Not the four-letter kind: Familiar curses get new stories at the Austin Film Fest

AUSTIN, Texas-If you're not a regular Fantastic Fest attendee or a disciple of folks like Richard Linklater or Wes Anderson, it may surprise you just how much Austin, Texas, loves film. Just know there's a reason major movie outfits like the Alamo Drafthouse and Mondo started and succeed here.

Within this sneaky cinema town, perhaps no event outpaces the annual Austin Film Festival & Conference. It's a non-profit-led, eight-day movie love affair with panels devoted to screenwriting (both practical industry advice and folks like the team behind Arrival sharing insight on crafting believable sci-fi) and a wide-reaching film program. This year, buzzy A-list work like Armie Hammer's Call Me By Your Name or Margot Robbie's I, Tonya shared the schedule with "documentaries" about Apollo 18, actual documentaries on famed political cartoonists, and a slew of independent filmmakers (from both Texas and beyond).

That last category caught our eye in particular because of an unexpected overarching theme-curses. Among the handful of films we managed to catch, many relied on an inexplicable, supernatural omen to bring the story together. Luckily, none of 'em left us muttering the four-letter variety on the way out. Instead, each took a familiar brand of ominous curse and used it within a new context.

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