South by southwest Film Festival 2023

THE SHORT VERSION

Ten days of the cutting edge in music, film, tech and comedy. Come to party hard, move fast, and break things with the big shots. 

It’s a music festival! It’s a film festival! It’s a tech conference! It’s a comedy festival! No, it’s South by Southwest. Or, South By, for short. SXSW is a mega-event that packs all four aforementioned festivals, each huge in their own right, into one week, in one city, under one name. It’s become the tastemaker of tomorrow, the preeminent gathering of all things cultural and cutting edge. Lena Dunham was discovered here, as was Fred Armisen. Everything Everywhere All at Once premiered here. So did Bridesmaids, 21 Jump Street and The Hand’s Maid Tale. Twitter gained some of its earliest attention here, and Mark Zuckerberg’s cold interview responses made headlines here. In short, anyone who’s anyone [or who wants to be someone] in tech, music, and media comes here to network and, to use the tech parlance, move fast and break things. Panels on current and future issues, artist speakers, and movie cast Q&A’s number in the hundreds. And the music lineup rivals that of any festival. Dolly Parton, Beck and Shawn Mendes were a few of 2022’s standouts. Kendrick Lamar has played SXSW three times. Lizzo, four. Put all of this in the renowned party city of Austin, and it’s one hell of a week.  NOTE: 2023 lineup not yet released

The Specs

• In 2022, 42,500 attended the conference, 205,500 attended the music festival virtually and in person, and 71,000 attended the film and comedy festival virtually and in person. 
• Attendees can buy badges for either the music, film or interactive portions of SXSW, or a platinum ticket that grants them access to the entire festival. The Music Badge starts at $595. The Film & TV Badge starts at $895. The Interactive Badge starts at $995. And, the Platinum Badge starts at $1,295.
• Here are the festival’s apps to help guide you through the weekend.

Table of Contents

• What is SXSW 2023?
• When is South by Southwest 2023?
• When was South by Southwest 2022?
• South by Southwest Line Up 2023
• South by Southwest Line Up 2021
• SXSW Badges Explained
• SXSW PanelPicker 2023
• How To Do SXSW For Free [music, food and booze]
• Twitter
• Wristbands For Free Shows
• SXSW Apps
• SXSW Venues
• Accommodation in Austin SXSW
• Getting Around Austin
• What Do You Wear to SXSW Conference
• SXSW Packing List
• SXSW For Free Roundup
• Frequently Asked Questions

This article has links to products and services we love, which we may make commission from.

So what is SXSW? SXSW is an incredible ten-day programme of film, music and interactive shows which takes place every March in sunny Austin, Texas. The conference is attended by media and tech businesses, artists and party-goers who are looking to discover new talent, often for free.

We [Gemma and Craig] have attended three South by South West festivals [2015, 2016, 2019] and even got hitched at Lou Neff Point straight after it in 2016. Craig ditched me and went solo in 2018.

In 2019, we opted for premium badges so we can now compare how to do SXSW for free against doing it like the industry types. Here’s your ultimate guide to SXSW with tips on bagging gratis food, booze, entry to SXSW free parties. As always, we discuss how much South by costs, what to pack and tips on how to get the best out of the fest.

South By Southwest 2023 runs from March 10-19, 2023.

You may also like our guide, free things to do in Austin and where to stay for SXSW.

What is SXSW 2023?

SXSW or South by Southwest is an annual multi-media festival and conference which takes place every March in Austin, Texas for just under two weeks. 

The 10-day event is split into three sections, interactive, film and music.

You can expect the following:

• International movies playing in a variety of cinemas.
• Panel members speaking at the Austin Convention Center.
• Startups showing off their new products at the SX Trade Show.
• Bands performing in hotels, churches, clubs and even vans.

What makes SXSW special is that the festival takes over the whole city. No space is safe.

Many locals actually escape the city.

Participants can either pay for a badge, wristband, or, with a bit of effort, see gigs and events for free.

You can purchase badges for each theme or go platinum for primary access to all three.

If you choose just the interactive or film or music badge you gain secondary priority access to the other two.

When is South by Southwest 2023?

The show kicks off March 10-19, 2023.

EDU takes place TBC, then Interactive portion takes over on the TBC. Film overlaps on the TBC. Finally, music will fill the streets officially from the TBC.

Purchase your early bird South by Southwest 2022 tickets here.

You can learn more about the different types of accommodation, and prices, in our SXSW accommodation guide.

Want to attend online? SXSW online registration is available.

When was South by Southwest 2022?

SXSW 2022 took place March 11th – March 20th 2022.

EDU took place 7th – 10th March, then Interactive portion took over on the 11th – 20th March. Film overlapped on the 11th – 20th March. Finally, music filled the streets officially from the 14th – 20th March.

South by Southwest Line Up 2023

You might be surprised to hear this but the lineup for SX isn’t fully announced until the weekend before it starts.

The first big wave of acts/panellists tend to be announced around August/September but it is pretty much a guessing game until March and even then some artists have to pull out because of funding.

Don’t worry, we’ll explain how to create your own SX itinerary below.

Although Austin is the live music capital of the world, it’s not just about the music.

Sessions include the topics of gender, health, business, marketing, self-help, etc.

Sessions mainly take place in the Austin Convention Center.

Previous artists and speakers have included big names like Chvrches [2019] and CEO of Tesler/SpaceX [2018].

However, SXSW is not about the known, it’s about the discovery of new talent from every genre.

South by Southwest Line Up 2021

2021 Featured Speakers included Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, Julia Cheek, Maëlle Gavet, Ann Hiatt, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Emily Ma, Ghazi, Hari Ravichandran, Andrew Zimmern.

For music, Circuit Des Yeux, Moor Mother, bbymutha and Sunflower Bean joined the bill.

Everything Everywhere All At Once by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert aka ‘Daniels’ starring Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, James Hong, Jenny Slate, Harry Shum Jr., and Jamie Lee Curtis opened SXSW Film.

SXSW 2019 Highlights

Here are some of our top music acts/events from 2019. We were lucky enough to see some gigs twice.

• Jonathan Bree – eery band think The Village/Handmaid’s Tale with an awesome sound [saw twice]. Free.
• The Ninth Wave – Scottish band, Depeche Mode vibe played the British Music Embassy. Free.
• Nordista Freeze – wow, energy from Nashville! Caught on the rooftop of Handlebar. Free.
• APRE – indie pop, happy band from London [saw twice, once stripped back at Holy Roller]. Free.
• Majestic Casual party – excellent lineup at the Rainey Street party. Badges.
• Good Omens Garden Party – this was a phenomenal two-day party with drink, food, music and puppies. Free SXSW event!

SXSW Badges Explained

SXSW was created to support artists and industry meet and discuss future partnerships. Those who are serious about networking should invest in the SXSW badge.

Badges give you access to all shows, talks, events and gigs in your chosen area [or access all areas for the platinum badge], you may still need to wait in line but not to the extent of those who enjoy SXSW by stalking the free events.

Even as badge holders, we’ve missed out of sessions and films because we missed the window to request a SXXpress Pass.

You do this through the SXSW Go app. It looks as if you have to request around 9 am the day before the event.

Another perk we’ve enjoyed as badge holders is the free daily drink at the Registrant Lounge. Here we’ve met interesting locals and visitors from a range of backgrounds including blockchain companies to gaming marketeers.

Here’s the difference between the four badges –

SXSW PanelPicker 2023

Date TBC.

On this date, the online application allows the SXSW community to have a voice in what sessions are programmed at SXSW.

How To Do SXSW For Free [music, food and booze]

It’s universally known that you can visit Austin during SXSW just to take advantage of the free music shows, eats and drinks. Venues and gigs are sponsored by private companies and with sponsorship comes free shizzle!

Here’s how to get the best out of your free South by Southwest break. You will need a holiday after it.

Twitter

Planning for SXSW starts months before the big event. Start stalking the bands and artists your love on social media to keep an eye on who is attending. You should also pay attention to SXSW Twitter accounts as well as venues in Austin.

During the festival, the following official and unofficial accounts will tell you where to get food, what the lines are like and where the surprise gigs are taking place. You might want to create a separate Twitter account to keep track of events.

@SXSW
@SXSWNews
@SXUnofficial ‏
@Do512