was delighted to see top shelf documentaries on The Damned (above), Danny Fields, and Nirvana, all of which embody my impression of SXSW's heart; the union of film and music, which are rarely in the same conversation, but as SXSW beautifully proves, often should be.

What was your favorite SXSW moment?
By Zach Gayne

Of the 100+ films screening this year, I was perhaps most giddy about the existence of Danny Says, Brendan Toller's excellent documentary about unsung punk hero Danny Fields. Fields was a behind the scenes guy who made pivotal decisions while refusing the credit. It was under his insistence, for example, that Elektra sign MC5 and Iggy Pop, who would in turn be credited for fathering one of today's most belovedly milked genres of rock & roll. Anyone who knows me can imagine how excited I was by the prospect of an interview.

The interview happened and it was glorious. But while the detailed four hour conversation we ended up having is something I'll never forget, I'm going to say my favorite moment of SXSW was not the interview, but watching King of the Hill with Danny Fields at 3am. Experiencing the show in Texas is enough of a treat, but to do so while casually graced with such quality company was just too much. For while great conversation is a holy thing, oftentimes, so too is watching King of the Hill with a new friend.

What was your overall favorite film?

One & Two Chase Whale

Read my review elsewhere.

Who gave the best performance?

Sally Field in Hello, My Name is Doris. If she doesn’t get recognized by the Academy when the time comes, I am leaving Earth. <

What was your top discovery of the fest?

That none of the goddamn food trucks carry Diet Dr. Pepper.

What was your favorite SXSW moment?

Sitting next to my pal Matt Donato for my last film of the festival. We’ve known each other online for a while now and finally got to meet. As fate had it, we were able to sit next to each other during a movie, something movie geeks like to do. (Note: There’s a new generation of film critics emerging and Matt Donato is taking the lead. Pay sharp attention to this fella.)

What was your overall favorite film?
By Peter Martin

I loved Deathgasm and We Are Still Here, which presented distinctively different, still highly enjoyable takes on the "midnight movie" genre. I appreciate the effort put forth by The Invitation to present a fresh approach. I was completely compelled by the very tasty One and Two, T-Rex, and Uncle John.

On a strictly personal basis, though, The Ecstasy of Wilko Johnson was the most important movie of the festival for me, and thus my favorite.

Who gave the best performance?
By Peter Martin

Barbara Crampton in We Are Still Here. It was an absolute pleasure to watch her deliver a note-perfect performance as a grieving mother wrestling with absolute evil.

What was your top discovery of the fest?
By Peter Martin

Panels can be fun! Actually, I guess I already knew that, but two panels this year reminded that informed, enthusiastic panelists make all the difference.

The Insider's Guide to SXSW, moderated by Erik Davis of Fandango and Movies.com (full disclosure: he's my editor when I write for those sites), made me wish that this was my first year at the festival, filled with helpful hints and tips provided by Erik and panelists Jen Yamato, Meredith Borders, and Grae Drake. Great fun.

On Sunday, I kinda stumbled into So You Want to Make a Midnight Movie, but I found it quite enlightening. Jen Yamato moderated this one, with panelists including filmmaker Jason Eisener, Mette-Marie Katz (XYZ Films), Peter Van Steemburg, and producer Roxanne Benjamin. I have no desire to make my own midnight movie, but these folks were on-point and enlightening about the business, and more than happy to share their experience.

What was your favorite SXSW moment? By Peter Martin

Every time someone I knew joined me in line to wait for a movie or sat with me during a movie or panel. As Tom Petty once sang, "the waiting is the hardest part," but it's made easier when a friend helps to pass the time. So thanks to Jason Whyte, Jason Hall, Ryland Aldrich, Stephanie Travanier, Hugues Barbier, Mike Moran, Peter Hall, William Goss, and Doug Jones.

As for the movies, it was the moments of discovery: the performance that shines, the camera work that surprises, the story development that is unexpected, the joke that rings true. When the movies are good, it makes all the waiting recede into faintly-recalled memories.

But, yes, pressed to name one, it's watching The Road Warrior with director George Miller in the packed Paramount Theatre, as he watched the movie from beginning to end for the first time in 32 years.