Interview:
Austin Sayre,
director,
"The Man With the Big Hat"
Austin Sayre did not intend to make a documentary about Steven Fromholz, the Temple-born singer-songwriter who became a leading and influential figure in Austin’s progressive country movement of the 1970s. Soon after moving to Austin in 2012, Sayre became so consumed with Fromholz’s music—including the folk albums Fromholz recorded as one-half of the duo Frummox with Dan McCrimmon—that he quickly began a deep dive into Fromholz’s life, career, and tragic 2014 death from an accidental gun discharge. The result is The Man With the Big Hat, a loving portrait of the musician named the Poet Laureate of the State of Texas in 2007. Sayre traces Fromholz’s topsy-turvy career, from finding critical acclaim with such songs as “Texas Trilogy,” “Bears,” “The Man With the Big Hat,” and the Willie Nelson-recorded “I’d Have to be Crazy” to relearning how to play the guitar after a 2003 stroke. He also examines how Fromholz’s family life—from his first marriage to Judie Glum to his second marriage to Janey Lake, as well as his relationship with his daughters Darcy and Felicity—informed his music and how his music informed his family life. The Man With the Big Hat includes interviews with Bobby Bridger, Larry Joe Taylor, and Lyle Lovett, who covered “Bears” and “Texas Trilogy” on his 1998 album “Step Inside This House.” The Man With the Big Hat will screen at 3 p.m. March 14 at the Alamo South Lamar, 9 p.m. March 15 at the AFS Cinema, and 2:15 p.m. March 17 at the Alamo South Lamar during the SXSW Film & TV Festival. Austin-based Austin Sayre makes his directorial debut with The Man With the Big Hat. Aired: March 4, 2026. Web sites: https://schedule.sxsw.com/films/2253670 https://www.themanwiththebighatfilm.com/ |
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