Synthetic Pictures, Therapy Studios, Yessian Music and Sabertooth Interactive Kickoff SXSW Interactive 2013
No one sets the pace for five days of mind-blowing, cutting-edge interactive content at SXSW better than Synthetic Pictures. Celebrating their 10th anniversary, the Austin and LA based production company brought together the collective talents of some of production, post-production and interactive’s best companies: Therapy Studios, Yessian Music and Sabertooth Interactive to produce a kinetic creek-side kickoff soiree.
An exclusive crowd of 300 guests made the cut—all national tastemakers, early adopters and industry insiders from film, TV, music, tech, media, interactive and advertising. The tree-canopied courtyard glowed blue and white while two giant 15-foot Instagram feeds, designed by Sabertooth Interactive, exposed partygoer photos and animated logos on the studio walls.
Oden Aerial Photography’s camera-laden remote control helicopters buzzed overhead capturing the party vibe as guests arrived to the sweet sound of The Parlotones, the multi-platinum selling rock band hailing from Johannesburg, South Africa, performing on an open-air stage perched on twenty feet of scaffolding over Bouldin Creek ravine below. Beautiful Bettys from the good folks at Deep Eddy’s VodkaTM served up signature grapefruit cocktails—a fresh-kick concoction made with Deep Eddy Ruby Red VodkaTM, the elixir making its debut at SX F’ing Awesome, but not available in stores until April 1st.
From Oakland, California, Gift of Gab, of the well know duo Blackalicious amped up the night with elastic rhymes and luscious beats from his new album entitled, Next Logical Progression, just released on his label Quannum Projects on March 27th.
Michael Yessian, founder of Yessian Music, an internationally renowned collective of producers, composers, music supervisors and recording artists, surprised guests by giving away a Taylor 210e (Acoustic/Electric) guitar from Guitar Center before handing over the stage to Jason Bentley of KCRW. Bentley a 20-year radio veteran, is host of Los Angeles indie institution, “Morning Becomes Eclectic”. True to his show, Bentley kept guests moving well into the morning hours.
Combining film and music, Therapy Studios stirred up SXSW with their acclaimed feature film, ‘Sound City’ produced by John Ramsay and Jim Rota and helmed by first-time director, Dave Grohl of Nirvana and Foo Fighters fame, followed by a sold out concert of the ‘Sound City Players’ at the iconic Stubbs BBQ.
Also making its SXSW debut was Synthetic Pictures‘ own Reid Connell premiering his short film, “The Heartless Machine” as part of the Austin filmmakers short film exhibition, “Faces of Austin”. Connell’s film screened to a sold-out crowd at the Carver Museum’s Boyd Vance Theater.
SHOOT Magazine, the preeminent source of news and information for advertising agency creatives and producers, commercial & entertainment production/post industry executives & artisans, brand marketers and broadband video decision-makers was media sponsor and on the scene with copies of its SXSW edition—not to be missed by anyone interested in developing successful brand campaigns, film, interactive or music projects.
SXF’ing Awesome got on the BBQ wagon as well. Reluctant food-truck-teur, LeAnn Mueller (who recently took over brother John Mueller’s rolling BBQ joint) parked her La Barbecue “Cuisine Texicana” wheels to provision partygoers with brisket sliders and pulled pork tacos heavenly crafted by pitmaster John Lewis. Mueller’s talent doesn’t stop at barbecue, pit boss by day and celebrity photographer by night, Mueller’s rock, pop, and Texas cowgirl images artistically deco
Contact:Celia Black Contact Celia via email 425-512-7453
“ฦvolution” Comes Full Circle At The Chelsea Film Festival
The Chelsea Film Festival, running from October 16th through October 20th, 2024, at Regal Cinemas here in Union Square, is set to host the East Coast premiere of ฦvolution, a thought-provoking experimental micro-short film that proves big ideas can come in small packages and in perfect circles.
In just 1 minute 16 seconds, this cinematic gem by Award-Winning Director Romina Schwedler, with original music by Argentine Composer Ignacio Montoya Carlotto, explores a cycle as old as time: life leads to progress, progress leads to destruction, and destruction, well, leads back to life. But is this vicious circle unbreakable? ฦvolutionย suggests the answer is yes, unless we decide to open our eyes.
Inspired by the overwhelming number of recent events that threaten human existence,ย ฦvolution, possibly the shortest film in this 12th edition of the festival, plays out entirely through the symbolism of circles, cleverly illustrating โin the blink of an eyeโ the repeating patterns of history, and confronting viewers with the uncomfortable truth that our so-called โprogressโ may, in fact, be guiding us to our own ruin.Premiering at the Regal 14 Union Square, New York City, on October 18, 2024, at 11 a.m., Romina Schwedler's micro-short, featuring Leah Young with cinematography by Alan J. Carmona, will be sure to spark conversations longer than the film itself! Forcing viewers to reconsider the true meaning of evolution, not just as a biological process, but as a reflection of our collective journey as humans.
With a string of festival appearances across the globe, including CineGlobe at CERN (Switzerland/France), Oscarยฎ... Read More