SXSW 2020

9 immersive and interactive art exhibits to see during SXSW 2020

Bumper Car Ballet speaks to the social implications of the emerging technology allowing guests to experience a computer takeover first-hand.

Photo courtesy of DROPSTUFF MEDIA

Coronavirus fears aside, SXSW 2020 is sure to be one for the books. This year, The Lego Group (yes, the childhood toy company) is sponsoring the fourth annual SXSW Art Program, which showcases experiential and conceptual visual art using emerging technologies.

The artwork featured during SXSW Art Program uses tech like immersive storytelling, AI, and augmented reality and covers topics ranging from local gentrification to plant DNA to aliens. A note before you go, as companies and creators continue to drop out of SXSW due to health concerns, make sure to confirm before heading out to one of these nine shows.

50 Moments — JW Marriott Room 305
March 13, 9:30 am-6 pm

Five interactive screens display a series of 50 short clips from some of New York City’s homeless people recorded during a three-year period from 2015-2018. 50 Moments gives a platform to a portion of the population to whom we rarely pay attention.
Artists: Celine Held, Logan George, Engineers: Rebecca Skurnik, Azalea Vaseghi

The Future is A Constant Wake — JW Marriott Room 404
March 13, 9:30 am-6 pm

Sculpture, video, and dance are at the center of The Future is A Constant Wake, an exhibit exploring land as a tool to access knowledge from the past and future. Artist Ariel René Jackson uses actual soil to reflect on subjects such as slavery and colonialism. Featuring choreography by Michael J. Love.
Artists: Ariel René Jackson, Michael J. Love.

Grow Your Own Cloud - The Data Garden— JW Marriott Room 306
March 13, 9:30 am-6 pm

For some, the idea of "the cloud" is a hard concept to grasp. Grow Your Own Cloud - The Data Garden makes envisioning data that much easier — and way more enjoyable. The artists have crafted a "data garden" where attendees can walk through, experiment with decoding messages, and learn all about the very real state-of-the-art technology that is DNA data science.
Artists: Cyrus Clarke, Monika Seyfried, Jeff Nivala

Legacy — Brush Square Park
March 13, 9:30 am-6 pm

According to U.S. News and World Report, Austin is the best place to live in the country. While that is something that we may all agree upon, it comes with its ups and downs. Artist Nancy Baker Cahill tackles the Austin of today, including gentrification and climate change, through a 360-degree animated augmented reality drawing using colors inspired by local nature, plus man-made “unnatural” elements.
Artist: Nancy Baker Cahill

Man and Woman Munch Museum at House of Scandinavia— House of Scandinavia
March 13, 10 am-5 pm

Forget traveling to London, New York, or Oslo to see Edvard Munch's work. This year, SXSW hosts a Munch masterpiece: Man and Woman. The House of Scandinavia, located at 74 Trinity St., will allow visitors to see the piece and learn more about the renowned artist, who died in 1944.
Artist: Edvard Munch

Secret Garden — JW Marriott Griffin Hall
March 16, 11 am-6 pm

Unlike the childhood tale, this "Secret Garden" is an immersive, storytelling installation. Artist Stephani Dinkins uses autobiographic, ancestral, and futuristic experiences of black female consciousness throughout history to create a cohesive narrative. The work was created during a year-long residency sponsored by Nokia Bell Lab’s Experiences in Art and Technology, Scatter, and the famed New Museum's NEW Inc. programs.
Artist: Stephanie Dinkins, Presented by NEW INC, Nokia Bell Labs

Terminus — JW Marriott Room 303-304
March 18, 9:30 am - 6 pm

Perhaps the oddest pick of the bunch, Terminus takes visitors on a choose-your-own-adventure extraterrestrial journey with alien architecture, cryptic symbols, and illustrations. Travel through time and space as you uncover multiple realities.
Artists: Jess Johnson, Simon Ward, Soundtracks by Andrew Clarke

The Fair Grounds: Bumper Car Ballet — Austin Convention Center Exhibit Hall 4
March 19, 11 am-5 pm

Many of us have thought about how awesome self-driving cars would be. Less stress, less traffic, and potentially fewer accidents ... but what if it all went wrong? This playful exhibit, a fun spin on the popular fair ride, Bumper Car Ballet speaks to the social implications of the emerging technology allowing guests to experience a computer takeover first-hand.
Artist: DROPSTUFF MEDIA

Spectre — JW Marriott Third Floor Prefunction
March 20, 9:30 am-6 pm

This provocative installation uses "secret technologies used by surveillance capitalists to influence our decisions online and in the voting booth" to create thought-provoking artwork. As the U.S. prepares for the upcoming 2020 election, Spectre is can't-miss meditation on moral implications of surveillance capitalism. But the artists warn that the price of admission is your privacy.
Artists: Bill Posters, Daniel Howe

sustainability science preservation urban-renewal dance transportation education traffic nature sxsw

SXSW 2020

Amazon Prime sets premiere date to stream SXSW 2020 films for free

Photo by Charlie L Harper III

Amazon Prime begins screening SXSW films on April 27.

SXSW is largely a place of discovery, but for technology companies and creatives, it provides a massive platform to get in front of new audiences. In the case of filmmakers, it's an opportunity to debut their work and — fingers crossed — score distribution deals. After the 2020 event was canceled due to COVID-19 concerns, these creators and creatives were left without an avenue to showcase their work and audiences without the opportunity to see it.

In early April, Amazon Prime provided one of the only pieces of good news in the wake of this year's cancellation: it will screen the festival's films — for free.

Prime Video presents the SXSW 2020 Film Festival Collection launches on Monday, April 27, through Wednesday, May 6, with 39 films ranging from narrative and documentary features to shorts and episodic shows. All titles will be available for free for both Prime members and non-members.

Each film would have been screened during SXSW Film, the movie portion of the 10-day mega-festival. In an earlier release, SXSW said every filmmaker would be invited to take part in the Prime festival, but it was not required. An earlier release noted that filmmakers would receive an undisclosed screening fee to participate. On April 9, the Hollywood Reporter said it had reviewed the fee documents given to filmmakers, but it was unclear what the compensation would be.

Writes THR, "The compensation would be delivered after the projects complete the 10-day run on the service. But it is was unclear to filmmakers what type of compensation that 'screening fee' would be, which was troubling for filmmakers that were trying to accurately weigh the possible financial risk."

"We understand every film has its own strategy and we know this opportunity may not make sense for every filmmaker. However, for those who want to share their stories right now and with as many people as possible, we’re excited to provide them this platform,” said Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios, in an April 21 release.

Along with the titles, nonprofit Free the Work is curating Q&As and online panels to accompany the collection, bringing a bit of that South By spirit to the online streaming platform.

"Free the Work's mission is to find new pathways to the discovery of underrepresented creators and we're excited to help celebrate, spotlight, and provide a platform for the voices of these talented filmmakers," said founder and filmmaker Alma Har’e of the organization's part in the collection.

To take part, users must create a free Amazon account and can stream the films through a browser or download the Prime app to watch on personal devices and smart TVs. See a full list of participating titles here, and start planning your very own SXSW Film festival.

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