SXSW 2027 Shifts Film Premieres from Paramount Theatre to ACL Live, Adds Podcast Festival

The 2027 SXSW Film and TV festival will (temporarily) look different, as another of the festival’s signature venues undergoes renovations.

The multidisciplinary festival announced that its signature film venue, Austin’s Paramount Theatre, will be out of commission for its 2027 edition due to construction. As a result, some film premieres and red carpets will move to the music venue ACL Live for 2027 before returning to the Paramount in 2028.

While SXSW uses a variety of local venues for screenings, including the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar and the Zach Theater, the Paramount and its iconic marquee represent the festival’s unofficial center. The historic venue typically hosts all of the festival’s biggest film premieres from its Headliners section.

By this point, SXSW attendees are used to venue changes. The Austin Convention Center, which always held the majority of the festival’s panels and speakers, closed for redevelopment in late 2025. The 2026 festival spread its programming around the city to accommodate the construction, with the convention center currently expected to reopen in time for the 2029 edition.

SXSW also announced a major new addition to its 2027 programming: a podcast festival. The new section, which runs from March 17-20, will feature live tapings and conversations with podcast industry leaders. It represents a major new pillar of SXSW standing alongside its concurrent tech, film, music, and comedy festivals.

“2026 proved that we can evolve the event while preserving the discovery, connection, and creativity that make it special. We heard amazing feedback from attendees, with 2027 PanelPicker submissions and Music and Film & TV festival applications up by as much as 50 percent so far,” Greg Rosenbaum, SVP of programming at SXSW, said in a statement. “For 2027, we’re building on what worked by creating more intentional hubs across downtown Austin, giving growing communities like podcasting a bigger platform, and making it easier for attendees to find the ideas, people and opportunities that matter to them. There is much more to come as we continue to build toward SXSW 2027.”

SXSW runs from March 15-21, 2027 in Austin, Texas. Badges are on sale now.