We Took Our Debut Film to SXSW – And It Blew Up

100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes

When we launched Screenlife Liverpool, we had one wild, ambitious goal: to make stories that feel immediate, real and utterly of the now. And now, standing here on the other side of the world premiere of our debut feature LifeHack at SXSW 2025, it feels surreal to say... we’ve done just that — and then some.

LifeHack, a screenlife-style heist film built for the digital generation, had its first screening in Austin this March — and the response has been nothing short of phenomenal. Critics have called it inventive, unrelenting, and refreshingly bold, and we’ve somehow ended up with a perfect 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes (yep, we triple-checked).

Collider ran a sneak peek calling it a “must-watch SXSW gem”, and Deadline’s Pete Hammond offered a quote we’ll be framing on our wall:

“For my money, this is hands down the best Screenlife movie yet, a dazzling marriage of online skill, clever storytelling, brilliant editing and acting within the confines of your computer screen that rivals the best of any heist film in recent years.”

To hear those words from someone like Pete… it's hard to put into words how much that means.

We made LifeHack with a conservative budget, a brilliant cast and crew, and a lot of creative risk — choosing to tell the entire story through screens and messages, just like we all live our lives now. It’s a film that speaks to digital culture, online identity and what happens when our worst instincts go viral.

To see it resonate with audiences, programmers and critics on this level is beyond encouraging — it’s proof that bold ideas and new voices can cut through.

This is just the beginning for us at Screenlife Liverpool. We’re bringing the energy back home and already dreaming up what comes next. If LifeHack was the opening statement, trust us — there’s a lot more to say.

Thanks to everyone who believed in us. Let’s keep hacking the system.

— The Screenlife Liverpool Team