0:00:02 > 0:00:04Record numbers are catching trains but punctuality is suffering
0:00:04 > 0:00:05as a result.
0:00:05 > 0:00:07The pressure is now on to compensate more customers
0:00:07 > 0:00:08if their service is running late.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31Hello and welcome to the South by Southwest film festival here
0:00:31 > 0:00:33in Austin, Texas.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35I'm Tom Brooke.
0:00:35 > 0:00:39In today's programme we hear from hometown hero and top American
0:00:39 > 0:00:42director Richard Linklater on his movie made in Texas.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46It is always a big comedy on opening night and I'm happy to
0:00:46 > 0:00:48make a film that qualifies.
0:00:48 > 0:00:51With more music films from Britain and Japan shown at South
0:00:51 > 0:00:55by Southwest.
0:00:55 > 0:00:59They might be the biggest band in the world.
0:00:59 > 0:01:05And two very different Festival documentaries,
0:01:05 > 0:01:08one looking at a team of female bicyclists trying to reclaim the
0:01:08 > 0:01:11streets and another reconstructing, by way of animation, a mass shooting
0:01:11 > 0:01:21almost 50 years ago here in Austin.
0:01:21 > 0:01:23There is a sniper on the university compound.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25All that and more in this special South by Southwest
0:01:25 > 0:01:26edition of Talking Movies.
0:01:26 > 0:01:32South by Southwest is three things.
0:01:32 > 0:01:34A music, interactive and film festival all rolled into one.
0:01:34 > 0:01:37It is an event that certainly energizes and in some instances,
0:01:37 > 0:01:40almost overwhelms the city of Austin every spring.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43Today we're going to be focusing on the film festival
0:01:43 > 0:02:05which came into being in 1994.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07It has grown to become a highly respected showcase
0:02:07 > 0:02:10for independent cinema and also there is a smattering of Hollywood.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13For the past 30 years, Austin, the state capital of Texas, has
0:02:13 > 0:02:14been home to South by Southwest.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17Last year it brought more than 80,000 people to the city.
0:02:17 > 0:02:20When it comes to film, this year some 140 features are being shown.
0:02:20 > 0:02:24I think it is becoming more and more formidable as the years go on.
0:02:24 > 0:02:26Ever since Bridesmaids premiered at South by Southwest,
0:02:26 > 0:02:29it has been a very splashy festival for big comedy movies.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32Trainwreck also was the big one last year and it went
0:02:32 > 0:02:33on to gross $130 million.
0:02:33 > 0:02:36This year, also one is called Sausage Party which is a very
0:02:36 > 0:02:37R-rated animated film by Seth Rogen.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39It has really become the landing spot
0:02:39 > 0:02:42for really good studio comedies.
0:02:42 > 0:02:45The festival has been the launching pad for several noteworthy films.
0:02:45 > 0:02:48With blockbusters like Furious Seven to the low-budget Tiny Furniture
0:02:48 > 0:02:56which helped put Lena Dunham, creator of Girls, on the map.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58It also showcases local Texas films and film makers,
0:02:58 > 0:03:01case in point the Oscar-nominated hometowns hero, Richard Linklater,
0:03:01 > 0:03:04pleased that for the first time, a film of his, Everybody Wants Some
0:03:04 > 0:03:16has been selected.
0:03:16 > 0:03:20It is a great tradition to have a comedy on opening night and so I
0:03:20 > 0:03:22am glad that I made a comedy that qualifies to be
0:03:22 > 0:03:23the opening night film.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27A big event on the first day of the film wasn't just the unveiling of
0:03:27 > 0:03:31that film but President Obama being in town to give a keynote address.
0:03:31 > 0:03:32That is just really cool.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35I don't know how to say it any better.
0:03:35 > 0:03:36It's just kind of cool.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39It is an honour to have him here at the same time.
0:03:39 > 0:03:41Hopefully he watches the movie.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44Given that South by Southwest incorporates a music festival, music
0:03:44 > 0:03:45films have always loomed large.
0:03:45 > 0:03:53It is also a haven for documentaries.
0:03:53 > 0:03:55Documentaries are very important in the lineup.
0:03:55 > 0:03:58Not as important as comedies in the lineup, but they are gaining
0:03:58 > 0:04:00importance at South by Southwest.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02There are many music documentaries, many strange documentaries also,
0:04:02 > 0:04:05countercultural.
0:04:05 > 0:04:06We have to keep Austin weird.
0:04:06 > 0:04:08Many documentaries are about eccentrics, which sort of falls
0:04:08 > 0:04:18in line with the spirit of Austin.
0:04:18 > 0:04:22So where, at the end of the day, does South by Southwest stand
0:04:22 > 0:04:24in the constellation of world film festivals, falling as it does
0:04:24 > 0:04:25between Sundance and Cannes?
0:04:25 > 0:04:39Some locals think nothing can beat it.
0:04:39 > 0:04:41It is a big and influential festival, but I think
0:04:41 > 0:04:45because it is Austin, it retains a bit of an outsider known industry
0:04:45 > 0:04:46vibe, which I really appreciate.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49It has got a really good feel and it is really about the movies.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52But there are detractors who think South by Southwest shows mediocre
0:04:52 > 0:04:54films and that the wider event is too commercial.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57But there are also avid fans who believe in South by Southwest
0:04:57 > 0:05:00and think that every March, Austin, Texas is just
0:05:00 > 0:05:08the coolest place to be.
0:05:08 > 0:05:11There was a British presence at South by Southwest this year
0:05:11 > 0:05:14and one British electronic music pioneer, Gary Numon, was the subject
0:05:14 > 0:05:16of a Festival documentary.
0:05:16 > 0:05:26Now we go to our correspondent.
0:05:26 > 0:05:39Gary Numon is sometimes called the godfather of electro- pop, probably
0:05:39 > 0:05:42Gary Numan is sometimes called the godfather of electro- pop, probably
0:05:42 > 0:05:44best known for his 1979 hit Cars.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47Late 70s, he was arguably one of the most famous men on the planet.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51At one point he had three albums in the charts at the same time.
0:05:51 > 0:05:58That is kind of Beatles level of success and fame.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01The film is a portrait of a man who was a trail blazer
0:06:01 > 0:06:05in British electronic music.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08He would say himself he was not the only one at the time.
0:06:08 > 0:06:10There are people like Bowie, of course and Kraftwerk,
0:06:10 > 0:06:13all of whom experimented with electronic music and synthesizers
0:06:13 > 0:06:16but Gary was the first one who became really successful for it.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18He kind of put it on the map.
0:06:18 > 0:06:25I would say he was the first to become, as he says in the film, kind
0:06:25 > 0:06:30of the first synth rock superstar.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33The documentary follows him at a moment of transition as he is
0:06:33 > 0:06:37moving his family from England to Los Angeles and trying to rekindle
0:06:37 > 0:06:40his career with the new album.
0:06:40 > 0:06:42The one I'm doing now has been six years.
0:06:42 > 0:06:47My career is as strong as it has ever been.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50We learn that the musician has Asperger Syndrome and is often
0:06:50 > 0:06:57plagued by doubts and anxiety.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00And at some point you lose your grip and then you find yours
0:07:00 > 0:07:04elf in the middle of nowhere, a bit beaten up and totally lost.
0:07:04 > 0:07:05His mannerisms, his personality, it comes
0:07:05 > 0:07:09across clearly that he is really, very nervous about the new album.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13He is nervous about moving to the states,
0:07:13 > 0:07:15is it going to work out for him?
0:07:15 > 0:07:20This documentary is generous to its subject.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23It is an affectionate, relatively uncritical portrait that will no
0:07:23 > 0:07:24doubt bring fans much satisfaction.
0:07:24 > 0:07:25We made a very honest film.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28It is hugely revealing.
0:07:28 > 0:07:32Gary Numon has suffered for his art and the same goes for another
0:07:32 > 0:07:36Gary Numan has suffered for his art and the same goes for another
0:07:36 > 0:07:38film shown at South by Southwest.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42It covers a Japanese rock group which has been plagued
0:07:42 > 0:07:45by troubles throughout their time together, all of of which has been
0:07:45 > 0:07:52overseen by Yoshiki, its leader.
0:07:52 > 0:07:57Yoshiki and his childhood friend and lead vocalist, Toshi,
0:07:57 > 0:08:02started X Japan in the 80s.
0:08:05 > 0:08:10They formed a music culture called visual kei
0:08:10 > 0:08:13that borrowed from the glam rock scene emerging in the West and mixed
0:08:13 > 0:08:14it up with Japanese elements.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16The film shows that when it comes to Yoshiki,
0:08:16 > 0:08:22who is also a classically trained as a pianist, personal tragedy was at
0:08:22 > 0:08:25the centre of his entrance to rock music and the birth of X Japan.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28When he was ten, his father committed suicide.
0:08:28 > 0:08:36I was so depressed, so angry but rock was perfect,
0:08:36 > 0:08:39the perfect music to just throw all my emotion and sadness into.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42But I didn't stop playing classical music either, so now I play both,
0:08:42 > 0:08:52classical and rock.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55What hardship has the band gone through over the years?
0:08:55 > 0:08:57The vocalist, Toshi got brainwashed and then our band broke up.
0:08:57 > 0:09:00Our guitar player Hidei passed away and our bass player Taiji
0:09:00 > 0:09:04also passed away.
0:09:04 > 0:09:07The film depicts death and pain as a villain in your life
0:09:07 > 0:09:11but do you think it has also fuelled your creativity?
0:09:11 > 0:09:18I am not sure, the new place where you are just
0:09:18 > 0:09:22sad, it can take you anywhere.
0:09:22 > 0:09:24So I started writing lyrics and composing melodies.
0:09:24 > 0:09:33I don't know if I would have survived otherwise.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37The band reunited in 2008 and has been touring since 2009.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40Critics have found this film rewarding, although there have been
0:09:40 > 0:09:44complaints that it is superficial.
0:09:44 > 0:09:51But the live footage is seen as particularly impressive.
0:09:51 > 0:09:59As you heard, Richard Linklater, who is perhaps the biggest name
0:09:59 > 0:10:02in Texas film had a new picture released at the festival.
0:10:02 > 0:10:04He made an impact recently with his ingeniously structured,
0:10:04 > 0:10:05Oscar-nominated coming-of-age drama, Boyhood.
0:10:05 > 0:10:09His latest picture is to some extent,
0:10:09 > 0:10:11a sequel to an earlier film of his.
0:10:11 > 0:10:16Do you guys know anything about a party here tonight?
0:10:16 > 0:10:20The director's picture Dazed and Confused focused on Texas teens
0:10:20 > 0:10:24on their last day of school.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27It was well-received with fans as a coming-of-age comedy
0:10:27 > 0:10:32and is often called one of the best high school comedies ever made.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35His new picture, Everybody Wants Some goes on to paint a portrait
0:10:35 > 0:10:38of college baseball players.
0:10:38 > 0:10:44Who the hell are you?
0:10:44 > 0:10:47You are really good at dialogue and social observation in your films.
0:10:47 > 0:10:49This comes across at times as a frat boy movie.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53Did you try to get social observation very consciously
0:10:53 > 0:10:57into it or were you operating on their level?
0:10:57 > 0:11:00I think I had so many years to think about this movie.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03I started wanting to make around 2002,
0:11:03 > 0:11:10so I couldn't help but see it as a social or anthropological critique
0:11:10 > 0:11:12of young men and their behaviour.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15It is fine, they are the party and I am embracing their behaviour,
0:11:15 > 0:11:18but at the same time, I am sort of critiquing it because I look
0:11:18 > 0:11:25back and it is amazing how entitled and swaggering these young men are.
0:11:25 > 0:11:26A couple of rules.
0:11:26 > 0:11:27No booze in this house.
0:11:27 > 0:11:32Number two, no girls upstairs in the bedrooms.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35Early reviews have been very positive, but one review said
0:11:35 > 0:11:36there was too much testosterone.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39Can you understand where that reviewer is coming from?
0:11:39 > 0:11:41I don't know if it is too much.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43There is definitely a lot, but, too much?
0:11:43 > 0:11:45What you have to do is deal with it.
0:11:45 > 0:11:48At least the guys have some wit and humour to them.
0:11:48 > 0:11:52I see some of that is a critique, but I don't know about too much.
0:11:52 > 0:12:03It is balanced out, it is very male.
0:12:03 > 0:12:04Hello ladies!
0:12:04 > 0:12:11Party tonight.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15It is very much a Texas film, set in Texas and I think shot
0:12:15 > 0:12:16entirely within the state.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19What is it in terms of its content that will make it
0:12:19 > 0:12:21appealing to audiences who don't live in Texas, or who aren't
0:12:21 > 0:12:28familiar with the culture?
0:12:28 > 0:12:31I think some things don't change, either over time or geography.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34There is a point in everyone's life where they leave home
0:12:34 > 0:12:37and head out to the next adventure in their life, and developmentally
0:12:37 > 0:12:38they are in a new stage.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40I think people can relate to that.
0:12:40 > 0:12:42And also the social situations you find yourself in.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45You are the new kid and in with others, whether it is
0:12:45 > 0:12:47your first day of a job, or...
0:12:47 > 0:13:11That is the human condition, I think everyone can relate to that.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14One day in Austin history will live in history.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16August 1, 1966, when a sniper climbed to the top
0:13:16 > 0:13:19of the University of Texas tower behind me and started firing
0:13:19 > 0:13:21at random at individuals below.
0:13:21 > 0:13:2316 people died and three dozen were wounded.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26It was the first mass college shooting of its kind in the US.
0:13:26 > 0:13:27Nowadays they have become routine.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30One South by Southwest documentary artfully recreates what happened
0:13:30 > 0:13:32on that day, partly through the use of animation.
0:13:32 > 0:13:40It is called Tower.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44There is a sniper on the university tower firing it will.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47For those old enough to remember the shootings in Austin on August
0:13:47 > 0:13:481, 1966, it was horrifying.
0:13:48 > 0:13:51A 25-year-old engineering student at the top of the tower engaging
0:13:51 > 0:14:00in a killing spree.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03This event really sliced a giant wound into the psyche of this town.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05You have to remember that the shooting happened three years
0:14:05 > 0:14:08after the JFK assassination, so the entire world had focused
0:14:08 > 0:14:09its attention on Texas.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12To have this happen on the heels of that really change the way
0:14:12 > 0:14:13people around here saw themselves.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16Today, Austin is much bigger than it was then.
0:14:16 > 0:14:1816 people were killed, so the connection points went deep
0:14:18 > 0:14:41throughout the community.
0:14:41 > 0:14:42The film blends animation with live-action.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45Using animation to simulate a mass killing sounds rather odd.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47The words come from young people recounting
0:14:47 > 0:14:48the oral history of the survivors.
0:14:48 > 0:14:50One student who was shot said they really embraces what
0:14:50 > 0:15:01the director did using animation.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04It was so much better than acting or anything else would have been,
0:15:04 > 0:15:07because they had the ability to get the idea across
0:15:07 > 0:15:10much better with animation, it would have been wooden with actors
0:15:10 > 0:15:11and actresses saying our words.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14The sole purpose was to get oral history, and the animation
0:15:14 > 0:15:30made it possible to do that.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33You could have put it together using live actors in your docudrama.
0:15:33 > 0:15:43What do you think animation brought to the final result?
0:15:43 > 0:15:46When I pitched the animation to several producers I was rebuffed
0:15:46 > 0:15:49because they said, no, this is such a personal story, and animation will
0:15:49 > 0:15:50keep audiences at arm's length.
0:15:50 > 0:15:53I have worked with animation, and I know the opposite is true.
0:15:53 > 0:15:56There is a kind of intimacy you can get without the
0:15:56 > 0:16:01tremendous production costs that I knew I wouldn't be able to afford.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04This comes as a controversial law is debated, allowing students to
0:16:04 > 0:16:20carry firearms onto campuses.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23The fact that someone next to you in class could have a gun
0:16:24 > 0:16:25in a backpack, that is absurd.
0:16:25 > 0:16:29I do hope Texans see this movie and it makes them feel something and
0:16:29 > 0:16:43they want to speak out about it.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46Tower is not so much an overt political film as a look
0:16:46 > 0:16:48at how humans respond to a crisis.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50One of the most remarkable characters is
0:16:50 > 0:16:53Claire Wilson, who was 18 years old and pregnant at the time.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56Not only was she shot but she also lost her baby,
0:16:56 > 0:16:59and her boyfriend, who was right next to her, died in the mayhem.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01But she has forgiven Charles Whitman, the sniper
0:17:01 > 0:17:03responsible for the slaughter.
0:17:03 > 0:17:06I guess I just believe that people constantly are making choices, and
0:17:06 > 0:17:10he made some really horrible choices that hurt us, and I can't blame him.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13I think we all have the capacity for great evil in us,
0:17:13 > 0:17:35but we just keep making choices do not act out that evil.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37Tower is certainly engaged audiences at the festival
0:17:37 > 0:17:38and won the top documentary prize.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41Although it is a film showing gun slaughter it is
0:17:41 > 0:17:43unlikely to shift entrenched opinion on gun ownership in Texas.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46It does show without doubt the true heartbreak that firearms can bring.
0:17:46 > 0:17:50There is a fair amount of biking in Austin, and one of the films
0:17:50 > 0:17:53shown at the festival focused on a group of female cyclists whose
0:17:53 > 0:18:05mission is to reclaim the streets.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08They are also trying to dismantle a number of stereotypes.
0:18:08 > 0:18:10The Ovarian Psychos sprung up in East Los Angeles in 2011,
0:18:10 > 0:18:12a new force to be reckoned with.
0:18:12 > 0:18:14They were eager to reclaim streets that could sometimes
0:18:14 > 0:18:17be dangerous for women.
0:18:17 > 0:18:20They have a very powerful look, they wear their politics on
0:18:20 > 0:18:23the body, they wear bandannas over their faces, they have a hand sign.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26Everything about them was so clever, so political and feminist
0:18:26 > 0:18:58and unapologetic.
0:18:58 > 0:19:01The films to first feature directors spent two years making a documentary
0:19:01 > 0:19:03focusing on the Ovarian Psychos.
0:19:03 > 0:19:11They wanted to debunk a number of stereotypes.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15In the film we cover that they have been called a gang, that people have
0:19:15 > 0:19:18really focused on the fact that they are brown and from East LA,
0:19:18 > 0:19:19with this stereotypical language.
0:19:19 > 0:19:23I am not one of them but I can imagine that would be
0:19:23 > 0:19:25very frustrating, especially when the work they are
0:19:25 > 0:19:32doing is incredibly political.
0:19:32 > 0:19:40It was a dream to have a collective of women from our neighbourhood.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43They wear bandanna masks, fiercely emblazoned with an image
0:19:43 > 0:19:46of the uterus and fallopian tubes, partly to embrace their femininity,
0:19:46 > 0:19:48but also as an attention-getting move to make people aware of their
0:19:48 > 0:19:57commitment to community healing, reconciliation and antiviolence.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00It is like a Trojan horse or a tool to get people interested.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02A bit like Pussy Riot.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05But the Ovarian Psychos themselves say that it is much more personal
0:20:05 > 0:20:15and internal, and about healing and sisterhood and creating connections.
0:20:15 > 0:20:20All of us have some kind of trauma in our lives.
0:20:20 > 0:20:22For women, cycling can be a political act.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25In the US in the early 20th century a woman riding a bike
0:20:25 > 0:20:26could be labelled unladylike.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29They have faced much backlash, as women engaging in fields considered
0:20:29 > 0:20:39the domain of men always have.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41I think it has become second nature.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44Yes, it is a political act to get together as a group of women
0:20:44 > 0:20:57and ride and claim space.
0:20:57 > 0:20:58For the filmmakers, earning the trust of the
0:20:58 > 0:21:00Ovarian Psychos was a long journey.
0:21:00 > 0:21:03I am a white filmmaker, making a film about an organisation
0:21:03 > 0:21:05of women of colour, and it was not without complications.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08We had to have many conversations off camera in order
0:21:08 > 0:21:17to build trust and rapport.
0:21:17 > 0:21:20Texas is a state where 37% of the population is Hispanic.
0:21:20 > 0:21:22But films about the lives of Hispanics and Latinos don't
0:21:22 > 0:21:25feature that prominently in South by Southwest's film line-up.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27It is about the experience of Latinos living in another state.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30In the US media landscape that often exploits conflict among women,
0:21:30 > 0:21:33such as on the Real Housewives programmes, the Psychos
0:21:33 > 0:21:35and their filmmakers give what many find is a welcome portrait
0:21:35 > 0:21:57of female solidarity and support.
0:21:57 > 0:21:59That brings this edition to a close.
0:21:59 > 0:22:00We hope you enjoyed the show.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02You can always reach us online at our website,
0:22:03 > 0:22:04and you can find us on Facebook.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08From us, here in Austin in Texas, it is goodbye as we leave you with
0:22:08 > 0:22:29a clip from a Gary Numan documentary shown here at SXSW.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13Good morning.
0:23:13 > 0:23:15It has been a predominantly dry week, but each