Ok so here’s yet another (but the final) chapter of this year’s SXSW 2014 saga. It’s just a final overview of the entire festival so you get a feel of what the vibe was like this year and some overall coverage and fun pics that just didn’t fit into the other posts.
Jessie Andrews
After doing a gig with Jessie on Friday, I ran into her again the next day over at the Fader Fort – Was great to get to do the gig, Jessie was lovely and one of the most ambitious human beings I’ve ever met. She’s got clothing & jewelry lines in addition to her work in the porn industry & other modeling ventures and now a great DJ & music producer.
Now Jessie’s not the only adult performer current or former that’s kicking ass outside that industry that I saw at SXSW this year.
Open Windows Screening – Alamo Ritz
Sasha Grey (who would probably appreciate if I didn’t conjunct her name with porn any longer which is a fair request to make) is in a new movie with Elijah Wood called Open Windows that was screening at the festival followed by a Q&A with her, Wood & Director Nacho Vigalondo.
I mentioned that I went to see a movie since it was raining before the Rachael Ray party yesterday – This was it.
Elijah Wood leads as Nick Chambers, the man behind JillGoddard-Caught.com, a website dedicated to providing you with an endless stream of photos of one of the hottest stars out there, actress Jill Goddard (Sasha Grey). Under the impression that he’s won a fan contest and will get to have dinner with Jill, Nick flies to Austin where she’s promoting her latest movie and preps for his big night out. That’s all I’m willing to give away.
However I will say – its a tough format to get used to. Every little bit of action unfolds on Nick’s laptop screen, which is consumed by a number of open windows. There are an abundance of vantage points that do offer a comprehensive representation of what’s happening, but the problem is, as presented here, navigating around someone’s laptop screen just doesn’t feel natural.
It’s clearly quite the undertaking so cheers to director Nacho Vigalondo and his team for taking on that challenge and making it work as well as they did.
Sasha was fantastic and looked amazing and manages to sell the role and deliver the scenes with an impressive amount of honest emotion. The multitude of viewpoints is necessary to tell all sides of this story, but sliding up, down and sideways time and time again makes it hard to get your bearings. The abundance of story details, twists, turns and then new plot points & you’re trying so hard to keep track of the details I was exhausted.
Vigalondo has something here. This found footage 2.0 shooting style is a natural progression for the technique and offers a wealth of innovative opportunities.
They followed the movie up with a fun Q&A session – Many I think were surprised to see how fun and eager to laugh Sasha is. When I hear people talk about her they always mention a coldness or a stiff personality and I can kinda see where they might get that, but in all of my interactions with her she’s always been super fun and quick with a joke.
April O’ Neil
strong-willed reporter from the animated series) – She was really funny and as cool as you would expect.While the porn stars kept their clothes on (at least in public) during the festival it seemed everyone else was taking theirs off, their was nakedness everywhere.
I’ll bet you right now somewhere, someone is in production on a documentary about these charachters a la Confessions of a Superhero as its become its own culture down here.
Man those protesters sure like to deliver their message with some nudity and hey as long as their saying it with breasts, I’m all ears.
Others not quite as daring but still getting into the act as their were a swarm of other guerilla marketers around in flesh colored spandex to give the illusion of nakedness while Naked Cowboy was in town from NYC.
There were other scandalous riddles abound the city:
Deap Vally
Here’s Lindsey Troy and Julie Edwards from Deap Valley, a new band from Los Angeles. I didn’t get to see them play but I saw these girls everywhere I went.
…and then I turn the corner between the Hilton and the Convention Center……
…….to see Kendrick Lamar‘s label Top Dawg Entertainment using some T&A marketing tactics of their own (just as some parents were leaving as their curious children disturbingly look on).
New York dance duo Heartsrevolution sold merch and popsicles from a repurposed ice cream van. What made that van extraordinary: every inch was covered with Swarovski crystals, which, according to singer Leyla Safai, took the band two-and-a-half years to affix.
They would have run out, she explained, if not for the death of Michael Jackson: He had requisitioned a large number of crystals for his tour, and after he died, those crystals were passed on to them. Hardly a fair trade.
Last but certainly not least is that one of my favorite nights/traditions every year is Japan Nite and I usually go every year or make some attempt to. I got there late (but in my defense I was elsewhere seeing Buffalo Daughter who are also from Japan) and only saw one act but they were fucking crazy –
Bo Ningen
Mark my words, if you have’nt already heard of Bo Ningen you probably soon will – They should be hitting the American festival circuit this summer, and they were in my Top 3 of acts I saw during the entire festival.
They’re a mesmerising sight- four skinny Japanese dudes based in London who sport chest-length lank black hair, psychedelic smocks and loon pants but leave their socks off onstage. You can hardly ignore their sound. It’s a high-concept squall like Kraftwerk, only instead of sleek electronica you get lashings of ear-lacerating noise. The results are unforgettable.
Ok, that’s it for this year of SXSW 2014 – thanks for reading ?
Photos –
Roy Turner
