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While Billy Bob Thornton broke out in a big way as a director with "Sling Blade," his efforts behind the camera since have failed to live up to that promise. From the troubled production of "All The Pretty Horses" to little seen efforts like "Daddy & Them" and last year's Willie Nelson documentary "The King Of Luck" (which, to be fair, is still look for a home) he hasn't yet matched that initial spark. But audiences in Toronto will get to see if he's turned it around with his latest "Jayne Mansfield's Car." Rounding up a solid ensemble cast for a period tale about a family split in two, this dramedy certainly isn't lacking in talent with Robert Duvall, Kevin Bacon, John Hurt, Billy Bob Thornton, Ray Stevenson, Tippi Hedren and more on board. Here's the official synopsis: Jayne Mansfield’s Car is a funny, poignant and searching look at...

A decade or so ago, Billy Bob Thornton was juggling his acting gigs with a burgeoning career as a director, helming Sling Blade, All The Pretty Horses and Daddy And Them. He then seemed to retreat back to acting, but apparently these projects come in threes, since Thornton-as-director has just made the Willie Nelson documentary The King Of Luck and the drama Jayne Mansfield's Car, and is now talking about his next idea: a road movie based on personal experience, called And Then We Drove.Thornton says the story is "ethereal", and is about "a guy who's on a road trip and picks up this girl along the way, and what happens to them. It's about the question of life: 'What is this? Where do I fit in?'"Deep stuff, but most interest in the film this morning has been of a more prurient sort, since an unnamed Variety...

Billy Bob Thornton's latest directorial effort, Janye Mansfield's Car, is premiering at the Berlin Film Festival, and now word on his next project has arrived.  Variety reports that Thornton will co-write and direct the "ethereal" road movie And Then We Drove.  Screenwriter Tom Epperson will co-write the story, which Thornton says is about "a guy who's on a road trip and picks up this girl along the way, and what happens to them. It's about the question of life: 'What is this? Where do I fit in?'"  The road trip will take the couple across the U.S. with stops in Los Angeles, the South, New Mexico, and Arizona. Producer Alexander Rodnyansky adds that the movie is partly inspired by Thornton's tumultuous relationship with ex-wife Angelina Jolie. Jayne Mansfield's Car is Thornton's first feature film in over a decade and I'm eager to hear the word on it out of Berlin.

Absent from the director's chair for nearly a decade, Billy Bob Thornton is on a tear behind the camera. Last spring he unveiled his Willie Nelson documentary "The King Of Luck," and he's currently in Berlin premiering his latest effort "Jayne Mansfield's Car." And it seems he's been doing some wheeling and dealing as well, as he's already lined up his next effort behind the camera. Alexander Rodnyansky's Ar Films and Geyer Kosinski's Media Talent Group are backing "And Then We Drove," the plot details of which are under wraps. Said to be based on Thornton's "personal experiences" he explained the rough outline of film as, "a guy who's on a road trip and picks up this girl along the way, and what happens to them. It's about the question of life: 'What is this? Where do I fit in?' " And the project gets a bit...

Billy Bob Thornton and Angelina Jolie...together again? Okay, not quite, but both filmmakers are headed to Berlin next month to present their latest films as the Berlinale has unveiled their competition slate, which does contain a couple of interesting titles to take note of. First off is "Jayne Mansfield's Car," Thornton's first narrative feature behind the camera in over a decade (he directed the Willie Nelson doc "The King Of Luck" which premiered at SXSW last year). Robert Duvall, John Hurt, Kevin Bacon, Robert Patrick and Ray Stevenson star in the film that last year, Duvall described thusly: “It’s about a guy in between Wwi and WWII who raises a family after his wife left him for an Englishman and moved to England…When the wife dies, she asks to be brought back to Alabama to be buried, and at that point the character hasn’t seen her in 20 or 30 years.

...Or we should say "Cheat Sheets" since this year's SXSW Film Festival boasts over 140 films, requiring more than just one page to cover every single one of the narrative and documentary features that will be playing in Austin from March 11th through 19th. While the festival has already provided a very helpful schedule to flip through and Pdf of the screening grid online, consider this your quick hit guide to all the features at the festival - every title leads to its corresponding festival page in addition to links to trailers, official sites, filmmakers' Facebook pages and Twitter accounts so you can follow the action from the festival or from home.

Meanwhile, there will be plenty of action during these next two weeks on IFC.com where, in addition to our live video page, Matt Singer (@mattsinger) and I (@mfrushmore) will be filing reviews and interviews throughout the film festival.

The South by Southwest Film Conference and Festival revealed today that its closing night film this year will be the world premiere of Bill Bob Thornton‘s documentary on Willie Nelson, The King of Luck. They also announced additional titles to the fest, including a work-in-progress screening of Bridesmaids, starring Kristen Wiig and produced by Judd Apatow, and a short from Harmony Korine. More info on the closing night film and additional titles can be found below.

SXSW will take place March 11-19 in Austin, Texas. Read full list of features here; Midnight, SXFantastic and shorts here.

Closing Night Film

The King of Luck

Director: Billy Bob Thornton

This is a documentary about Willie Nelson: the man, the songwriter, the friend, the father, legendary performer and champion of the family farmer. (World Premiere)

Special Events

Bridesmaids (Work In Progress)

Director: Paul Feig, Writers: Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig

Kristen Wiig leads the cast as Annie,...