This year’s South by Southwest did not offer stand-out documentaries like “Twenty Feet from Stardom” or “The Case Against 8” -- but we did see some really good films. Our favorites were “Landfill Harmonic” about the Recycled Orchestra, “Last Man on the Moon” about astronaut Gene Cernan, “Best of Enemies” about the legendary debates between Gore Vidal and William F. Buckley, Jr, “A Brave Heart” about Lizzie Velasquez, “All Things Must Pass” about Tower Records, and “Peace Officer” which won the Grand Jury Prize. Two films we missed but wanted to see were “Bikes vs. Cars” and “They Will Have to Kill Us First” about musicians at risk in Mali, Africa. However, meeting Gene Cernan and Jackie Stewart’s son David, the executive producer of “Last Man on the Moon” -- and hearing several of the young musicians from the Recycled Orchestra perform --were highlights. Their instruments are made from garbage found in the landfill, a landfill that dominates the small town of Cateura, Paraguay. Don Cola is the magician who makes these instruments, in his shack near the garbage dump, and the 60 Minutes story is worth watching online. We had hoped that Bonnie and John could join us for SXSW, but they did visit soon afterwards -- for a beautiful two days.
