Who's coming? What's free? We have answers to all your SXSW 2023 questions.

The worlds of music, film, technology and more will converge upon Austin starting Friday, as South by Southwest Conference and Festivals returns for its 37th edition.

What began as an indie festival for up-and-coming musicians in 1987 has grown into a season-defining event, where seismic ideas are born and the next big things in entertainment are introduced to the world.

The past few years have been unusual for Austin's signature spring attraction. After the cancellation of its live event in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the owners of SXSW LLC, the company behind the festival and conference, sold a 50% ownership stake to Penske Media Eldridge in 2021. At the time, Roland Swenson, the event’s chief executive and co-founder, said the deal gave a "lifeline" to SXSW.

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SXSW pivoted to a largely virtual model in 2021 before returning to a more familiar in-person model in 2022. Last year's event delivered a $280.7 million impact on Austin's economy, according to a report by Greyhill Advisors, which conducted the study for SXSW.

As things start to look a little more like they did before the pandemic, there's a lot to wrap your arms around. The conference and its myriad featured speakers will tackle discussions on technology, cannabis, psychedelics, sports, gaming, civic issues, the film and music industries and more. Actress and activist Priyanka Chopra Jonas will kick off the keynotes on Friday. Doug Emhoff, the country's second gentleman as Vice President Kamala Harris' husband, will talk about gender equality Wednesday.

The farther you get from the Austin Convention Center, SXSW's music, comedy and film and TV festivals will take over local venues until closing night on March 18.

Here's what you need to know about SXSW 2023:

How can I go to SXSW 2023?

One big difference from 2022 (and a sign of a times): Attendees will not be required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative test result.

SXSW HQ is the Austin Convention Center, site of most of the keynotes and official sessions. But it takes over the core of downtown at venues from coffeeshops to major hotels, and expands across Interstate 35 into East Austin. For music, programmers told us there are 77 stages, same as 2022, but the footprint has expanded on the east side with new official venues for 2023, including the North Door, Shangri-La and Latchkey.

Find information about purchasing badges for SXSW, as well as film and music wristbands for locals and single tickets to some film screenings, at sxsw.com. Single tickets are available to buy at the door of many showcases, capacity permitting. An online pass option gives virtual access to keynotes, sessions, some red carpet and virtual reality events, and other select content.

To get there, consider using ride-hailing services, public transportation, a bike or other nondriving options. Many downtown streets will be closed during SXSW, and parking will be pricey and scarce. SXSW has a shuttle that runs from the convention center to other venues; details weren't available as of publication time but will be updated at sxsw.com.

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Are there any free SXSW events?

While badges are pricey — $995 for a music badge, the cheapest, and $1,995 for an all-inclusive platinum badge — SXSW also heralds a week of free fun for Austinites. Some of it is part of the official event. SXSW hosts three days of free, public concerts on the shores of Lady Bird Lake: The headliners will be Thao Nguyen on Thursday, the Zombies on March 17 and bands from Honk!TX on March 18.

Perhaps as popular as the official SXSW programming are the annual crop of unofficial side parties around town. Returning favorites include parties at Hotel San Jose (March 15-19), Waterloo Records (March 14-17) and Clive Bar (March 16 and 17), as well as live tapings from ACL Radio from March 15-18 at Hotel Van Zandt and KUTX 98.9 FM from March 15-18 at Scholz Garten.

And of course, it wouldn't be an Austin music moment without Willie Nelson. The country artist's annual Luck Reunion mini fest returns to his Spicewood ranch on March 16. The lineup includes Nelson and his Family band, viral singer-songwriter Ethel Cain, Austin rock kings Spoon and more.

What's the SXSW bag policy?

From SXSW: Paramount and Stateside theaters have a clear bag policy to minimize contact that a bag search would require. Clear bags should not exceed 14”x12”x6” (35x30x15cm) in size. Small, non-clear clutch bags will be allowed, and should not exceed 4.5”x6.5” in size.

Bags smaller than 14”x12”x6”, diaper bags (when a child is present), medically necessary items (including breast pumps), jackets and coats are permitted but subject to inspection. SXSW registrant tote bags are allowed.

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What is premiering at the SXSW film festival?

As the shape of SXSW evolves, the footprint of its film and TV festival feels bigger than ever. Stars like Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez are set to attend the opening night world premiere of "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves"; Donald Glover is expected to walk the red carpet for the opening TV premiere, "Swarm," which he co-created. Both premieres will be Friday at the Paramount Theatre.

Oscar winner Tilda Swinton will participate in a keynote conversation Monday. Later that night, she's slated to attend the world premiere of the film "Problemista" at the Paramount, along with co-star and director Julio Torres and producer Emma Stone. And on Thursday, "Star Trek" icon William Shatner will have a keynote conversation with Alamo Drafthouse co-founder Tim League.

Other headlining films at this year's SXSW Film & TV Festival include "Evil Dead Rise," "Flamin' Hot," "Bottoms," "Joy Ride" and "Tetris." Major TV projects screening in Austin during SXSW include closing-night title "Beef," "American Born Chinese," "I'm a Virgo," "Mrs. Davis" and "Love & Death," the upcoming HBO Max crime drama starring Elizabeth Olsen and Jesse Plemons that filmed in Central Texas last year.

Local filmmaker Robert Rodriguez also is set to screen a work-in-progress cut of his new thriller "Hypnotic" on Sunday at the Paramount. The film, which stars Ben Affleck, filmed scenes in Austin.

Programmers have not yet revealed the closing night feature film; an announcement is expected midway through the festival. In addition to starry premieres, SXSW will present dozens of narrative and documentary features, as well as short films and extended reality experiences. Winners of the festival's competitions will be announced at the SXSW Film & TV Awards on Tuesday at the Paramount. (The American-Statesman's Eric Webb served as a juror for this year's Louis Black “Lone Star" Award, honoring a film with Texas ties.)

And as always, there are tie-in activations happening around town, like a "Dungeons & Dragons"-themed tavern setting up at Alamo Drafthouse's Highball bar on South Lamar Boulevard, and Amazon Prime has turned Hotel San Jose into "Prime, TX," a showcase for the streamer's shows.

This year also marks the first without longtime festival director Janet Pierson at the helm. Last year, she stepped into an emeritus role and handed the reins to colleague Claudette Godfrey, who is now SXSW's vice president of TV and film.

What do you need to know about tech, business and health at SXSW?

You couldn’t turn a corner in 2022 without seeing high-tech terms and emerging buzzwords, such as NFTs, Web3, blockchain and cryptocurrency. Emerging technology will still be a hot topic this year, along with themes such as sustainability, climate, space and the future of transportation (think autonomous cars).

Greg Brockman, co-founder of OpenAI, the company behind artificial intelligence software ChatGPT and Dall-E, will speak with Laurie Segall, CEO of Dot Dot Dot Media. Other big-name tech executives on the lineup: Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian and current COO Jen Wong; Everette Taylor, CEO of Kickstarter; and Dan Schulman, president and CEO of PayPal.

Chelsea Manning, who now works for technology privacy company Nym Technologies but is most famous for her involvement with WikiLeaks, will speak on the future of privacy on the internet along with Nym CEO Harry Halpin. Online security is also top of mind for actor Robert Downey Jr., who will talk about cybercriminals and the impact of online crime in another featured session.

Attendees will be able to explore the changing health landscape with an interactive virtual and augmented reality lounge by Johnson & Johnson showcasing hands-on virtual surgery training and robotics. Other health-focused sessions include big names such as Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers, who will speak about living with diabetes, and 23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki on the future of genetics in personalized health care.

Patagonia CEO Ryan Gellert will discuss sustainability and the future of business during a keynote with Katie Couric, and Patagonia will have an activation centered on sustainability. Chobani yogurt founder and CEO Hamdi Ulukaya is a featured speaker who will talk about putting purpose over profits. And Shark Tank investor Mark Cuban is on a panel with Austin-based Zenbusiness executive Michael Fanuele, speaking on what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur.

Texas entrepreneurs at SXSW include Austin-based Indeed CEO Chris Hyams on the future of work, Ben Lamm of Colossal talking about de-extinction and William Hurley (aka whurley), founder and CEO of Austin-based quantum computing startup Strangeworks, who will talk about artificial intelligence.

The conference also will shoot for the stars with a number of space-focused sessions, including a NASA keynote with members of the James Webb Space Telescope team and sessions about NASA’s upcoming Artemis mission and on space junk.

If Earth is more your speed, the future of car tech, including autonomous (or self-driving) vehicle technology, is the focus of a number of sessions. Electric vehicles, which were a big focus last year, also return with a number of sessions on design, adoption and battery technology.

Who is included in the SXSW Music Festival lineup?

As the film and tech programming attract marquee names, the SXSW Music Festival gives the next big things the spotlight. Up-and-comers with significant buzz include Korean collective Balming Tiger, which headlines a pan-Asian showcase Wednesday at Cheer Up Charlies; recent Billboard chart sensation PinkPantheress, who will perform Tuesday at Mala Vida; and New York rock band (and SXSW alums) Sunflower Bean, booked for several showcases around town all week.

Of course, there are established acts on the lineup. Billboard will take over Waterloo Park for three days of shows with rapper Lil Yachty, Latin pop acts Feid and Eladio Carrión, and Kx5 (a collab between electronic stars Kaskade and deadmau5). Landmark German synth group Tangerine Dream will play their first U.S. show in a decade on March 16 at Parish. Other music veterans include classic rock band the Zombies, drag performer Christeene and rapper Killer Mike.

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Country singer-songwriter Margo Price and 1980s icons New Order will both participate in keynote conversations at the conference, on March 17 and 15, respectively. (The Statesman's Deborah Sengupta Stith also will moderate a panel on overcoming obstacles in the music industry on Wednesday.)

New Order will play Monday at ACL Live. The home of the "Austin City Limits" TV show also will host one of the buzziest series of SXSW 2023, Rolling Stone's Future of Music concerts. Artists booked for the showcases March 14-17 include Austin City Limits Music Festival standout spill tab, indie singer Cuco, violinist Sudan Archives and R&B singer Chlöe Bailey.

The tunes will play even as some questions about the festival's model are lingering. Last month, the national Union of Musicians and Allied Workers, or UMAW, an advocacy group, published an open letter to the festival demanding better compensation. The letter was signed by more than 120 artists. In the first five hours the letter was online, the group collected an additional 830 signatures.

The current compensation structure for showcasing artists offers a choice of a one-time payment of $250 for bands ($100 for solo artists), or a wristband that grants access to conference and festival programming, as well as artist-only areas at the event. Those numbers have not changed in over a decade. Meanwhile, the application fee that artists pay to attend the festival has gone from $40 to $55, a 37% increase.

In response to the letter, a SXSW spokesperson on Feb. 7 said the festival will carry out a policy review after the event. UMAW this week announced a "fair pay at SXSW" showcase on Tuesday at the Hole in the Wall and a protest rally on March 16 outside the Austin Convention Center.

You can get full coverage of this year's SXSW, including the Statesman's picks on what to see, at statesman.com.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: How to attend SXSW free events, shows, free parties, movies, sessions