Interview:
Richard Whittaker,
The Austin Chronicle's Culture Editor,
Austin 2023 Year in Film Review
What happens in Hollywood does not always stay in Hollywood, as Austin learned in 2023. When the Writers Guild of America went on strike in May, local WGA members had to down pens until the strike ended in late September. When SAG-AFTRA went on strike in July, the walkout by actors of all levels of fame and fortune resulted in film and TV productions in Austin—and throughout Texas—shutting down until the strike’s resolution in early November. Only independent productions with SAG-AFTRA interim agreements could shoot locally and elsewhere during the strike. The impact of the SAG-AFTRA strike could also be felt on the film festival circuit, as actors were not permitted to promote their work at the Austin Film Festival, All Genders, Lifestyles, and Identities Film Festival, and Fantastic Fest without a SAG-AFTRA interim agreement. Fortunately for the Austin Film Festival, which celebrates the work of the screenwriter, the WGA strike was resolved before the 30th anniversary edition of the festival and its writers conference. Both the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes may be over but film and TV production in Austin and throughout the state of Texas is in the process of resuming filming. The Austin film and TV community did receive some good news in 2023: The Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program (TMIIIP), which dropped from $50 million for 2020-21 to $45 million in 2022-23, was increased to a record $200 million. For Austin’s many film aficionados, 2023 saw the opening of We Luv Video, the non-profit home to the physical media library amassed over several decades by I Luv Video; the soft reopening of the single-screen Eastside Cinema at the Millennium; the opening of an IMAX screen at the EVO Cinemas Belterra; and the renovation of the Alamo South Lamar, which included the addition of a new auditorium. The Violet Crown Cinemas theater chain announced its sale to the Evo Entertainment Group with the promise that its smart-house film programming will remain in place. Few films made in Austin or by Austin talent, though, played in theaters here and elsewhere. Ric Roman Waugh returned with the thriller Kandahar, his latest collaboration with Gerard Butler. While Robert Rodriguez’s long-delayed sci-fi thriller Hypnotic finally hit screens in May, Rodriguez choose to take his franchise reboot Spy Kids: Armageddon to Netflix. Richard Linklater also sold his black comedy Hit Man, co-written by and starring Glen Powell, to Netflix for a 2024 premiere. The Bikeriders, Jeff Nichols’ first film since 2016’s Loving, not only missed its December release date as a result of the SAG-AFTRA strike but changed distributors when Focus Features stepped up to buy the Jodie Comer-Austin Butler-Tom Hardy drama from Disney’s Searchlight Pictures. Macon Blair’s Toxic Avenger remake, which enjoyed its world premiere at this year’s Fantastic Fest, still remains without a distributor. Conversely, the documentary Chop & Steele and the animated drama When We Get to the Forest enjoyed national theatrical tours. Otherwise, such films with local ties as Lucky Doug, Match Me If You Can, The Mojo Manifesto: The Life and Times of Mojo Nixon, Sorry About the Demon, and Who We Become premiered on VOD or a streaming service after completing their film festival run. On the small screen, Austin was represented in two high-profile limited series, Max’s Love & Death and Apple TV+’s The Last Thing He Told Me.
Aired: Dec. 27, 2023. Web site: https://www.austinchronicle.com |
|