The East, an eco-thriller from director Zal Batmanglij, will be the closing night film of the South by Southwest Film Conference and Festival, organizers announced Wednesday.
Batmanglij and star Brit Marling co-wrote the spy drama, which collected strong reviews at its Sundance Film Festival premiere last month.
SXSW, which will screen a total 133 features, also announced 14 more more films to complete its lineup, including In Your Dreams — Stevie Nicks, a documentary co-directed by the Fleetwood Mac singer and Dave Stewart, half of the British rock duo Eurythmics; At Any Price, Ramin Bahrani’s family drama starring Dennis Quaid and Zac Efron; and Xmas Without China, Alicia Dwyer’s documentary comedy about consumerism.
The conference portion of SXSW will include conversations with Danny Boyle, who will be presenting footage from his art-world thriller Trance, Joss Whedon and the cast of his Shakespeare adaptation Much Ado About Nothing, and Sarah Silverman, who will be talking about comedy and YouTube along with Michael Cera and comics Reggie Watts, Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim.
The 2013 SXSW Film Conference and Festival is set for March 8-16 in Austin, Texas. More information is available at sxsw.com/film.
Rebecca Keegan / Los Angeles Times / Wednesday, February 13, 2013
