Film Lists

What to Watch at SXSW 2024

Films We Are Most Excited To See at South By Southwest 2024

Nicholas Galitzine in SXSW Closing Night Film, "The Idea of You"

Courtesy of Prime Video

All the cool film girlies just came back from Berlin. Specifically, they are fresh from the 74th Berlin International Film Festival, and they still smell like cigarettes to prove it. Between anecdotes about how Berghain is ruined, they’re telling me how they watched Cillian Murphy (my father, emotionally) give another masterful, award-worthy performance in the Enda Walsh adaptation of Claire Keegan’s novel Small Things Like These. This is apropos of nothing, except that I was not in Berlin, so I will have to wait alongside everyone else to see one of my favorite books on screen later this year.

But how can I be bitter? This week, half of Los Angeles will flock to Texas for South By Southwest in Austin, and I’ll be delightfully distracted by a whole new slate of upcoming releases premiering at this year’s festival. There are so many new films to be excited about premiering at the festival — even without Cillian Murphy’s cheekbones.

Let’s get into it.

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CULTURE

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via Tribeca Film Festival

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Culture Feature

Interview: Erika Lust Tells Us How to Make the Perfect Adult Film

The iconic filmmaker and LustCinema founder talks about what's lacking in erotic cinema

Erika Lust

Photo by Angel Diaz/EPA/Shutterstock

When Erika Lust was a student in Sweden, a guy she was dating showed her some porn.

"I felt like something was wrong," the filmmaker recalled. Like much of mainstream pornography, the video shown was grossly misogynistic. The woman was there to stimulate her partner–nothing more. The experience left Lust deeply perturbed. "I knew that female sexuality was way more than that," she said. The young Political Science major soon became fascinated with pornography and immersed herself in the erotic work of John Cameron Mitchell and Jill Soloway, who she cites as her biggest inspirations. She had adored the movies since she was a child and wondered how she could amalgamate well-made cinema with authentic sensuality. "I had people laughing at me from the very beginning," she admitted. She wanted adult films to contain objective depictions of human sexuality and for those depictions to be demonstrated through beautiful cinematography and engaging storytelling. To have such an idea in the late '90s was seen as ludicrous.

Still, after finishing university Lust moved to Barcelona in 2000 to work at a highly established ad agency. The experience changed her life, and she fell in love with "the atmosphere of a film set." "I realized I [wanted] to shoot an explicit film," she said, "according to my own tastes...my values, and that showed the importance of female pleasure." In 2003, she founded Erika Lust Films, and would later go on to create the highly-respected LustCinema, both of which create some of the most groundbreaking adult films in the industry. She admits her loved ones were initially skeptical and concerned, but that they came around. "I am actually encouraging a real change in depicting human sexuality on screen," she said with excitement. "I realized I wasn't the only one craving alternatives to mainstream porn."

LustCinema's success is a testament to that. Lust's films are slow and meticulous, with the focus being on sensuality, tension, and passion. The Intern, Lust's first feature film, follows a shy young girl as she moves to Barcelona to intern at Lust's company. What transpires is a beautiful coming-of-age tale, focused on a woman exploring her sexuality for the first time. Lust's most recent digital series, Primary, whose latest episode was released today, follows two polyamorous couples as they explore polyamory and the complications that come with an open lifestyle. "It shows the beauty of contemporary non-monogamous relationships." The story is rich in details, and the cinematography, courtesy of breakout director Casey Calvert, is lush and captivating. It's some of the most opulent pornography ever created.

But as refreshing as the filmmakers work is, her high-brow quality unfortunately remains an anomaly in an industry predominantly run by misogynistic men. Lust admits it's getting better, due in part to the #MeToo movement, but it needs to happen faster. Recent studies show that kids are starting to watch porn as young as 9 years old, due in part to unrestricted access to the Internet, and of course, the overt sexualization of media. As a result, young men early on are being taught that "all girls enjoy being choked, slapped or c***ed over their face" and that they need to fulfill "dominant" roles in the bedroom. "This leaves young men incredibly nervous about performance," said Lust, "while being hurtful [to women] without even realizing it."

This misogyny is also fueled by the strong stigma still surrounding sex workers and pornography in general. Reports of sexual violence are rampant within the industry, but they're hardly taken seriously. "Female sex performers...their careers have been used against them," Lust said, "their statements devalued for the benefit of the powerful men they accuse." According to Lust, the first step to righting all of these wrongs will always be having more women in leading roles, but there needs to be a more open discussion about pornography and women's roles within it. "Adequate and up-to-date sex education is lacking pretty much everywhere," Lust said. Consent, respect and communication need to be taught to young men much earlier.

"We can't stop children from finding porn online, so it's really important to give them the tools to be critical and aware of what they're watching." When parents don't intervene early on, the porn industry becomes a child's main source of sex education. To combat this, Lust and her husband started The Porn Conversation, an online database that provides tools to help parents talk about porn with their children. "They should be able to understand the difference between types of porn, and what sex between consenting adults is."

Since her debut in 2004, Erika Lust has continued to find groundbreaking ways to shift the dialogue around sex. Her subscription service, XConfessions, offers crowd-sourced indie adult cinema that is curated for each viewer's anonymous fantasies. For those seeking less explicit content, Lust will soon relaunch EroticFilms, a platform within Erika Lust Films that focuses more on eroticism than sex.

But as COVID-19 continues to ensnare Spain and keep the country in lockdown, one can't help but wonder how this tragedy will change the way adult films are made. "Times are hard," Lust admits. "I'm missing the real contact I had with the people I love." Her office in Barcelona has been closed for almost a month, but an event of this magnitude could ultimately aid Lust's mission. A lot of people need porn now more than ever. But for now, it's time for Erika Lust to get back to work. Her and her team of 30 are working on a new project for XConfessions, and she's very excited about it. "Our mission is still the same today as it was back then," she said in closing, "to change the rules of pornography!"

Click here to check out “Primary."

Follow Erika Lust on Instagram and Twitter.

Film Lists

All the SXSW Movies to Look Out For in Amazon's Free Online Film Festival

People were excited to see these films at SXSW; later this month you'll be able to stream them at home.

Prime Video

Photo by Thibault Penin on Unsplash

When SXSW was officially canceled in early March, dozens of filmmakers were left with nowhere to premiere their movies.

Luckily Amazon has stepped up, offering an online film festival for free to its Prime members (and to people who sign up for a free Prime trial just for this event...). The festival will last ten days and is expected to begin sometime this month. While an official start date and lineup have yet to be announced, it's not too soon to get excited for some new movies at a time when we're all pretty desperate for something to watch. While we'll have to wait and see which ones make Amazon's cut, these are the movies that had people excited for SXSW.

Sh*thouse

22-year-old Cooper Raiff wrote, directed, and starred in this coming-of-age romance. Telling the story of two college Freshman struggling to navigate the world away from home, it was made on a shoestring budget. Critics have praised it for its awkward sincerity, and on Tuesday it was announced as the winner of SXSW's Grand Jury prize for Best Narrative Feature.

An Elephant in the Room

An Elephant in the Room documents the lives of children dealing with the death of one or both parents. Director Katrine Philps takes viewers into the Good Grief community where children learn how to process loss and support one another through life's most difficult experiences. A deeply moving portrait of childhood under trying circumstances, An Elephant in the Room won SXSW's Grand Jury prize for Best Documentary Feature.

Lapsis

Lapsis is a dystopian sci-fi dramedy written and directed by Noah Hutton. The story follows Ray, a down-and-out blue-collar worker from queens who is depserate to earn enough money to treat his brother's obscure medical condition. When Ray gets a new job running cable for a mysterious and shady tech company, things quickly devolve into chaos and violence. Lapsis has earned critical acclaim for its wry humor and meticulous world-building.

Aviva

Acclaimed screenwriter and filmmaker Boaz Yakin, well-known for directing Remember the Titans, funded Aviva himself himself to tell a surrealist story that covered questions of gender identity and love, drawing on his real life relationship with his ex-wife. The film has been noted particularly for its use of dance sequences to communicate emotion with the help of choreographer Bobbi Jene Smith.

You Cannot Kill David Arquette

Do you remember David Arquette from Scream? Patricia Arquette's brother? He used to be married to Courtney Cox? Well, he was also in a terrible movie called Ready to Rumble in the year 2000, which he promoted by briefly becoming a professional wrestler and winning the WCW heavyweight championship in a scripted victory that enraged fans. The backlash from that event, along with some other challenges have led to a distinct lull in his career, but he's ready for a comeback. Directed by David Darg and Price James, You Cannot Kill David Arquette documents the 48-year-old actor's attempt to revitalize his career and redeem himself in the world of pro-wrestling and relaunch his career. Even a heart attack (which he had early on in the project) apparently can't stop him.

Topside

Celine Held and Logan George are a directorial team known for their short films, but in Topside they applied their talents to a feature-length story about a young girl and her mother evicted from their home beneath the streets of New York City, and forced to contend with life above ground. It received SXSW's Special Jury Selection for Directing.

Finding Yingying

Finding Yingying documents the disappearance of 26-year-old Xhang Yingying from the University of Illinois, and her family's search for her. Directed by Jiayan "Jenny" Shi, Yingying's former classmate from Nanping, China, Finding Yingying follows the Zhang family's struggle to find out what happened to their daughter and to navigate the American justice system. It received SXSW's special jury recognition for Breakthrough Voice.

Shiva Baby

Shiva Baby is a comedy that follows Danielle, a sex worker sitting shiva with her Jewish family after the death of a family member—though she's not sure which one. Events quickly begin to unravel when Danielle's client shows up at the service and Danielle finds out that there is about his personal life and connection to her father. Writer-director Emma Seligman has earned praise for her debut feature's sharp wit.

I Used to Go Here

I Used to Go Here is a comedy written and directed by Kris Rey and starring Gillian Jacobs and Jemaine Clement. It follows Kate, an author in her mid-30s whose career and personal life are both falling apart. Amid this turmoil, she's invited to return to her old university to do a reading from her mediocre new book and to briefly relive her college years. I Used to go Here was made with The Lonely Island's Party Over Here production company and has been praised for its relatable, cringe-inducing comedy.

Boys State

Since 1937 the American Legion has hosted Boys States and Girls states around the US, where young aspiring leaders practice a summer-camp version of politics complete with an election to select their "Governor." Past attendees have gone on to be prominent figures in American politics, including Bill Clinton and Dick Cheney. Boys State follows several participants in Texas' 2018 Boys State event as they form parties—the Federalist and the Nationalist (yikes)—compete for nominations, and ultimately for the governorship. Directors Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss offer views toward possible futures in the American political landscape that are by turns chilling and hopeful.

In & of Itself

Frank Oz, the voice and hand behind Kermit and Yoda, is also the talented director responsible for The Dark Crystal and The Muppets Take Manhattan, andWhat About Bob. His latest feature, In & Of Itself, brings the off-Broadway stage show of magician and storyteller Derek DelGaudio to the screen. Blending dazzling illusions with autobiography and existential musings, In & Of Itself has received praise for tackling complex subjects with the aid of magic show spectacle.

Really Love

Really Love is a romantic drama that director Angel Kristi Williams wrote with Felicia Pride. Really Love tells the story passionate artist Isaiah and ambitious, hopelessly romantic Stevie falling in love. Kofi Siriboe and Yootha Wong-Loi-Sing won Special Jury Recognition for Acting for their performances.

Golden Arm

Golden Arm, directed by Maureen Bharoocha, is a comedy telling the story of an unlikely competitor being trained by her butch best friend to enter the National Ladies Arm Wrestling Championship. Golden Arm has been lauded for transforming the familiar buddy comedy formula as a vehicle for exploring themes of women's empowerment.

The Donut King

The Donut King is the directorial debut of Alice Gu, and it documents the life of Ted Ngoy, a Cambodian refugee who launched a donut craze in California that ended up supporting much of the Cambodian community in that state. The documentary recounts Ngoy's escape from the Khmer Rouge and his early business success, followed by the greed that led to his eventual downfall and return to Cambodia. The film received the Special Jury Recognition for Documentary Storytelling.

She Dies Tomorrow

Written and directed by filmmaker Amy Seimetz (Sun Don't Shine and The Girlfriend Experience), She Dies Tomorrow tells a surreal story of contagious self-destruction and mental breakdown—in other words, the perfect movie for our time. As the dazed characters wander LA, the film explores concepts of modern alienation and the dread of mortality in a fragmentary structure that is intentionally disorienting and eerie.

Look out for these films and more to appear on Amazon Prime later this month.

Film Features

"Invisible Man" and "Parasite": The New Haunted House

Welcome to the haunted houses of the neoliberal era.

via Universal Pictures

We all know the archetypal horror movie haunted house—slouched, rotting porch, frayed curtains, dark, abandoned rooms crowned with creaking chandeliers.

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Boots Riley Drops Major Truth Bombs in Endorsement for Bernie Sanders

Boots Riley recognizes the need for radical direct action––Because without radical direct action, nobody will listen and nothing will change.

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