While SXSW did not move ahead as planned this year, the film juries and press still viewed the selection and coming out on top was the Grand Jury Prize winner Shithouse, which marks the directorial debut for writer-direct-actor-producer Cooper Raiff. A well-told story about growing up that will be familiar to anyone that made the jump from high school to college, it’s now set for a release next month and IFC Films has released the first trailer.
Dan Mecca said in our review, “Making a movie about the college experience feels both universal and redundant. Haven’t we all seen this film before? Haven’t we watched this world played out in every which way? Shithouse, written and directed by the 22-year-old Cooper Raiff, tells a familiar story with a specificity that cannot be ignored.”
See the trailer and poster below for the film also starring Dylan Gelula and Amy Landecker.
Lonely college freshman Alex (writer/director Cooper Raiff) has closed himself off from his peers, who all appear to have this whole “college thing” figured out. But everything changes one night when Alex takes a leap and attends a party at Shithouse – a legendary party fraternity – where he forges a strong connection with Maggie (Dylan Gelula, FIRST GIRL I LOVED). The next day, she ignores him completely and seems to have forgotten about their amazing night. Desperately clinging to his social breakthrough, Alex pulls out all the stops with one more night at Shithouse, hoping to rekindle that moment of connection. From producer Jay Duplass, this Grand Jury Prize Winner at the 2020 SXSW Film Festival announces an hilarious and winning new star of American independent film.
Shithouse opens on October 16.