Go ahead, run down the upcoming SXSW Midnighters. It wont take long to get to your first, eww. In a slate of films premiering late into the evening, thats certainly felicitous, if admittedly surprising. SXSW, after all, isnt just big. Its a multifaceted, popular fest that grows each year, of which film is just one part, and of which genre film is just one part of that. Its an aspect programmer Jarod Neece takes deadly, weirdly serious though. Of a total 150 features, the SXSW Midnighers comprise eleven. And this year, Neece went hard.
Violent, repulsive eating, both of flesh and of cake. Necrophilia. Cults. Metal. Henry Rollins. Impalings. Gore. Head Explosions. Grue. And Adam Mason. It seems this go round, Neece and his colleagues at SXSW are looking to introduce new and interesting filmmakers in uncomfortable, startling and darkly fun manner. And like a mischievous kid, Neece knows what hes done. Before running down the program for Shock Till You Drop, you can almost hear his lips curl and offer a deceptively jolly, Theyre good films, and we love em all.
SXSW FIlm kicks off this Friday the 13th in Austin, Texas. Find Neece’s words on all of the Midnighters, below and expect much more on the films here at Shock.
SXSW Midnighters
Programmer Jarod Neece runs down the 2015 SXSW Midnighters
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SXSW Midnighters #1
The Corpse of Anna Fritz (Spain, dir. Hèctor Hernández Vicens)
"I mean… [laughs]," Neece just chuckles at this necrophilia-laden premise. "First time feature filmmaker from Barcelona. He’s a writer and showrunner for Spanish TV. It’s just really well made. For a first time feature, he has really cool grasp on tone. It starts really strong and it kind of just really goes bonkers, crazy shit happens. Three guys do bad things to this corpse. It’s just one location, bad shit happens. It’s awesome. You don't want this showing any other time but midnight."
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SXSW Midnighters #2
Deathgasm (New Zealand, dir. Jason Lei Howden)
"We’re so thrilled. You want to have a little fun in the midnight section. You want gore and bad shit to happen, but you also.. just like Turbo Kid. Theyr’e both really fun films that are going to play well to a Midnight audience. Especially at a Drafthouse, where people can drink and have a good time. It’s kind of like Evil Dead with metal. Jason is a digital artist over at Weta. Obviously he has some filmmaking chops. He wrote it and directed it. It’s super funny, it’s got really cool gore FX, lots of good heavy metal. It’s a badass film."
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SXSW Midnighters #3
The Diabolical (USA, dir. Alistair Legrand)
"It’s just really solid. It’s creepy, great FX, great kid actors in this one. It’s a fun ride. You’ve got to put yourself in the midnight viewer’s shoes. They’ve had a long day, waiting in line or drinking. You want it to be fun and keep them awake. The Diabolical is overall really strong, great atmosphere."
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SXSW Midnighters #4
Excess Flesh (USA, dir. Patrick Kennelly)
"This guy, I guess he’s a visual artist and you definitely can tell by the style. It’s a very unique style. There are some scenes where everyone was like, 'holy shit.' There’s a scene with Macaroni & Cheese that’s just fucking crazy. It’s a dark thriller about body image issues, same kind of Starry Eyes and what will people do when they’re obsessed with images. The lead performances are really great. It’s pretty much a two-hander with these two roommates. One is skinny and can eat whatever she wants, the other girl has weight issues and she just fucking cracks. Really intense."
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SXSW Midnighters #5
Hangman (UK, dir. Adam Mason)
"Adam Mason's made a lot of crazy, awful films. I mean, good films, but just awful. He did Broken, Devil’s Chair, Pig. I’ve always wanted to play his films. I saw Pig at Sitges at 4am one night like, 'Holy shit. This guy’s fucked up.' I kept an eye on him. Pig didn’t work out for whatever reason. I talked to him about it. He’s like, 'That film is on a hard drive in my garage. No one should ever watch that movie.' We don’t play favorites, but Hangman is one of our favorites. He has a real meanness to his filmmaking. I couldn’t stop watching it."
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SXSW Midnighters #6
He Never Died (USA/Canada, dir. Jason Krawcyzk)
"Henry Rollins is so good, man! He is so strong in that film. It’s definitely the best lead performance I’ve ever seen him do. It’s like a dark comedy that’s super entertaining. Canadian director, it’s all about Henry Rollins. It’s super fun, it has a really cool twist at the end."
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SXSW Midnighters #7
The Invitation (USA, dir. Karyn Kusama)
"Karyn Kusama started with Girlfight. Did Aeon Flux, sci-fi crazy. Jennifer’s Body was more horror and this is a solid thriller. It’s cool to see her dabble in all these different genres. This film is so good. It’s obviously great to have a woman back in Midnighters. It’s kind of a slow burn, but the buildup of tension and dread… Once you get into it, the tension it builds is so fucking good. The ending is amazing. It’s a cool, different take on the whole brainwashing cult narrative."
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SXSW Midnighters #8
Pod (USA, Dir. Mickey Keating)
"We loved Ritual and this is just probably the rawest. It’s creepy, really cool practical FX. I was trying to figure out how to talk about this one. It’s just one of those films everybody liked. The words raw and creepy stand out for me on this one."
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SXSW Midnighters #9
The Sundancers - The Nightmare (USA, dir. Rodney Ascher) & Turbo Kid (New Zealand, dir. RKSS Collective)
"When it comes to [programming films from] Sundance, it’s just the films that people like the most, that I like the most. I love The Nightmare. That was my eleventh choice. I usually play ten films, but I had to find a way to fit this film in. We wanted to play Room 237 so bad, but we weren’t able to. And then Turbo Kid. I’ve been wanting to play Turbo Kid since they submitted it a long time ago. It’s cool. It’s really amazing, 80s synth score to it. Again, fun. It’s pretty no-brainer."
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SXSW Midnighters #10
We Are Still Here (USA, dir. Ted Geoghegan)
"It’s super creepy. The storytelling is really, really good in it. Clever, gruesome. It takes a really cool turn. Barbara Crampton and Larry Fessenden!"
