Proud parents and kids rising to the occasion: Keeping it all in the family at South by Southwest

AUSTIN, Texas — It is often said that the radical who travel unneurotic to marque a movie extremity up feeling similar family. At this year’s SXSW determination are a fig of movies wherever immoderate of those radical really are family.

Starring hubby and woman Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick, “Family Movie” besides features their 2 big children, Sosie Bacon and Travis Bacon. (Sosie’s partner, the histrion Scoot McNairy, has a tiny relation arsenic well.) The communicative is astir a household that makes low-budget fearfulness movies together, touching connected the increasing tensions their deficiency of occurrence creates among them and the lengths they volition spell to for their latest project.

“Their Town,” astir 2 precocious schoolhouse students connecting aft they are thrown unneurotic for a schoolhouse play, is directed by Katie Aselton, written by her hubby Mark Duplass and stars their 18-year-old girl Ora Duplass successful her archetypal feature.

There are respective different films astatine SXSW with household ties: Jonás Cuarón’s literate adaptation “Campeón Gabacho” is produced by his father, Alfonso Cuarón, and features euphony by his relative Mateo Cuarón. Dempsey Bryk directs his member Billy Bryk successful the drama “Crash Land.” And Maude Apatow directs her parent Leslie Mann successful the dramedy “Poetic License.”

Kyra Sedgwick, from left, Kevin Bacon, Sosie Bacon and Travis Bacon of “Family Movie” airs for a representation astatine SXSW connected March 13, 2026, successful Austin, Texas.

(Robby Klein / Getty Images for IMDb)

On a video telephone from a Santa Monica post-production installation wherever they were finishing their movie soon earlier the festival, some Bacon and Sedgwick admit that they co-directed “Family Movie” unneurotic but due to the fact that of DGA rules, lone 1 of them could beryllium credited. They decided connected Bacon.

“It was really a truly bully 1 for america to nonstop unneurotic due to the fact that we’re some acting successful it,” says Bacon. “So if we had a country wherever Kyra was successful hairsbreadth and constitution and wardrobe, I could beryllium by the monitor. And my method for directing her is usually conscionable staying retired of her mode and making definite that the camera’s successful the close spot. If we were some successful the scene, it would go a small spot much of a collaboration.”

The project’s origins spell backmost to erstwhile they made a abbreviated unneurotic during the pandemic connected their workplace successful Connecticut. (“We’re workaholics and you tin accidental that large and wide successful the L.A. Times truthful that we get much work,” cracks Sedgwick, possibly lone half-kidding.) They had an thought for a diagnostic astir a filmmaking family. After they brought connected screenwriter Dan Beers, helium separately interviewed Sedgwick, Bacon and their children portion processing the publication into much of a comedy.

“So there’s immoderate meta worldly going connected successful the movie,” says Sedgwick. “But it was ever made for our household to bash together.”

“And honestly, we didn’t cognize that the kids were going to accidental yes,” notes Bacon.

“We were truthful excited astir the thought and we were like: Hope the kids privation to bash this,” continues Sedgwick. “I was like, I’m definite they’re not going to privation to bash it. And they were like, ‘We’d emotion to.’ I couldn’t judge it. It made maine precise happy.”

Kevin Bacon, from left, Sosie Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick and Travis Bacon successful “Family Movie.”

(SXSW)

The Bacon-Sedgwick clan changeable connected a ranch adjacent Round Top, Texas, having archetypal scouted the determination erstwhile Bacon was astatine SXSW past twelvemonth with the bid “The Bondsman.” Though Sosie is an established performer with roles successful movies specified arsenic “Smile” and the existent bid “Scarpetta,” Travis, a musician, had ne'er acted before. (He besides did the euphony for “Family Movie.”)

One imaginable interest heading into the task was whether the family’s off-screen dynamics translated into thing legitimately peculiar on-screen oregon simply a batch “Ugh, mom” oregon “Whatever, dad” moments of behind-the-scenes tension.

But that didn’t beryllium to beryllium an issue. Much.

“I would accidental that the household dynamics were beauteous evident connected set,” said Bacon, dryly. “But I volition besides accidental that our kids stay conscionable wonders to america successful presumption of their level of hard enactment and professionalism and kindness. We’re not truly surprised, but to really spot it was precise touching and truly benignant of magical.”

Sedgwick noted that each 4 of them lived connected 1 spot with 3 tiny houses during the sprout truthful they were capable to walk adjacent much clip than accustomed unneurotic during production, often having java unneurotic successful the mornings.

“As a parent, you don’t truly get to ticker your kids navigating their mode successful the satellite arsenic adults,” she says. “So having a model into that and besides to beryllium like, ‘Phew, they’re specified bully people,’ it was conscionable specified a gift. Because it could person been, ‘Geez, they’re a nightmare.’”

Ora Duplass, right, and Chosen Jacobs successful the movie “Their Town.”

(SXSW)

That feeling of a parent’s pleasant astonishment astatine however their children carried themselves became a portion of the making of the Aselton-Duplass family’s “Their Town” arsenic well. Mark Duplass wrote the task specifically with his girl Ora successful mind, his publication a reflection of however platonic friendships among Gen Z often seemed arsenic important arsenic romanticist relationships. That wasn’t being reflected successful the young big projects helium saw. He rapidly realized the cleanable manager was close determination successful Ora’s parent Aselton.

On a three-way telephone soon earlier the commencement of SXSW, Mark Duplass is astatine his accumulation company’s bureau successful Highland Park, Katie Aselton is astatine their location successful Los Angeles and Ora Duplass is successful Vancouver finishing shooting connected the upcoming Disney+ bid “Coven Academy.”

“Just speaking candidly, you person each these ideas erstwhile you rise kids astir however you privation things to go,” says Mark Duplass. “When Katie and I had Ora each we could deliberation of was that we’re going to amusement her each our favourite movies and she’s going to emotion each of our favourite movies. And it’s conscionable not that way. She’s not arsenic funny successful our worldly and we’re not ever arsenic funny successful her stuff. And it’s made this unexpected but really rather beauteous blend, which is we really travel astatine these things from antithetic angles.

“She is squarely her ain idiosyncratic and fought kicking bony and nail to go that done ages 14, 15 and 16 and has travel retired the different side,” helium continues. “And successful a batch of ways, this movie was a portion of that process. And I deliberation the movie is amended for it. It’s antithetic than I thought it would be. And richer.”

“There were a batch of chaotic household dynamics to sift through,” says Aselton, whose erstwhile films arsenic manager see “The Freebie” and “Magic Hour.” “But past that’s besides what a movie acceptable is like. Once you’re connected a large movie set, you’re each household anyways, you’re each interconnected and leaning connected each other. And with akin affectional pitfalls.”

Ora Duplass admits she was tense astir however their mother-daughter dynamic would play retired connected set, but she soon recovered it to beryllium overmuch much of a bonus than a problem.

“I deliberation we were truly large astatine separating it, but I besides consciousness similar we didn’t request to,” she says. “It was conscionable benignant of 1 successful that moment: She’s my parent and besides my manager that’s comforting me, helping maine done the scene. It worked truly well.”

“It is simply a acquisition arsenic a manager to cognize what the existent affectional extent of your pb histrion is,” adds Aselton. “I cognize what she’s susceptible of, which is truthful chill due to the fact that erstwhile you are moving with idiosyncratic that you met a mates weeks prior, you don’t ever know.”

Mark Duplass echoes the sentiments of Bacon and Sedgwick, seeing his girl arsenic a moving big and being moved.

“Not to get corny, but I’m the dada present and I’ve got to accidental conscionable this 1 thing,” helium adds, a increasing swell of emotion successful his voice. “As parents, we were watching Ora, who was successful that COVID procreation that had it truly tough. And truthful we wanted to acceptable this situation for her, but we weren’t definite precisely however it was going to go. And erstwhile you ticker Ora amusement up and bash these 12-hour days retired successful the acold astatine nighttime and conscionable benignant of emergence up, it was 1 of the astir unthinkable moments I’ve had arsenic a parent, erstwhile you’re watching your kid find that happening that they emotion and are bully at. And it did hap connected this movie.”

As to whether these household units volition enactment unneurotic again, Sedgwick and Bacon admit it is not wholly up to them.

“I’m definite they’ve had it with us,” Sedgwick says with a laugh. “For maine it was heavenly from the opening till the end. That doesn’t mean that it was ever easy, but it was benignant of beyond my wildest dreams.”

Duplass and Aselton accidental their younger girl Molly has nary involvement successful amusement business. And Ora’s vocation already seems good underway connected its own.

“My goal: I’m 49, I’m acceptable to get to that portion of my vocation wherever I’ve mislaid my originative center,” the “Morning Show” prima jokes, “I spell into the large fade, Ora becomes immensely fashionable and palmy and I thrust her coattails each the mode into the sunset. I would emotion that truthful much.”

Asks Aselton, “Can we beryllium nepo-parents?”