SXSW Film Festival 2011 Conference Lineup Includes Panelists Paul Reubens & Todd Phillips

Schedule of Screening and Panel Dates & Times Now Live

Austin, Texas – The South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Conference and Festival is thrilled to announce over 100 Film Conference sessions for the 2011 event, which will take place Friday, March 11 – Saturday, March 19, 2011 in Austin, Texas. These panels, largely selected from proposals submitted via the SXSW PanelPicker™ interface, offer fresh perspectives on the topics facing today’s filmmakers and industry. The schedule, complete with both screening and panel dates and times, is now available at http://www.sxsw.com/film. Visit often for more information and updates.

The SXSW Film Conference starts on Friday, March 11 and runs through Tuesday, March 15, 2011. Major panelists added include Todd Phillips (filmmaker, The Hangover, Old School), Paul Reubens (filmmaker, The Pee-wee Herman Show on Broadway), Duncan Jones (filmmaker, Source Code, Moon), Jake Gyllenhaal (actor, Source Code, Love & Other Drugs), James Gunn (filmmaker, Super, Slither), Ellen Page (actor, Super, Inception) and Rainn Wilson (actor, Super, The Office), among others. Other upgrades to the 2011 Conference include more workshop sessions, more mentor sessions, and over 20 Crossover Panels (open to both Film and Interactive registrants).

The SXSW PanelPicker™ is an innovative online tool that allows the SXSW community to have a significant voice in programming Music, Film, and Interactive conference activities (panels, presentations, discussions, etc.) through an open proposal and voting process. SXSW Film accepted proposals from June 14 – July 11, 2010, and the community was invited to browse and vote on the ideas from August 9 – August 29, 2010. Votes from the community, along with feedback from SXSW Advisory Boards and the SXSW staff, helped determine Conference programming for the 2011 event. For more information on the SXSW PanelPicker™, visit http://panelpicker.sxsw.com.

“Many of my favorite moments at SXSW have included those great connections made in the halls of the Film Conference, where film professionals of every stripe gather to teach, learn, and compare notes,” says Film Conference and Producer Janet Pierson. “Through Conversations, panels, workshops and one-on-one mentor sessions, tremendous access and information are available to our registrants. Not to mention a taste of all that SXSW Interactive has to offer via the Crossover panels, and the SXSW Trade Show – this year featuring original content and entertainment via the Next Stage.

The SXSW Film Festival will open on Friday, March 11, 2011 with Duncan Jones’ Source Code. In addition to five days of panels and workshops in the Film Conference, SXSW Film Festival offers nine full days of screenings featuring nearly 300 films. For details on the complete film lineup, visit www.sxsw.com/film/screenings.

A sampling of key panels follows below, as well as the complete panel breakdown, by date and title. These panels join over 40 previously announced sessions for the 2011 SXSW Film Conference, including Catherine Hardwicke’s Directing Workshop, an Ain’t It Cool News 15th Anniversary Panel, The Female Funny: Is it Different for Girls, Did You Kill Anyone? Reality in War Movies, and more. For full panel descriptions and participants, browse the schedule at http://schedule.sxsw.com.

A Conversation with Todd Phillips

Director Todd Phillips has forever left his mark on comedy entertainment with his own brand of films exploring, in often-outrageous ways, the nature of male relationships. With films like Old School, Starsky & Hutch, School For Scoundrels, Due Date and The Hangover, the highest grossing R-rated comedy of all time, he has worked with some of today’s most innovative and acclaimed comic actors. He is currently in post-production on The Hangover Part II, which moves the action to Thailand. Phillips began his career as a documentary filmmaker, inspired by humor taken from everyday reality and the belief that the truth is often stranger than fiction. Join what promises to be a fascinating discussion with Phillips as he discusses his work, his career and what makes life so funny, with Elvis Mitchell.

A Conversation with Paul Reubens

Paul Reubens is best known for his character, Pee-wee Herman, which he created while a member of the famed Los Angeles improv group, The Groundlings. From its premiere in 1981, the stage production of The Pee-wee Herman Show quickly gained a national audience when it was broadcast by HBO. In 1985, Reubens co-wrote the hit film, Peewee’s Big Adventure. He went on to create, co-write and co-direct Pee-wee’s Playhouse on CBS. The series earned 22 Emmy Awards over its five seasons. Recently, The Pee-wee Herman Show completed an acclaimed run on Broadway and was filmed, once again, for HBO. Join us as Paul discusses his remarkable body of work and the upcoming HBO special “The Pee-wee Herman Show on Broadway.” We can’t wait, and hope you can’t either!

Straight From the Source (Code)

Join visionary director Duncan Jones and the cast of the SXSW opening night film as they navigate parallel universes, alternate realities and mind-bending explosions. Jones will be joined by cast members Jake Gyllenhaal and Michelle Monaghan as they answer all of your questions about the making of Source Code, his highly anticipated follow up to Moon.

SUPER-Talented: A Conversation with James Gunn, Ellen Page and Rainn Wilson

SUPER-size the U.S. premiere of this highly-anticipated new film with an explosive conversation featuring director James Gunn (Slither), Rainn Wilson (The Office) and Ellen Page (Inception). Learn about how a short-order cook can take justice into his own hands with little more than a wrench and a sign from above. Don’t steal, don’t deal drugs, and don’t miss your chance to hear all the inside stories of how this singular dark-comedy made it to the big screen.

A Grid View of the SXSW Schedule is now available by clicking HERE.