ATX Television Festival is an annual event based in
Austin, Texas
Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...
, that celebrates and showcases the past, present, and future of the
television industry
Television (TV) is a telecommunications, telecommunication media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of signal transmission, ...
. Screenings, Q&As, cast reunions, and industry panel discussions take place over four days and are open to members of the public.
The organizers describe it as having "the functionality of a traditional
film festival
A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theater, cinemas or screening venues, usually annually and in a single city or region. Some film festivals show films outdoors or online.
Films may be of recent ...
", and as a blending of industry and fan events.
[ The first was held in June 2012, founded by Caitlin McFarland and Emily Gipson. Attendance numbers have risen from 700 at the first festival to 2,500 in 2017. They now work "hand-in-hand with networks and studios that want to bring their talent to promote their programming".][
]
Festival history
"Season 1" (2012)
The first festival took place from June 1–3, 2012. Special panels included discussions with showrunners Bill Lawrence and Jason Katims, and reunions with cast and crew members of '' Friday Night Lights'', ''Adult Swim
Adult Swim (stylized as dult swimand s is an American adult-oriented television programming block that airs on Cartoon Network which broadcasts during the evening, prime time, and Late-night television, late-night Dayparting, dayparts. T ...
'', '' One Tree Hill'', and '' Love Monkey''. Notable screenings with Q&As included ''Firefly
The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production ...
'', '' Parenthood'', ''The Vampire Diaries
''The Vampire Diaries'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural teen drama television series developed by Kevin Williamson (screenwriter), Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec, based on the The Vampire Diaries (novel series), book series ...
'', ''Teen Wolf
''Teen Wolf'' is a 1985 American coming-of-age comedy film directed by Rod Daniel and written by Jeph Loeb and Matthew Weisman. Michael J. Fox stars as the title character, a high school student whose ordinary life is changed when he discover ...
'', and ''Criminal Minds
''Criminal Minds'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created by Jeff Davis that premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005. It follows a group of criminal profilers who work for the FBI as members of its Behavioral ...
''. Industry panels included "TV Fantasy Goes Mainstream", "Women on Television", "Book to TV Series", "Stages of a Television Writing Career" and more.
"Season 2" (2013)
The second festival took place from June 6–9, 2013. There were panels for the cast and crew of ''Friday Night Lights'', ''Parenthood'', and '' Husbands'', and conversations with showrunners Michael Jacobs, Rob Thomas and Dan Harmon
Daniel James Harmon (born January 3, 1973) is an American television writer and producer. He is best known as the creator and producer of the NBC sitcom ''Community (TV series), Community'' (2009–2015), creator and host of the comedy podcast ' ...
. Notable screenings with Q&As included ''Boy Meets World
''Boy Meets World'' is an American coming-of-age sitcom created by Michael Jacobs and April Kelly that aired on ABC for seven seasons between September1993 and May2000. The series centers on Cory Matthews ( Ben Savage) and his friends and f ...
'', ''American Dreams
''American Dreams'' is an American drama television series that ran on NBC for three seasons and 61 episodes, from September 29, 2002, to March 30, 2005. The show tells the story of the Pryor family of Philadelphia during the mid-1960s, with m ...
'', '' My So Called Life'', ''Once Upon a Time
"Once upon a time" is a stock phrase used to introduce a narrative of past events, typically in fairy tales and folk tales. It has been used in some form since at least 1380 in storytelling in the English language and has started many narrative ...
'', and ''Scandal
A scandal can be broadly defined as the strong social reactions of outrage, anger, or surprise, when accusations or rumours circulate or appear for some reason, regarding a person or persons who are perceived to have transgressed in some way a ...
''. Among the specialist panels were "Creating the Sound of a Show", "Directing in a Writer’s World", "Face Off: Movies vs. TV presented by Austin Film Festival
Austin Film Festival (AFF), founded in 1994, is an organization in Austin, Texas, that focuses on writers' creative contributions to film. Initially, AFF was called the Austin Heart of Film Screenwriters Conference and functioned to launch the c ...
", "Pitch…Pilot…Pick-Up", and "Structure of a Sitcom…and the Rise of the Anti-Sitcom".
"Season 3" (2014)
The third festival ran from June 5–8, 2014. It included conversations with actor Henry Winkler
Henry Franklin Winkler (born October 30, 1945) is an American actor, producer, director, and author. Widely known as Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli on the sitcom ''Happy Days'' (1974–1984), Winkler has distinguished himself as a character acto ...
and showrunner Carlton Cuse, a panel with the people behind ''Adult Swim'', and a special "15 Year '' Roswell'' Reunion" screening with Q&A. Other Q&As included the cast and crew members from '' Archer'', '' Fargo'', '' Everwood'', '' Justified'', ''Orange is the New Black
''Orange Is the New Black'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''OITNB'') is an American comedy-drama television series created by Jenji Kohan for Netflix. The series is based on Piper Kerman's memoir '' Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Pr ...
'', '' The Goldbergs'' and more. Some of the specialist panels were "Are You Listening?: Fine-tuning the Television Soundtrack", "It’s All So Dramatic: evolution of the tv drama", "Pairing Off: a look at co-creating & writing partners", "Reboot, Remake, Reimagine, or Adapt" and "The Casting Director’s Production".
"Season 4" (2015)
The fourth festival was held from June 4–7, 2015. Special panels included "''Gilmore Girls
''Gilmore Girls'' is an American comedy drama television series created by Amy Sherman-Palladino, starring Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel. The show debuted October 5, 2000, on The WB and became a flagship series for the network. The show ran fo ...
'': 15-year reunion", "'' Queer as Folk'': 15 Year Reunion", "'' Dream On'': 25-year reunion", and "The Evolution of ''The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
''". Additional panels were held with cast and/or crew from '' The Leftovers'', ''Brooklyn Nine-Nine
''Brooklyn Nine-Nine'' is an American police procedural sitcom television series that aired on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox, and later on NBC, from September 17, 2013, to September 16, 2021, for eight seasons and 153 episodes. Created by Dan G ...
'', ''Person of Interest
"Person of interest" is a term used by law enforcement in the United States, Canada, and other countries when identifying someone possibly involved in a criminal investigation who has not been arrested or formally accused of a crime. It has no leg ...
'', '' Suits'', ''Dawson's Creek
''Dawson's Creek'' is an American teen drama television series about the lives of a close-knit group of friends in the fictional town of Capeside, Massachusetts, beginning in high school and continuing into college. It aired from January 20, 19 ...
'', ''Empire
An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...
'', and others. There were conversations with showrunners Marta Kauffman, Amy Sherman-Palladino
Amy Sherman-Palladino (born January 17, 1966) is an American television writer, Television director, director, and producer. She is the creator of the comedy drama series ''Gilmore Girls'' (2000–2007), ''Bunheads'' (2012–2013), and ''The Marv ...
, and James L. Brooks. Industry discussions included "CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
Summer Writers Forum", "Defining Docuseries", "Diversity in Progress", "The Buyers", "The Directors", and "The Devoted Niche vs. The Casual Mass: Is It Really All In the Numbers?" among others.
"Season 5" (2016)
The fifth festival was held from June 9–12, 2016. Special reunion panels occurred for ''The West Wing
''The West Wing'' is an American political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White House, where t ...
'', ''Ugly Betty
''Ugly Betty'' is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from September 28, 2006, to April 14, 2010. It is based on the Colombian telenovela ''Yo soy Betty, la fea' ...
'', '' Rescue Me'' and the writers of ''The Shield
''The Shield'' is an American crime drama television series created by Shawn Ryan and starring Michael Chiklis that aired on FX from March 12, 2002 to November 25, 2008 for seven seasons. The show is known for its portrayal of corrupt police ...
'' and '' The OC''. Other series with cast and/or crew panels included '' Younger'', ''Preacher
A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who Open-air preaching, preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach com ...
'', '' The Night Shift'', '' Unreal'' and others. Showrunners who attended for talks included David Simon, Tom Fontana
Tom Fontana (born September 12, 1951) is an American screenwriter, writer, and television producer. Fontana worked on NBC's '' Homicide: Life on the Street'' and created HBO's ''Oz.''
Early life and education
Fontana was born on the west si ...
, Norman Lear
Norman Milton Lear (July 27, 1922December 5, 2023) was an American screenwriter and producer who produced, wrote, created, or developed over 100 shows. Lear created and produced numerous popular 1970s sitcoms, including ''All in the Family'' (1 ...
, Noah Hawley and Beau Willimon
Pack Beauregard Willimon (born October 26, 1977) is an American playwright and screenwriter. He developed the American version of the series '' House of Cards'', serving as showrunner for the first four seasons. In 2018, Willimon created the dram ...
. Industry discussions included "Breaking Story: Inside the Room Where It Happens", "Crisis of Faith: Religion & Spirituality on TV", "Development Executives: Business Meets Creative", "Fandom Rising: The Impact of Fan Culture in the Age of Social Media", "The (New) American TV Family" and more.
"Season 6" (2017)
The sixth festival ran from June 8–11, 2017. The headline event was "''Battlestar Galactica
''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. It began with the original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel series, '' Galactica 1980'', a line of book adaptat ...
'' Reunion". Other series that had a cast and/or crew panel included ''This is Us
''This Is Us'' is an American drama television series created by Dan Fogelman that aired on NBC from September 20, 2016, to May 24, 2022. The series follows the lives and families of two parents and their three children in several different ti ...
'', '' The Comeback'', ''The Americans
''The Americans'' is an American historical drama, period spy fiction, spy drama television series created by Joe Weisberg for FX (TV channel), FX. It aired for six seasons from 2013 to 2018. Weisberg and Joel Fields also served as showrunners ...
'', '' Girls'', ''Sons of Anarchy
''Sons of Anarchy'' is an American Action film, action crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter for FX (TV channel), FX. Originally aired from September 3, 2008, to December 9, 2014, ''Sons of Anarchy'' follows the lives of a close-k ...
'', '' Grace & Frankie'', '' GLOW'', ''Northern Exposure
''Northern Exposure'' is an American comedy-drama television series about the eccentric residents in the fictitious town of Cicely, Alaska, that originally aired on CBS from July 12, 1990, to July 26, 1995, with a total of 110 episodes. It rec ...
'', ''Sneaky Pete
''Sneaky Pete'' is an American black comedy crime drama television series created by David Shore and Bryan Cranston. The series follows Marius Josipović ( Giovanni Ribisi), a released convict who adopts the identity of his cellmate, Pete Murph ...
'', ''Nashville
Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
'' and more. Industry discussions included "A Network’s Identity: Brave New World or Business As Usual?", "Complex, Not Complicated: A Look at a Woman’s Character", "Directors & Showrunners: A Collaboration", "MTV’s Evolution of Reality presented by MTV
MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
" and "Television in a Trumped Up America".
"Season 7" (2018)
The seventh season was held June 7–10, 2018.
"Season 8" (2019)
The eighth season was held June 6–9, 2019.
"Season 9" (2020)
The ninth festival was tagged "...from the couch!" and ran from June 5–7, 2020. Due to a mass national quarantine, the festival was held virtually for the first time. It consisted of a single-track schedule with pre-recorded content that was streamed live on their ATX YouTube channel.
"Season 14" (2025)
The 14th festival was held from May 29, 2025 to June 1, 2025. One notable event of the festival was a discussion panel which involved details concerning the revival of Texas-based animated classic ''King of the Hill
''King of the Hill'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels that initially aired on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox from January 12, 1997, to September 13, 2009, with four more episodes airing in First-run syndicati ...
'' at the Austin's Paramount Theater on May 30.Mike Judge
Michael Craig Judge (born October 17, 1962) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, and director. He is best known for being the creator of the animated television series ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' (1993–1997, 2011, 2022–present). He ...
, Greg Daniels
Gregory Martin Daniels (born June 13, 1963) is an American screenwriter, television producer, and director. He has worked on several television series, including writing for ''Saturday Night Live'' and ''The Simpsons'', adapting '' The Office'' ...
, Pamela Adlon
Pamela Adlon ( ; ; born July 9, 1966) is an American-British actress. She is known for voicing Bobby Hill in the animated comedy series ''King of the Hill'' (1997–2010), for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award. She also voiced Baloo in '' Ju ...
, Lauren Tom
Lauren Tom (born August 4, 1961) is an American actress. She began her career on stage, winning an Obie Award, and gained recognition for her role in '' The Joy Luck Club'' (1993). On television, she is known for her roles in the NBC sitcom ''Fri ...
, Toby Huss and new showrunner Saladin Patterson.
ATX Television Excellence Award winners
* Henry Winkler
Henry Franklin Winkler (born October 30, 1945) is an American actor, producer, director, and author. Widely known as Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli on the sitcom ''Happy Days'' (1974–1984), Winkler has distinguished himself as a character acto ...
(2014)
* James L. Brooks (2015)
* Norman Lear
Norman Milton Lear (July 27, 1922December 5, 2023) was an American screenwriter and producer who produced, wrote, created, or developed over 100 shows. Lear created and produced numerous popular 1970s sitcoms, including ''All in the Family'' (1 ...
(2016)
* Marcy Carsey
Marcy Carsey (born Marcia Lee Peterson; November 21, 1944) is an American television producer and a member of
the George Foster Peabody Awards board of jurors. She is best known for her work with fellow producer Tom Werner forming the company The ...
(2018)
* Phylicia Rashad (2019)
* Michael J. Fox
Michael Andrew Fox (born June 9, 1961), known professionally as Michael J. Fox, is a Canadian and American actor and activist. Beginning his career as a child actor in the 1970s, he rose to prominence portraying Alex P. Keaton on the NBC sitcom ...
(2021)
References
{{reflist
External links
Official websiteATX Television Festival
collected news from ''The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
''
ATX Television Festival
collected news from '' IndieWire''
Television festivals
Festivals in Austin, Texas
Festivals established in 2012
2012 establishments in Texas