Win a SXSW Sydney Screen Festival Wristband

The inaugural South by Southwest Sydney is just around the corner, and Variety Australia is giving away 10 double passes for the screen program.

Set for Oct. 15-21, the SXSW Sydney 2023 Screen Festival is a “celebration of the moving-image and its future,” spanning upwards of 200 events and told across feature films, shorts, TV premieres, music videos, XR and more.

This first-up feast of film will cover a broad range of genres and concepts from around the globe, with a particular focus on the filmmakers in the Asia-Pacific region and including a First Nations Screen Festival curated by Pauline Clague, founder of Winda Film Festival.

The SXSW Sydney Screen Festival program spans multiple venues across the SXSW Sydney event precinct, including ICC’s Darling Theatre and Palace Central Cinemas – and is accessible to badge holders and those with a special wristband.

Love film, and the magic of storytelling on the screen? Variety Australia will give away 20 wristbands in total.

Film fans, those all-you-can-eat entry passes could be yours.

Some of the unmissable screenings including the Australian premiere of the deliciously bloody, aristocratic thriller Saltburn, from acclaimed director Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman) and starring Australian Jacob Elordi (Euphoria).

Also, keep an eye out for the world premiere of music documentary ONEFOUR: Against All Odds, about the Western Sydney drill rap band, with director Gabriel Gasparinatos and producers Sarah Noonan, Erin Moy and Jennifer Peedom attending.

And there’s the Australian premiere of Ryuichi Sakamoto|Opus, capturing the final recorded concert from the late, great Japanese composer with director Neo Sora, Sakamoto’s son, in attendance.

Other must-see films include Bassendream, an Australian-made nod to ‘90s nostalgia, captured on 16mm, and directed by Tim Barretto, plus South Korea’s official entry for best international feature film in the 2024 Academy Awards, the disaster epic Concrete Utopia, led by Squid Game’s Byung-hun Lee.

SXSW Sydney represents the first step expansion of SXSW, established in 1987 and which takes over the Texas capital city, Austin, each year.

It’s a space where tech, film, music, education, and culture come together. With 1,000-plus events, speakers and music acts, SXSW Sydney promises to be a hive of activity.

SXSW Sydney is a partnership of SXSW Austin, TEG and Destination NSW.

See the full SXSW Sydney 2023 Screen Festival line-up here. And see the full event schedule here.

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