Texas Focus: Jonathan Demme Presents: Made in Texas

Rating: NR (18+)
Runtime: 110 minutes
Principal Actors: These films have an amazing mix of Austin talent. Please see the individual film pages for a closer look.

Under the guidance of Louis Black, Jonathan Demme Presents: Made in Texas is a series of six short films from Austin’s early indie scene. These restored films will be presented together for the first time in Austin since Jonathan Demme introduced them at the Collective for Living Cinema in October 1981. Made in Texas premiered at SXSW Film 2015.

This collection of rarely seen indie films reveals the DNA of a regional film culture that started in Austin but has become worldwide. The films present a way of thinking about film and making movies that broke barriers, celebrated the improbable, and launched today’s independent film scene.

The streetwise, punk, DIY ethos percolating in the 1980s culminated in a synergistic explosion of music and film, the repercussions of which are still being felt. It was in this unique atmosphere that the language of independent, maverick filmmaking took shape. This fertile cinematic soil bred Richard Linklater, Robert Rodriguez, and a dozen other directors, as well as the Austin Film Society and SXSW Film.

Many others involved in the scene have become international successes, industry leaders who have founded festivals and institutes, and distinguished writers and scholars who teach in the country’s most prestigious film programs.

Louis Black co-founded The Austin Chronicle, where he is editor, and South by Southwest, where he is a director, and was a founding board member of the Austin Film Society.  He has written extensively on film, music, and politics.  Black has also produced documentaries and reissues of classic Texas films (Eagle Penell’s The Whole Shootin’ Match and Tobe Hooper’s Eggshells). 

In 2015 he founded Production For Use, an independent film consultation company. Black is currently working on a number of documentary and narrative films as well as more reissues of classic Texas independent films.

Invasion of the Aluminum People - A contemporary and surreal take on science fiction horror of the 1950s. Directed by David Boone with help from Gary Marchal.

Speed of Light - Reminiscent of Demme’s Crazy Mama, this story of an outsider searching Central Texas for her lost child is permeated by Cold War anxieties. Directed by Brian Hansen and Paul Collum.

The Death of a Rock Star - Real life events of The Doors ethereal frontman, Jim Morrison, frame this experimental short film. Directed by Tom Huckabee and Will Van Overbeek.

Leonardo, JR - A tribute to the silent comedy master, Buster Keaton. Directed by Lorrie Oshatz.

Mask of Sarnath - This grotesque film is inspired by the classical horror genre. Directed by Neil Ruttenberg.

Fair Sisters - In this homage to Demme’s Caged Heat, things go awry when a rough girl gang busts in on a back room poker game. A film by Missy Boswell, Edward Lowry and Louis Black with help from Steven Harding, Peter Bretz and Roberto Quiroga.

The Texas Spirit Theater located on the Bullock Museum's second floor is one of the most beautiful film experiences in Austin and features multi-sensory special effects such as lightning, rain, and other surprises.

Museum Members enjoy free unlimited IMAX® documentary films, discounts on feature film tickets, free exhibition admission, discounts in the Museum Store, and more. Learn More.

Learn about ticket prices, refund policies, and parking (free after 5 pm). For evening programs, please enter through the Bullock Museum IMAX Theatre.