Chicago makes presence known at SXSW festival

Chicago has a particularly strong lineup this year at the increasingly influential South by Southwest Film Festival, running March 12-20 in Austin, Texas.

In the lineup are documentary premieres tied to Kartemquin and IFP/Chicago, narrative premieres from Frank V. Ross and Music Box Films, and a film and performance from Califone.

In “No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson,” produced by Kartemquin Films for ESPN’s 30th anniversary “30 for 30” documentary series, “Hoop Dreams” director Steve James returns to his native Hampton, Virginia.

Here he revisits the 1993 trial of Iverson, then a high school basketball and football star, for a racially charged brawl?a trial that left the city polarized to this day.

“No Crossover” has its official premiere at SXSW, following a pair of preview screenings at the Gene Siskel Film Center, and in advance of its April 13 broadcast premiere.