2021 honorees include Kenneth Branagh, Adrien Brody, Clifton Collins, Jr., Aunjanue Ellis, Harry Gregson-Williams, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Phil Lord, Chris Miller, Mike Mills, Ruth Negga, Dylan Penn, Sandy Powell, and Odessa Young
Gala screenings include Cyrano, The Last Duel, Parallel Mothers, Spencer and The Worst Person in the World
The Savannah College of Art and Design presents the 24th annual SCAD Savannah Film Festival in-person and virtually October 23–30, 2021. The largest university-run film festival in the U.S., the eight-day celebration of cinematic excellence honors both professional and student filmmakers and welcomes major industry luminaries, including award-winning directors, writers, and actors.
This year, SCAD will honor Kenneth Branagh with the Lifetime Achievement in Acting and Directing Award for Belfast; Adrien Brody with the Vanguard Award for The French Dispatch; Clifton Collins, Jr. with the Distinguished Performance Award for Jockey; Aunjanue Ellis with the Outstanding Achievement in Cinema Award for King Richard; Harry Gregson-Williams with the Lifetime Achievement in Composing Award for his body of work including The Last Duel; Maggie Gyllenhaal with the Rising Star Director Award for The Lost Daughter; Phil Lord and Chris Miller with the Outstanding Achievement in Animation Award for The Mitchells vs. The Machines; Mike Mills with the Auteur Award for C’mon C’mon; Ruth Negga with the Spotlight Award for Passing; Dylan Penn with the Rising Star Award for Flag Day; Sandy Powell with the Variety Creative Impact in Costume Design Award; and Odessa Young with the Discovery Award for Mothering Sunday.
The festival kicks off Saturday, October 23, with the opening-night Gala Screening of Belfast, directed by Kenneth Branagh. The festival culminates Saturday, October 30, with the closing-night Gala Screening of King Richard with Aunjanue Ellis. Centerpiece Gala Screening C’mon C’mon will feature on Wednesday, October 27 with director and writer Mike Mills. A key stop on the Academy Awards festival circuit, the SCAD Savannah Film Festival will screen 157 films, including 45 narrative feature films, 15 documentary feature films and 97 shorts, with 14 world premieres, 1 U.S. premiere, and 3 North American premieres – with 63 of these films directed by women.
“Settle into your seats and marvel at the magic of stellar cinema at this year’s SCAD Savannah Film Festival,” said SCAD President and Founder Paula Wallace. “With in-person events that prioritize safety, comfort, and community, SCAD’s signature festival dazzles with a display of more than 150 films and an assortment of stars — from living legends like Kenneth Branagh to luminaries such as Aunjanue Ellis. And more — always more! Premieres. Panels. Masterclasses. That’s SCAD. Home to the world’s largest and most lauded university film studio complex, home to tomorrow’s top talent.”
The 2021 schedule includes Gala and Signature Screenings, professional and student competition films, Docs to Watch, Shorts Spotlight, Global Shorts Forum, and the Wonder Women and Below the Line panel series. The SCAD Savannah Film Festival has screened more than 120 Academy Award-nominated films and has honored more than 100 legendary actors, directors, producers, writers, and filmmakers from around the world.
“We are so excited to be back in person to celebrate the best in cinema at the 2021 SCAD Savannah Film Festival, and to continue our diverse programming, championing wonder women and artisan talent trailblazers in the industry,” said SCAD Savannah Film Festival Executive Director Christina Routhier. “This year we have a stellar lineup of films, honorees, and panelists that will be at the event to engage with our audience and students. New to the festival will be an added outdoor screening venue, featuring some Halloween favorites that are sure to be very popular.”
Gala Screenings
The SCAD Savannah Film Festival is renowned for spotlighting major award contenders, screening a multitude of studio films prior to their wider release. Twenty-two films have been selected for the distinguished Gala Screenings, which are:
Signature Screenings
The Signature Screenings series features premiere and special screenings, followed by Q&As with select directors, writers, actors, and producers. This year’s selection of films include:
Docs to Watch
The eighth annual Docs to Watch series will be accompanied by a roundtable with the directors, hosted by Scott Feinberg of The Hollywood Reporter. Selected films include:
Animation Corner: Art in Motion
Animation has experienced an artistic resurgence that informs and entertains across generations and across the globe. Films include:
After Dark
The SCAD Savannah Film Festival’s nod to the Halloween season includes these late-night feature films — selected to thrill, scare and shock:
Panels
Join the SCAD Savannah Film Festival for conversations and panels with industry stars and insiders. This year’s panels include:
● The exclusive Entertainment Weekly’s Breaking Big Panel and Awards, hosted by festival media partner Entertainment Weekly. Participants will be announced at a later date.
● The Wonder Women series, focusing on the cinematic achievements and contributions of women directors, producers, and below-the-line talent in film and television.
● The Below the Line series, highlighting the contributions of below-the-line talent to the art of cinema, with a focus on costume design and production design.
● A panel with the filmmakers of Welcome to the Blumhouse, the thrilling film series that is back again this October with four new gripping tales that are sure to send a chill down your spine. Produced by Blumhouse Television and available exclusively on Amazon Prime Video worldwide. ○ Black as Night (Director Maritte Lee Go)○ Bingo Hell (Writer/Director Gigi Saul Guerrero)○ Madres (Director Ryan Zaragoza)○ The Manor (Writer/Director Axelle Carolyn)
● The SCAD Alumni Panel, highlighting graduates of the university’s top-ranked film and television degree program.
Competition FilmsThe SCAD Savannah Film Festival celebrates the work of established and emerging filmmakers, from feature-length films to two-minute shorts. The juried competition showcases the best of professional, animated, and student films selected from more than 1,500 entries annually.
Narrative FeaturesFrom side-splitting comedies to heart-wrenching dramas, the narrative feature films selected represent diversity in storytelling, excellence in acting and directing, and exemplary cinematography and editing:
Documentary Features
Beyond simple subject matters, documentaries present compelling stories that illuminate and educate audiences in a thought-provoking and timely manner:
Professional Shorts
Running the gamut of subject matter and style, these short films are selected based on their individual merits in storytelling and execution:
Animated Shorts
These animated films represent the diversity of the craft — from simple, hand-drawn figures to stop-motion and digital rendering — showcasing unique storytelling at its finest:
Student Shorts
With solid storytelling and emerging vision, these films represent a broad range of categories including live action, narrative, documentary and animation. SCAD student films that are part of the competition include:
Global Shorts Forum
The Global Shorts Forum is a curated collection of international shorts across multiple genres that focus on world issues. This year’s themes include:
Shorts Spotlight
This year’s Shorts Spotlight themes include:
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