SXSW 2010 Guide: Filmgoing Tips for Non-Badgeholders

Update: The 2011 guide for locals and non-badgeholders is now available.

The SXSW Film Festival schedule looks excellent this year, and even though you didn't buy a badge, maybe you're thinking about catching a few of the films over the course of the eight-day fest. Don't you want to hang out with Film Fest Geek Barbie?

But perhaps you haven't bought a film pass or SXSW film tickets before, or you remember it being a hassle last time. Fear not -- here are some tips on enjoying the films at SXSW even if you don't have a badge this time. You'll miss the conference, but if you plan ahead, you can catch a bunch of good movies.

Your options if you don't have a badge:

SXSW Film Pass -- The film-fest equivalent of the Music fest wristband. You're in a second-tier line, and are admitted into a screening after the badgeholders line has been let into the theater, if space permits. Passes for 2009 are $70 and are now available at Waterloo Records or any Austin-area Alamo Drafthouse. If you see multiple movies a day, this is a steal.

Individual tickets -- Tickets are available for screenings only if there's room left 15 minutes before the movie starts, after the badgeholders and passholders are seated. Tickets cost $10 and you can buy them at the venue's box office. If you're planning to see more than a half-dozen, you'll definitely want to get a Film Pass instead.

Tickets available now:

A number of SXSW films playing at the Paramount already have tickets for sale, which you can buy online for $12 -- they'll refund your money if it turns out you can't get in, but they're pretty confident these films will have room for ticketholders. Ticketholders who buy in advance get priority seating over those who buy tickets that day. There are too many films to list here -- nearly everything playing the Paramount during SXSW is available except the biggest marquee screenings -- but check out the Paramount's calendar and any movie with a dollar-sign icon next to it has advance tickets for sale.

Here are a few I've seen or am looking forward to seeing (funny how most of them are Austin or Texas-related):

• Thunder Soul on Saturday, March 13 at 11 am (tickets) and Friday, March 19 at 2:30 pm (tickets)-- I just read a great preview of this documentary in the Texas Observer (sadly, it's not online yet). It's about a man who turned an ordinary Houston high-school band into the Kashmere Stage Band, a top funk and soul group.
• Micmacs on Saturday, March 13 at 6:45 pm (tickets) -- What can I say? Jenn Brown and I saw this film last week -- she'd seen it previously at BNAT -- and we're both planning to go see it one more time, we loved it so much. My favorite film of 2010 so far. Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Delicatessen, Amelie) will be in attendance.
• Richard Garriott: Man on a Mission on Sunday, March 14 at 2:30 pm (tickets) and Thursday, March 18 at 2:30 pm (tickets)-- I just heard that Debbie Cerda has interviewed both director Mike Woolf (from Austin's Beef and Pie Productions) and the film's subject, Richard Garriott. Can't wait to see what they have to say regarding this documentary about Garriott's desire for space travel.
• Lovers of Hate on Monday, March 15 at 11 am (tickets) -- Bryan Poyser (Dear Pillow, The Cassidy Kids) is a local filmmaker and his latest movie, shot partially in Austin, is surprising and a bit creepy in a good way. I'll say no more: see for yourself.

Tips and tricks:

• The earlier in the day the movie is scheduled, the better your chances of getting in. Badgeholders may all be hung over, or tired from watching midnight movies, so you've got better odds before noon.
• Which means you should avoid midnight screenings. They're always packed. Get some sleep so you can catch those early screenings the next day.
• Get to the theater at least 30 minutes before the movie starts if you have a pass -- longer if you're trying to buy a ticket, or if you're dying to get into a popular movie. Don't bring a book, but try to strike up a conversation with people near you in line. If they're also passholders, they may have up-to-the-minute advice about which venues are least crowded this year.
• Aim for seeing movies from Wednesday through the second Saturday, after the film conference ends. Many out-of-town badgeholders will be gone, so the lines may be shorter. The talent who appeared at Q&As earlier in the week will either have left or will look exhausted ... but the movie is the same one everyone saw earlier in the week.
• Of all the SXSW venues this year, the Paramount and ACC (also known as the Hitachi G-Tech theater this year) are your best bets. The ACC theater crowd in particular often thins out during the Music festival, and seats are usually available. The downside: you then have to deal with Music attendees in the convention center, taking up all the seats in the wireless lounge and all the parking in the garage and being, y'know, all hipstery.
• Check out Debbie's guide to balancing Film and Interactive, which includes a list of screenings that Interactive badgeholders can attend. They'll have priority over you in line, so these screenings may be harder for you to get into. Most of these movies have multiple screenings, however, so pick a time when Interactive folks won't be around. (On the other hand, apparently everyone got into Helvetica even with the longest line ever, so I could be totally off-base here.)
• Avoid Alamo Ritz, especially during the first half of the festival, most especially the smaller theater. If you absolutely must see something there, get in line an hour beforehand ... but many times not even all the badgeholders will get admitted. After the film conference ends, your odds may improve slightly, but this is still the fastest-filling venue for movies at SXSW. Yes, I love Alamo Ritz too, and I hate to warn you away from it, but if you're local you can enjoy it again after the fest ends.
• Movies shot in Austin or with Austin ties may fill up quickly. Sometimes cast and crew members and their families are invited and a number of seats are reserved. On the other hand, these are the movies that often draw more ticketholders than badgeholders, because the audience is full of locals wanting to see their neighbor or coworker's movie. So if you get there early, you might be okay.
• Avoid big-name titles, especially if the movie is only screening once during SXSW, and if it's screening at a smaller venue. Many of those movies will come back to Austin sooner or later. Instead, take a risk with a lesser-known film that you might not get another chance to watch. Try one of the short film collections -- I love shorts, and SXSW always has a great selection.
• Make friends with badgeholders and see if they can't save seats for you near them. That way, if you get in, you might not have to sit in the front row. (This doesn't always work, though, especially if it's a full screening.)

The parking situation for locals:

The ideal venue for local attendees with cars might appear at first to be Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar, because it has free parking on-site and is at a distance from downtown crowds. However, with the film-fest shuttle for badgeholders running during the first part of the festival, and the popularity of The Highball, Alamo South's parking lot now fills up fast. Don't be afraid to pick downtown movies -- that's where the biggest venues are, after all -- and resign yourself to paying to park. ACC is usually your best bet for parking.

On the other hand, you might be able to plan a day during the second half of the fest to stay at Alamo South the whole time and watch movies there. If you time it well and the badgeholders don't all have the same idea, this could be wonderfully convenient. Bear in mind that Alamo South will only have two screens for SXSW films, instead of three, on the last Friday and Saturday of the fest. (I always want to do this myself, and somehow I always have to be downtown. So if you make this work, I'll be envious.)

If you don't want to deal with parking downtown, especially during the Music fest when it gets aggravating and expensive, now is the time to get acquainted with Capital Metro. You may want to park a little further away and take a bus to the downtown theaters. Cap Metro has Night Owl buses that run after midnight, too.

If you live in north Austin, this option gives you free, non-towed parking: Park in a park-and-ride space in the Triangle garages, then take the #101 or the #1 to Sixth and Congress. Bus fare is currently $1.00 each way. You won't have to walk a mile to your car, and it's free covered parking. You'll find it easy to get downtown, but fair warning: When I tried this on a Thursday night at 10 pm near The Hideout last year, I waited an hour for a bus because they were all jam-packed full and didn't even bother to stop. After that, I started parking at ACC. However, Jenn Brown has no car and gets everywhere she needs to go during SXSW via bus, with few complaints, so perhaps I just had bad luck that night.

Aside: Locals will love the comment I made in last year's guide: "Next year, I'm wondering how easy it'll be to park at Crestview Station and take the train to ACC. That could potentially rock." Hah. Since then, I've learned that even if Metro Rail ever gets going, it's not planned to run at night or on weekends, so forget about that theoretically easy option.

Please share your own tips and tricks for passholders and ticketbuyers in the comments. I'll update this entry whenever I receive any new information or tips.

[Photo credit: "Film Fest Geek Barbie" by Jette Kernion; "Queuing at the Paramount" by mac_steve on Flickr; "Waiting in line at SxSW" by Andrew Mager on Flickr. Used under Creative Commons licenses.]