SXSW 2016: A Q&A With the Writer/Director, Production Designer & Producer of American Fable

Many first time directors might find themselves tempted to make their debut entrance into the world of filmmaking with simple, festival-ready fare, but for Anne Hamilton, the writer and director of American Fable, that approach just wouldn’t do.

Standing as easily one of the most visually striking films to play at this year’s SXSW, American Fable is what Hamilton & Co. have labeled as a “fairytale thriller”

Making the Night’s King: Inside Game of Thrones Season 6

You're allowed to be very excited for season six of Game of Thrones. Showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff told Entertainment Weekly that season six is "the best one we've done." Granted, they're the showrunners, what else are they going to say, but with a ton of mysteries going into the season, and just about all of the major power players in various states of distress,

Watch This Fascinating Video Interview With Star Wars‘ Mark Hamill

He might not be in Star Wars: The Force Awakens for all that long, but Mark Hamill's Luke Skywalker is who drives the entire narrative—everybody in The Force Awakens is looking for him, and we know he'll be a huge part of Episode VIII. In this 70-minute interview with the Oxford Union, Hamill discusses his frustration with the end of 

SXSW 2016: A Q&A With Long Nights Short Mornings‘ Director & Star

Writer/director Chadd Harbold’s Long Nights Short Mornings stars Shiloh Fernandez (We Are Your Friends, Evil Dead) as James, a young man looking for love (or perhaps just sex) in New York through a series of connected vignettes, each titled with the name of the woman he's courting (I use this term loosely). These vignettes unfold over the course of what feels like one very long,

See how they Created Maz Kanata in new Star Wars: The Force Awakens Featurette

Lupita Nyong’o’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens character, Maz Kanata, is a pivotal player in the new saga. She delivers Luke Skywalker's lightsaber to Finn (John Boyega) and Han Solo (Harrison Ford) after Rey (Daisy Ridley) initially rejects it. It has already been reported that Nyong'o's diminutive, ancient Maz had a few of her scenes cut, including one in which she makes a ceiling collapse on some Stormtroopers (despite her telling Han,

Hardcore Henry Producer Timur Bekmambetov on the Groundbreaking POV Film

When an action film is at its best, it becomes easy to imagine yourself at the center of the action, jumping building to building, bolting down busy streets and going mano a mano with your attackers. But in the case of Hardcore Henry, the world’s first feature-length action film shot entirely in POV, that feeling of immersion is simply part of the deal.

The premise is simple: a nameless protagonist – you,

SXSW 2016: Writer/Director Sophie Goodhart on her Hilarious My Blind Brother

In the opening sequence of My Blind Brother, you meet Robbie (Adam Scott), physically fit save for the dark shades and the sweaty, anguished man he's pulling along via a tether that suggests his titular affliction. That man is his brother Bill (Nick Kroll), who Robbie has just dragged through an entire Marathon. And although he needs Bill, once they cross the finish line Robbie all but forgets Bill exists, thanking the person who was with him "every step of the way,"…God.

Alexander Skarsgård Reveals his Wild Side in The Legend of Tarzan Trailer

Still probably best known for playing the hunky bloodsucker Eric on True Blood, Alexander Skarsgård will likely get a few more fans once  The Legend of Tarzan bows. 

Based on the iconic Edgar Rice Burroughs character, director David Yates (a Harry Potter maestro) has Skarsgård's jungle's prince now going as a man named John Clayton III, Lord Greystoke, who's enjoying a life of civility with his wife Jane (Margot Robbie) in 1880s London.

SXSW 2016: Director Todd Bieber & Legendary Sketch Comedians Matt Walsh & Matt Besser on Thank You Del

You've probably never heard of Del Close, but you’ve definitely heard of the people he’s taught, inspired, and helped turn into legends—Bill Murray, Amy Poehler, and Chris Farley to name a few. Director Todd Bieber, who has directed for Comedy Central, Vice, IFC, and more, was approached by legendary sketch performers, actors and co-founders of The Upright Citizen’s Brigade, Matt Walsh (Veep, Step Brothers) and Matt Besser (The UCB Show,

Join Jack Huston for a Deadly Chariot Race in 1st Ben-Hur Trailer

Hoo-boy! Director Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted, Night Watch), a man who knows his way around an action film, sure looks like he had some fun filming Ben-Hur.  Paramount Pictures just released the first trailer for the film, which opens on August 12, and appears to be a visceral remake of the 1959 classic. Ben-Hur is a legendary tale of betrayal and redemption,

SXSW 2016: Writer/Director Joey Klein, Tatiana Maslany & Tom Cullen on The Other Half

Joey Klein’s The Other Half manages to be both a beautifully shot tone poem about grief and loss, and a deftly written drama about two people at loose ends who find in each other a glimmer of hope. The lead performances from Tom Cullen and Tatiana Maslany are outstanding, and writer/director Klein allows them plenty of room to experiment with the varieties of grief, hope and regret that each character struggles with throughout.

Writer/Director Emmanuelle Bercot on Standing Tall

French actress and director Emmanuelle Bercot took the Cannes Film Festival by storm in 2015. She starred in Maiwenn’s Mon roi (My King) which garnered Bercot the festival’s Best Actress prize. Meanwhile, La Tete haute (Standing Tall), which Bercot cowrote and directed, kicked off the prestigious festival, making Bercot the first female director to open Cannes since 1987.

Bercot says that as an actress and a viewer,

Steven Spielberg & Harrison Ford to Reunite for Indiana Jones

Disney just broke the big news—Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford are reuniting for Indiana Jones, with The Force Awakens super producer Kathleen Kennedy on board to produce. This is pretty major news. Here's the full presser:

SPIELBERG AND FORD REUNITE AS INDIANA JONES RETURNS TO THEATERS JULY 19, 2019

Indiana Jones will return to the big screen on July 19, 2019, for a fifth epic adventure in the blockbuster series. Steven Spielberg,

Check out This Gorgeous Star Wars: The Force Awakens Concept Art

Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) has just released a bunch of concept art from Star Wars: The Force Awakens, all of which is totally mind-blowing. Some of these pieces were more or less exactly what eventually appeared in the film (like the shot of the TIE Fighters advancing against the backdrop of a huge setting sun), while others depict what could have been a totally different version of the story.

SXSW Alumni: Ed Helms’ Start in Austin

Ed Helms is yet another actor who can credibly claim his career started at SXSW. The star of The Office and The Hangover movies made his acting debut in Blackballed: The Bobby Dukes Story, which was released at the 2004 South by Southwest Film Festival and won the Audience Award. The film is an improvisational comedy set in the world of paintball.

Talking to Eye in the Sky Director Gavin Hood

Entering a conference room in a downtown Washington hotel, South African director Gavin Hood is carrying a book about drones, which are central to his new film, Eye in the Sky. He's clearly fascinated by the technology, as well as the policy questions they raise. Hood mentions his pleasure in visiting D.C., where drone warfare is a matter of widespread professional interest. His previous movies include Rendition,

SXSW 2016: The Duplass Brothers, A Journey that Began in Austin

The Duplass Brothers (Mark and Jay) were back at SXSW on Saturday to discuss their successful careers and provide some words of wisdom to filmmakers who are just starting off. Austin is where is all started for the New Orleans natives; they filmed their first feature film, The Puffy Chair, in Austin.

Their talk had the generous feel of a commencement address—here were two successful alums, grateful and humble, ready to share their hard-earned wisdom.

SXSW 2016: Keegan-Michael Key & Jordan Peele’s Keanu Brings Down the House

If fans had it their way, Key & Peele would have probably never ended. Yet when it did, after five seasons, all you could do was applaud; here were two guys going out on top after creating one of the best comedy sketch shows of all time. Before their feature film debut, Keanu, played here as a work-in-progress, a great documentary called Thank you Del: The Story of the Del Close Marathon 

SXSW 2016: Ilana Glazer & Abbi Jacobson Talk Hillary Clinton, Broad City & More

YAS QUEEN! Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson of Comedy Central’s Broad City brought their special brand of irreverence and humor to SXSW on Saturday. Featured on a panel hosted by Maria Clare’s editor-in-chief, Anne Fulenwider, the friends chatted about their hilarious comedy and so much more.

Starting as a web series, Broad City made its television premiere in January 2014. The third season, which began on February 17, 2016,

SXSW Alumni: Bryan Singer’s Start in Austin

We've already looked at Trey Parker and Matt Stone's SXSW debut, as well as Lena Dunham's. Now we turn our attention to one of the most prolific director's working today. The first edition of SXSW’s film festival hosted the regional premiere of Public Access, the debut feature by Bryan Singer and his screenwriting partner Christopher McQuarrie. Their follow-up, The Usual Suspects,