SXSW 2025
Diverse Voices and Dialogues
The SXSW Film Festival has long served as a meeting ground for cultural change-makers—a place where filmmakers, musicians, educators, and innovators build social capital with one another while celebrating each other’s visions of the world. This year’s Film Festival continued that tradition, highlighting how storytelling can bridge divides and spark the question, “What am I missing?” That very curiosity lies at the heart of reimagining conflict, both in our lives and in the narratives we create.
Creede, U.S.A.
A key highlight of the festival was the world premiere of Creede, USA, which debuted with a Q&A moderated by Austin’s own Richard Linklater. Set in a small Colorado mining town, this feature documentary recounts tensions that arose when a theater company brought new progressive residents to town, wrestling with divisive issues such as guns and their school’s health curriculum. A microcosm of America’s broader cultural and political divisions, the film observes how communities can find common ground through shared values and experiences.
At SXSW, we observed a community successfully navigating their differences in Creede, U.S.A., which debuted with a Q&A moderated by Austin’s own Richard Linklater. Set in a small Colorado mining town, this feature documentary spotlights tensions that arose when a theater company brought new progressive residents to town, wrestling with divisive issues such as guns and their school’s health curriculum.
SXSW invited BEL and the filmmakers to host a discussion highlighting how filmmaking serves as a form of narrative transportation—an art that allows both creators and audiences to suspend their realities and experience the world from a different perspective. The panel emphasized that by shifting from “us vs. them” to “you and I,” filmmakers can capture the colorful complexity of human experience, challenging assumptions and revealing unconscious biases. As the panel concluded, we affirmed that whether you’re engaged in making a movie or participating in a school board meeting, stepping outside your echo chambers to build a bridge is a transformational experience.
Participants:
- Kahane Corn Cooperman (Director/Producer, Creede U.S.A.)
- Jennifer Pelling (Executive Producer, Creede U.S.A. / Co-Founder, Likewise Directors Fellowship)
- Marci Wiseman (Chief Creative Officer, The deNovo Initiative)
- Steven Olikara (CEO, Bridge Entertainment Labs)
Read this “on point” review from Indiewire
Follow their journey on Instagram @CreedeUSAfilm
