SHOWTIME Brings Southie and the South Side to SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST Conference

SHOWTIME will celebrate SMILF, THE CHI and SHAMELESS at the South by Southwest® (SXSW®) Conference and Festivals from Thursday, March 15 through Saturday, March 17 with art, food and music at The Showtime House at Clive Bar on Rainey Street in Austin, Texas. On Thursday, March 15, Showtime will feature a diverse lineup of female-fronted bands across multiple genres including rising teenage indie rocker Snail Mail and experimental violinist and vocalist Sudan Archives, in honor of the Golden Globe® nominated comedy SMILF. Golden Globe nominee Frankie Shaw will make a special appearance introducing headliner Princess Nokia, whose music was also featured on the show. Friday, March 16 will be dedicated to the hit drama THE CHI, with food from Harold's Chicken Shack in Chicago, a custom sneaker gallery, Chicago graffiti art and featuring live hip hop artists. Chicago-based artist Joey Purp will perform, along with Lee Fields & the Expressions, whose music is featured on THE CHI. The night will culminate with a DJ set from RUN-DMC's Darryl DMC McDaniels, introduced by THE CHI star Jacob Latimore. And finally, on St. Patrick's Day, The Showtime House will transform into an "Alibi Bar" pop up, where SXSW badge holders can party like a Gallagher with drinks served by SHAMELESS stars Shanola Hampton and Steve Howey. Musical acts include Low Cut Connie, Tank and The Bangas and headliners WAVVES.

Each day, Showtime will be giving out 100 gift cards to the Showtime service for the first 100 guests entering the venue. Outside of Clive Bar, the network will also have digital vending machines filled with merchandise that fans can receive for free when they sign up for the Showtime streaming service. One of the top vending machine offers will be a free Roku® Streaming Stick®.

For the sixth consecutive year, the Showtime brand will be front and center at the festival through the official sponsorship of the multi-platform SXSW GO app, as well as the Film, Interactive and Music Festival's shuttle buses and the official SXSW bag. Throughout the duration of the festival, SXSW shuttle buses and bikes will showcase art inspired by six Showtime series - HOMELAND, RAY DONOVAN, BILLIONS, SHAMELESS, SMILF and THE CHI - featuring interpretations from Austin-based art collective MONDO and their featured artist Oliver Barrett. The official SXSW GO mobile app, presented by SHOWTIME, allows attendees to view, plan and share their schedule, network with others and navigate the convention once they are on the ground. Inside the app, users will receive an extended free trial offer to the Showtime streaming service. This year, the network is also taking over the city-wide bike share program, branding over 60 stations in Austin and offering a valet service at select locations over the two weekends of the festival. Additionally, Showtime will be one of two presenting sponsors of the official SXSW Snapchat filter during the festival.

For all three days, The Showtime House will also be the official home to Betches at SXSW, offering a custom "Basic Betch" cocktail, free SWAG and live social media commentary. Follow along with the social media influencers and bloggers on Instagram.

Additionally, on Monday, March 12, creator and executive producer Lena Waithe, executive producer Common and actors Jason Mitchell and Jacob Latimore will be participating in a conversation about THE CHI at SXSW. For more information onTHE CHI panel, courtesy of FOX 21 Television Studios, visit: http://bit.ly/2Em4UQV. The Showtime Documentary FilmOPERATION ODESSA will also make its world premiere at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival. OPERATION ODESSA will premiere on Showtime on Saturday, March 31 at 9 p.m. ET/PT and unveils the true crime story about a Russian mobster, a Miami playboy and a Cuban spy who sold a Soviet submarine to a Colombian drug cartel for $35 million. For more information on SXSW screenings, visit: http://bit.ly/2BsSLuX.

To post a comment, you must register and login.