SXSW Sydney has revealed its headliners for its 2024 Screen Festival.
These five films are said to “embrace the signature bold, genre-focused storytelling” that SXSW Sydney is known for.
Colin Daniels, Managing Director of SXSW Sydney, said:”We are incredibly excited to unveil our Screen Festival Headliners that capture the spirit of SXSW Sydney. These bold, hilarious, captivating and thrilling films lead a program not just for film fans, but the tech, music, and games audiences that form the rich tapestry of the SXSW Sydney audience.”
The 2024 Screen Festival Headliner lineup features Australian premieres, showcasing some of the world’s biggest stars and top directorial talent, bringing their latest projects to Sydney.
Tuesday, October 15th – “The Front Room”
Max & Sam Eggers’ new A24 horror “The Front Room” stars pop star Brandy as a newly-pregnant woman facing hell as her diabolical mother-in-law (Kathryn Hunter) moves in.
Wednesday, October 16th – “Smile 2”
“Smile 2,” the eagerly awaited sequel to the 2022 box office smash hit, stars Naomi Scott as global pop sensation Skye Riley who begins to experience increasingly terrifying and inexplicable events as she embarks on a world tour. Director Parker Finn will attend SXSW Sydney to present the film.
Thursday, October 17th – “Pavements”
“Pavements” is an experimental hybrid of narrative, scripted, documentary, musical, and metatextual elements from director Alex Ross Perry (“Her Smell”) about the beloved indie rock outfit, Pavement. Co-written by Ross Perry and Stephen Malkmus from the band, this unique, not-to-be-missed piece of cinema comes direct to SXSW Sydney from Venice and New York.
Friday, October 18th – “Nightbitch”
Amy Adams’ darkly comedic fairy tale is about a stay-at-home mother who, frustrated after leaving behind a career as an artist for a life consumed by parental duties, transforms into a dog. Adapted from Rachel Yoder’s cult book of the same name, Adams’ performance is receiving early Oscars buzz after the film’s premiere at TIFF.
Saturday, October 19th – “Saturday Night”
Hot from Telluride and TIFF comes Jason Reitman’s “Saturday Night,” based on the true story of what happened behind the scenes in the 90 minutes leading up to the first broadcast of “Saturday Night Live.” Starring some of the world’s hottest young acting talent including Gabriel LaBelle (“The Fabelmans”), Rachel Sennott (“Shiva Baby”), Dylan O’Brien (“The Maze Runner” franchise), Nicholas Braun (“Succession”), Kaia Gerber (“Bottoms”) and Finn Wolfhard (“Stranger Things”) alongside industry legends Willem Dafoe and J.K. Simmons, “Saturday Night” is full of humour, chaos and the magic of a revolution that almost wasn’t.
More details on the broader line-up for the SXSW Sydney 2024 Screen Festival can be found here. The Opening Night film for the Screen Program will be announced at a later date. Tickets are available at sxswsydney.com.