The inaugural South by Southwest (SXSW) London Screen Festival will be opened by the world premiere of a film co-produced by Eminem.
SXSW is a major conference and festival, held annually in Texas, that is making its European debut in June with a six-day event held in Shoreditch.
Documentary Stans will open the screen portion of the festival, which also includes a talk from The X-Files star Gillian Anderson, and the closing night will see the UK premiere of science fiction drama The Life Of Chuck, starring Tom Hiddleston.
Stans, premiering at the festival on June 2, explores the relationship between an artist and their fanbase and the title of the film references the name of the crazed fan who features in Eminem’s song Stan.
The festival has said it will see 12 world premieres and 30 UK premieres as well as featuring panels, talks and screenings.
The Life Of Chuck, a genre-bending story based on Stephen King’s novella about three chapters in the life of an ordinary man named Charles Krantz, will close out the screen festival on June 7.
Also having its world premiere is Amazon MGM Studio’s action comedy Deep Cover, starring Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom and Nick Mohammed, as a group of amateur improv comics embroiled in London’s criminal underworld.
Headliner screenings include the world premiere of Love And Rage: Munroe Bergdorf, a documentary about the model and trans activist.
The festival will also play host to the UK premiere of the BBC’s What It Feels Like For A Girl, which is based on the memoir by journalist and trans activist Paris Lee, and the world premiere of thriller The Institute, based on the best-selling Stephen King novel.
Anna Bogutskaya, head of screen for SXSW London, said: “Putting together the first-ever programme of the SXSW London Screen Festival has been a dream.
“We are excited to present bold new work from across the world, celebrating boundary-pushing films across documentary, animation and narrative filmmaking.
“Our programme is designed to ignite conversations, inspire new connections, and showcase and celebrate screen storytelling across film, TV and immersive.”
Screen tickets will be available from May. More headliners will be revealed later.
