Today is Day 1 of the 2026 edition of SXSW Film & TV. The fest has expanded to editions in Sydney and London, but the OG in Austin commands our loyalty. While difficulties at the corporate level have shortened the film component of the multi-disciplinary event by a couple of days, the line-up is still full of delicious dishes. As usual, the ones cooked by members of the Short of the Week family are those we are the most excited about! 

The sheer abundance of work that catches our eye, especially at this scale of fest, makes SXSW pretty much unmatched, and the announcement of the lineup is a highly anticipated event at S/W HQ. We’ve combed the listings to track names familiar to our shorts-loving audience, so if you’re looking for a starting point to build your watchlist, look no further!

Below is a list of all S/W alums with new films at the festival. An insane 19 directors featured on Short of the Week are bringing a new short to the festival! This includes fresh work from current Oscar® nomininee Sam Davis, and from Alyssa Loh, whose prior SXSW short, Let, has been viewed 23M times on YouTube. 13 additional directors from our alum community are presenting a feature, including debuts from prior “Short of the Year” winner Graham Parkes, as well as Caleb J Phillips, whose short, Other Side of the Box, is a 7M view viral smash on YT. 

Shorts

This year, you will find in the shorts program 16 films that are directed by S/W alums! This record number obviously fills us with joy, with films in the Animation, Documentary, Narrative, and Texas competitions 

copy_save_sxsw_03

Copy, Save by Alyssa Loh

Imago-short-film-sxsw

Imago by Ariel Zengotita

In The Beginning by Ala Nunu

In The Beginning by Ala Nunu

We Were Here Pranav Bhasin

We Were Here by Pranav Bhasin

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Features

Short of the Week celebrates shorts, naturally, but we also want short filmmakers to be able to afford their rent! So we always wish them the best if and when they transition to features and are delighted when they debut full-length films on the festival circuit. Getting a spot on the SXSW lineup is no small feat, so while the entirety of the lineup makes our watchlist, we will first and foremost catch the films of our alums. 13 projects on the feature side of the program were directed by members of the S/W family, across the Narrative Feature Competition, both Narrative and Documentary Spotlights, 24 Beats, Midnighter, and Festival Favorite categories.

  • Basic by Chelsea Devantez
    S/W Films:     Basic
    Synopsis:     After Gloria and Nick break up, Gloria takes us through Nick’s dating history, untangling his web of ex-girlfriends through details she can find online. But when she discovers Kaylinn, the hottest, most basic ex-girlfriend to ever exist, Gloria not only loses herself, she loses control of the story she’s been telling. Basic is a comedy that blends the magical realism of jealous paranoia with the magic of falling in love.
    Section: Narrative Spotlight

Imposters by Caleb J Phillips

Imposters by Caleb J Phillips

  • First They Came for My College by Patrick Bresnan
    S/W Films: The Rabbit Hunt, Skip Day
    Synopsis: When the Governor of Florida transforms a beloved public honors college as part of a political coup, students and professors confront a new reality: their campus is ground zero in a growing nationwide assault on academic freedom.
    Section: Documentary Spotlight

  • Hokum by Damian McCarthy
    S/W Films: He Dies at the End
    Synopsis: When novelist Ohm Bauman retreats to a remote inn to scatter his parents’ ashes, he is consumed by tales of a witch haunting the honeymoon suite. Disturbing visions and a shocking disappearance force him to confront dark corners of his past.
    Section: Midnighter
  • Imposters by Caleb J Phillips
    S/W Films: Other Side of the Box, Play Me
    Synopsis: After a couple’s baby boy is taken, the desperate mother learns of a way to bring him back. However, her husband begins to suspect that what she returned with isn’t their son.
    Section: Midnighter

  • Manhood by Daniel Lombroso
    S/W Films: American Scar
    Synopsis: Manhood follows Dallas businessman Bill Moore as he sets out to make penis enlargement as commonplace as Botox. Along the way, an OnlyFans star and a father of five put their bodies – and their insecurities – on the line.
    Section: Documentary Spotlight
Wishful Thinking by Graham Parkes

Wishful Thinking by Graham Parkes

  • Mile End Kicks by Chandler Levack
    S/W Films:     We Forgot to Break Up
    Synopsis: Grace Pine, a driven though easily distracted 23-year-old. She leaves her quirky parents’ home for a shared apartment found on Craigslist to devote herself to writing the next great book in the 33 1/3 album exploration series. Hers will be on the iconic Alanis Morissette opus Jagged Little Pill. Loft parties introduce Grace to two paramours. Unfortunately, they are members of the same rock band, Bone Patrol. And instead of sequestering herself away to complete her draft, she uses her music industry know-how to get in with the band as their publicist. Through wine-fuelled poetry readings and other ill-advised choices, Grace is in the trenches of self-discovery.
    Section: 24 Beats
  • One Another by Amber Love
    S/W Films: Strikers
    Synopsis: Sometimes it takes the end of something to know what is really at stake. Joe, Giorgia, and Lorri are all grappling with the possible end of an intimate friendship at vastly different stages of life: a cross-country move, a mental health crisis, and a shift into empty-nesting have forced them each to reevaluate the support they need from those closest to them. Chronicling three different friendships over the course of three years, “One Another” brings together verite with a wealth of personal archives to intertwine their journeys as they search for what it really means for us to care for each other. The result is a story of change, heartache, and connection in this ode to platonic love.
    Section: Documentary Spotlight
  • Stages by Ryan Booth
    S/W Films:     Five Star, The Heights
    Synopsis: It’s make-or-break time for Ben Garza as he embarks on his solo first tour after the collapse of his band. By his side are Rita, his former tour manager, stepping away from her stable life to help him, and Parker, a remaining bandmate who joins Ben as a utility player. However, Rita also secures Jessie Ramos as the opening act, a rising star whose sudden surge in popularity will completely destabilize Ben. Throughout this musical odyssey, Ben will face characters on the road who challenge his ideas of success, relevance, and purpose. Some encounters offer hope; others deepen his doubt. By the tour’s end, Ben must decide whether to keep chasing the life he once had—or chart a new path forward.
    Section: 24 Beats
  • The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist by Daniel Roher, Charlie Tyrell
    S/W Films (Charlie Tyrell): My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, I Thought I Told You to Shut Up
    Synopsis: A father-to-be tries to figure out what is happening with the AI insanity, exploring the existential dangers and stunning promise of this technology that humanity has created.
    Section: Festival Favorite

  • The Saviors by Kevin Hamedani
    S/W Films:     In Her Place
    Synopsis: Sean and Kim Harrison are a suburban couple about to divorce. By renting their guest house to a quiet Middle Eastern brother and sister, Amir and Jahan Razi, they find a perfect solution: raise money to fix and sell their house, then separate. But when bizarre occurrences begin to add up – mysterious lights, missing animals, glimpses of unexplainable tech – in the days before the President’s upcoming visit to town, their guests’ strange behavior starts to seem suspicious and potentially dangerous. As Sean and Kim investigate their new tenants, they rediscover the emotional connection they once shared. But reconciliation may come at a significant cost in this timely and provocative thriller.
    Section: Narrative Spotlight