TRANSFORMERS: RISE OF THE BEASTS had a huge debut at SXSW ’23 with the unveiling of character statues at Porsche House! Stars Anthony Ramos, Dominique Fishback and Toby Nwigiwe were in Austn for the big presentation!

The statues will be touring the world with upcoming stops in LAS VEGAS, CHICAGO, AND NEW YORK CITY, plus SAO PAULO, SINGAPORE, SYDNEY, MADRID, BERLIN, LONDON, MEXICO CITY and TOKYO.

SYNOPSIS:

Returning to the action and spectacle that have captured moviegoers around the world, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will take audiences on a ‘90s globetrotting adventure with the Autobots and introduce a whole new faction of Transformer – the Maximals – to the existing battle on earth between Autobots and Decepticons. Directed by Steven Caple Jr. and starring Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback, the film arrives in theatres June 9, 2023.

Some Snaps from the event:

(Photo credit: Paramount Pictures Canada/Getty Images)

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS had the honour of opening the 2023 SXSW Festival at Paramount Theatre, and the response has been phenomental for this Film by Co-Directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley. In fact, it is sitting at 100% on the Tomatometer. The Film arrives March 31, 2023 via Paramount Pictures.

In attendance last night were the Film’s stars: Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page, Justice Smith, Sophia Lillis and Daisy Head, plus Directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley and Producers Nick Meyer and Jeremy Latcham.

SYNOPSIS:

A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers undertake an epic heist to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they run afoul of the wrong people.  Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves brings the rich world and playful spirit of the legendary roleplaying game to the big screen in a hilarious and action-packed adventure.

(Photo credit: Getty Images/Paramount Pictures Canada)

By Mr. Will Wong

The world is obsessed with Multiverses and we’re here for it. Not unlike EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE, SLIP explores what could’ve been in a parallel universe. Zoe Lister-Jones creates, directs and stars in this Dramedy series as Mae Cannon, who is living content and comfortable with her husband Elijah (Whitmer Thomas) and a job in the Art world. But it isn’t enough and she longs for more. Her relationship is void of passion, and she makes an interesting observation then after some time in relationship, you’re single again but together.

She then finds herself meeting a mysterious stranger in Eric (Amar Chadha-Patel) at a bar and we see a different version of her and traces of who she might’ve been in the past. Is this really happening? And how does she get back to her normal life again with Elijah?

Lister-Jones aims high wearing multiple caps here, but is successful drawing us right into this world where everything feels intimate and we’d want to invest more time getting to know Mae and what lessons she learns and the people she meets in the situations ahead. Did we mention Dakota Johnson produced this Toronto-filmed Series as well?

All eight episodes of SLIP will be arriving on The Roku Channel and it screens at SXSW ’23 as follows:

Slip at Stateside Theatre

Mar 16, 2023

5:45pm—7:06pm

SCREAM VI makes some noise in its debut with $42 million from 3,675 theatres for Paramount Pictures/Spyglass Media. This latest installment, a first without Neve Campbell, gets 76% on the Tomatometer from Critics. This marks a best for the Franchise, besting 2022’s SCREAM, which opened with $30 million just as theatres were just re-opening during Covid-19, and also a $34 million openings for SCREAM 3 back in 2000.

CREED III is still fighting in its second week with $24 million from 4,007 theatres, a tally of $102 million in North America for Warner Bros.

65 starring Adam Driver, opens in third with $10 million from 3,405 theatres for Sony Pictures. It gets 36% on the Tomatometer.

Fourth goes to ANT-MAN & THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA with $7.3 million for Marvel/Disney, so very close to the $200 million-mark domestically.

Fifth is COCAINE BEAR with $6.3 million for Universal Pictures, a run of $51.9 million.

By Mr. Will Wong

Co-directed, written by and starring Lucy McKendrick, FUCK ME, RICHARD is a twisty Psychological Thriller that will keep you guessing. Sally (McKendrick) is recovering from a broken leg and feeling lonely. Scrolling through a dating app, she finds her match in Richard (Nathan Wallace). The two embark on a passionate relationship over the phone and we learn that Richard‘s mother is fighting for her life and in need of money. Sally decides to help him in what appears to be a scam, but we ask, is Sally being entirely honest to us and Richard as well?

McKendrick does a fantastic job taking us into Sally’s lonely, painkiller-blurred reality. But make no mistake, she’s not entirely out of it. The performance is understated, which leaves much to the imagination, yet at once is incredibly brazen and vulnerable. She carries the entire 17 minutes of this Short Film, a very impressive introduction to her talents, alongside Co-Director Charlie Pollinger.

Narrative Shorts Program 2 at Rollins Theatre at The Long Center

Mar 11, 2023

2:15pm—3:56pm

Narrative Shorts Program 2 at Alamo Lamar E

Mar 15, 2023

12:00pm—1:41pm

By Amanda Gilmore

When Director Penny Lane decides to donate her kidney to a stranger, she makes the decision to document each part of the process. Initially, she’s met with skepticism and many questions of ‘why’. As we watch her go through each step in the process, Lane manages to change our way of thinking and make us laugh while she does it.

Confessions of a Good Samaritan is an in-depth inquiry into the science, history, and ethics of organ transplantation. Experts across many fields lend their knowledge not only of the process of organ transplantation but traits of the individuals who donate. A particular section on the meaning and importance of altruism is the first time audience members start understanding what makes someone want to become a donor. This altruism is showcased through Lane. Although she doesn’t think of herself as a good samaritan in the beginning. Following her story informs the viewer of the lengthy process a donor experiences. And her quirky personality is the cherry on top of this entertaining, through-provoking Documentary.

By the end, Lane has changed our question of ‘why’ into ‘why not’. We see that donating a kidney, or something as small as agreeing to be an organ donor on your driver’s license, is something anyone could and should do. She’s brought us along on her journey and showed us that there is a different way to live. Not a life of only thinking about ourselves and our close loved ones. But one where we can extend that care, nurture, kindness and love to strangers. It’s clear that the world would be a much better place with more good samaritans.

Confessions of a Good Samaritan screens at SXSW ’23 as follows:

Mar 10 at 5:00pm at Alamo Lamar B

Mar 11 at 11:00am at Satellite Venue: AFS Cinema

Mar 15 at 12:30pm at Violet Crown Cinema 1

Mar 15 at 1:00pm at Violet Crown Cinema 3

By Mr. Will Wong

After its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival, Canadian-Korean Director Lloyd Lee Choi brings his Short CLOSING DYNASTY to SXSW 2023. And what a beautiful work it is. At the heart of the story is seven-year-old Queenie (Milinka Winata), who should be in school, but instead is hustling the streets. Whether it be running her school basketball team scam on the train, hawking roses to turn a profit or dumpster diving for treasures, Queenie is determined to make a buck. But we’re left wondering why?

We see New York City throught Queenie‘s hopeful eyes, thanks to a spirited turn by our star Winata who despite her young age is able to master her character’s quiet nuances, yet capture her entrepreneurial drive. And did we mention her speaking Mandarin-Chinese with aplomb?

Cinematography by Christopher Lew is sublime and this 17-minute Short comes with an impressive polish. And when the lens finally zooms-out, we get the reality of where we are today, with the world fighting its way out of some very tough times and what that means for many of us, including young Queenie.

CLOSING DYNASTY screens at SXSW ’23 as follows:

Narrative Shorts Program 1 at Rollins Theatre at The Long Center

Mar 11, 2023

11:00am—12:42pm

Narrative Shorts Program 1 at Alamo Lamar E

Mar 15, 2023

6:30pm—8:12pm

By Mr. Will Wong

One of the great things about SXSW is the platform it gives to deserving voices. ROGER J. CARTER: REBEL REVOLUTIONARY is a Documentary Short by Justin Fairweather. It centers on its titular figure (pardon the pun), a Chicago-based Visual Artist who raises awareness of revolutionaries who are changing the narrative of the minority experience in America.

Over six minutes, we meet Carter briefly, who gives us a bit his own backstory. It is however when his craft is revealed do we truly see the expansiveness of what he is doing. Carter takes toy soldier figurines, assembling them into portraits of revolutionaries for marginalized communities like President Obama, Muhammad Ali, Kamala Harris, Breonna Taylor, Malcolm X and more.

Simply breathtaking, and a story that warrants attention. We just wish Fairweather went further into what pushed Carter‘s creativity – a level of genius is triggered by something affecting and we want to know more. Regardless, Carter‘s artwork speaks for itself.

ROGER J. CARTER: REBEL REVOLUTIONARY screens at SXSW ’23 as follows:

Documentary Shorts Program 1 at Rollins Theatre at The Long Center

Mar 12, 2023

11:00am—12:35pm

Documentary Shorts Program 1 at Alamo Lamar D

Mar 16, 2023

3:30pm—5:05pm

By Mr. Will Wong

Up-and-coming Filmmaker Sean Wang is a name to look-out for as evinced by his heartfelt and funny meditiation of life in NAI NAI & WAI PO (GRANDMA & GRANDMA). Wang returns home to visit his two paternal and maternal grandmothers who happen to live together, sleep together and are BFFs.

The Documentary Short, spanning 17 minutes begins as a festive reunion. The energy of their playful banter between the two women is infectious – fart jokes, “making it rain” and all. But as the Film progresses, we get glimpses into Wang’s grandmother’s past lives, which weren’t so easy. In Mandarin-Chinese, they speak on widowhood, not having necessities during times of war and looking back at photo albums to remember what they looked like. The underlying theme though is an appreciation of the now and getting to spend time with their grandson, and this could their last time together.

So many emotions, affecting, sweet and self-reflective. And incredibly timely as American Cinema continues to experience an renaissance of the Asian-American experience right now. Wang leaves us wanting more and we get why right away he felt it was a great idea to document these fascinating and endearing women who happen to be his two grandmothers.

NAI NAI & WO PO is not to be missed. It screens at SXSW ’23 as follows:

Documentary Shorts Program 2 at Rollins Theatre at The Long Center

Mar 12, 2023

2:15pm — 3:46pm

Documentary Shorts Program 2 at Alamo Lamar D

Mar 16, 2023

6:45pm — 8:16pm

Emerging Canadian artist Roderick Porter has released his new single “BITTERSWEET” featuring Jay Isaiah.

The single has been teased on Porter’s TikTok for a few weeks now and was picked up by Genius in anticipation for the release. See the Official Music Video below!

“Bittersweet is a summary of a real letter I wrote to my ex shortly after she broke up with me. Although the song pulls less punches than the original paper copy, I stayed 100% truthful to my real experience. Which sadly means I really do have half a tattoo on my leg,” Roderick Porter says of the single, adding that this release marks a new cornerstone in how he writes music. “Until this song I had forgotten how much I enjoy and appreciate songs that are written as letters for a single recipient.”

Having already racked up over 165 million global streams on his alt-hip hop catalogue (with a co-sign by Noah Cyrus) Roderick Porter’s ability to turn any sound into a song has pulled in a burgeoning fan base that are eager for more.

(Photo/video credit: Bishwesh Upretty/Mark Martin)