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Tuesday, March 11, 2008

You make me feel good like a homemade cookie... Warm inside and chocolate gooey.*

This weekend I had my first experience going to SxSW festival. My sister works for them, so she was exceedingly generous and gave us access badges for the whole week. So far we have experienced the interactive media and film portions before we go back on Wednesday for the music portion. I find it interesting that at SxSW, people only refer to movies as "films" . We met so many film-makers/casting directors/actors there to network. My favorite was an actor we met at a party that was from [and I quote] "San Antonio/Los Angeles." How exactly does that work? Someone please explain. Can I be from Houston/Austin? And is the order of locations relevant?

As a newbie, SxSW has so far surpassed my expectations. I think I envisioned all the uber-hip artists sniffing out my lack of savoir faire. There were a few of those types, but really, there were so many "normal people" just enjoying the festival, it was great to walk around and learn so much. And eat a lot and drink a lot. Yeah, freebies and swag!
I have made up for my lack of movie-attendance for the past year within one weekend. We also met Heather from Dooce, where I proceeded to act like a nincompoop. Next time I drag Andrew to talk to someone famous/semi-famous, I told Andrew to remind me of that very moment - the memory will hault me in my tracks.

Two of the more mainstream movies I really enjoyed were 21 (from the book Bringing Down the House) and Harold & Kumar's Escape from Guantanamo Bay. If you've seen the first Harold & Kumar, this one is even less PC and exceedingly more brutal. After the movies, the actors got on stage to do a Q&A session with the audience. My favorite moment was when one of the women in the audience asked Neil Patrick Harris (It's Doogie Howser!) why he wouldn't sleep with her. Neil jokingly started undoing his belt on stage saying "Let's do this," when John Cho (Harold) told the lady "It's complicated Woman!" (i.e. NPH is gay). Maybe you had to be there? Even Andrew, who prides himself on how unaffected he is by celebrity, whispered "I can't believe I'm watching a movie with Doogie Howser in it, while Doogie Howser is sitting in the same theater." Other movies/documentaries to check out are Medicine for Melancholy, Crawford, Some Assembly Required and The Toe Tactic. We also saw The Promotion with Sean William Scott (Stiffler!) and John Reilly, which was mediocre in my opinion.

The intereactive portion was not so much my thing, it's big amongst bloggers (Ahem, PAID bloggers) and gamers. I have never taken much interest in video games, but watching these people trash talk each other while feverishly punching controllers was highly amusing.




It was amazing to see the scale of the events. I can't believe that all the coordination of this week long festival is all done from one small office house. No wonder it takes a full year. I can't wait to go back for the music! I've heard it is insane. Plan of Attack: Bicycle between shows and always be mobile!

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Three Side Notes:


1. Kasia is trying to single-handedly bring back Doc Marten's, circa 1994.
Bow to the fashionista.


* 2. We were serenaded by a harmonica enthusiast with the lines in the title of this post. Couldn't have said it better myself.

3. For more pictures, go to my SxSW flickr.


5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dont forget the art to come when we check out Flatstock......


-Today I am feel like a cookie

Ethan said...

So much to comment on!

1. How was 21? Was it the most awesome movie ever?

2. I can't believe you got to see NPH in real life. I am completely in love with the tv show How I Met Your Mother.

3. You would have known about the "film" thing if you had read Stuff White People Like as I suggested in a previous comment.

4. Your run in with Heather from Dooce reminds me of Rachel on her honeymoon. Apparently she (somehow) didn't recognize Sir Paul McCartney sitting next to her at dinner and proceeded to tell him all about her friend's wheat allergy. So really, you could have done a lot worse.

5. Have an awesome time when you hit it up again on Wed!

Anonymous said...

Ethan, your comments are always great. Responses:

1. I loved it, I now want to read the book. Even though I heard the book was better than the movie, and the characters roles were altered somewhat in the "film".

2. I have never seen How I Met, but I was still awed by Doogie. He was a feisty one.

3. I DID read the Stuff White People Like, and it was hilarious! I meant to let you know. I must have not read the one about "films" - I jumped around in reading entries randomly. Just FYI, TOTALLY GUILTY of the study aborad one. Cracked me up.

4. Without Question, Rachel takes the cake on that event. Classic. Me? I just hug strangers. *cringe*

5. I will! Excited to leave! Hope you have a good weekend!

Bryn said...

You know, after reading this I had a dream about Doogie Howser. Weirdo, I know. ;)

Anonymous said...

I've started reading your blog again now that I am back in the corporate world sitting in a cube and no longer backpacking the world. Bummer.
Let me comment on Doogie Howser! First off, I had a major crush on him when I was a kid. Watched his show ever Wednesday night. Second, Spring Break of my junior year in college Jill and I went to NYC. We went to see Cabaret on Broadway...fabulous. They did not hand out the Playbills until after the production. We sat down in a French restaurant, I opened the Playbill, and then I gasped. Doogie Howser was the lead in Cabaret and I had no freaking clue!