AUSTIN, Texas — At the South by Southwest premiere of “The Rivals of Amziah King,” the audience, captivated by the film, rose to their feet in a standing ovation, with a roar of approval echoing through the venue.
In rural Oklahoma, Amziah King, a charismatic and musically talented leader, manages a honey business and a band of quirky musicians.
The surprise return of Amziah’s estranged foster daughter gives her the opportunity to rebuild their relationship and launch a family enterprise. Yet, the competition in the honey industry is fierce, and Amziah’s enemies aim to destroy his life’s work.
It’s been six years since Matthew McConaughey starred in a movie, who said that he wanted to be in this film because “it was an original story that I hadn’t read before. The fact that the father figure, the shepard of lost souls who my guy Amziah King is, basically, he’s an aristocrat of the heart who gives people belonging.”
“I did not know, someone told me it’s been six years since I’d done a film or been on screen,” McConaughey said. “Seemed like it’d been quicker than that. I was writing a book and stuff; I thought I was busy!”
In the film, Angelina LookingGlass gave a captivating performance as Kateri. Asked about her decision to play the role, she said, “The first thing is that Katari is indigenous, and being indigenous myself it was already a win already and getting to meet Andrew Patterson and seeing the way he worked and everything, it brought, me to this movie.”
The movie effectively tells Amziah King’s story through a narrative of familial love, musical talent and a beekeeping business.
Despite lacking distribution, the film captivated South by Southwest audiences.