The world’s largest college-run film festival, the SCAD Savannah film festival, returns to Georgia Oct. 26 with its consistently eclectic programming mix of documentaries, box office hits, indies, animated films, short films and more.
“SCAD honors the screen’s brightest stars, from Annette Bening to Lupita Nyong’o to Richard Linklater,” says SCAD President and founder Paula Wallace. “Come for the stars and stay for a tour of SCAD’s recently expanded Savannah Film Studios backlot… glitz, glamour, and good films.”
This year’s programming includes of Steve McQueen’s “Blitz” and Pablo Larrain’s “Maria” as well as a centerpiece screening of Robbie Williams’ unconventional biopic “Better Man.” The festival will also screen “Emilia Peréz,” Jacques Audiard’s musical drama which won the Jury Prize at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, and a 35mm print of Brady Corbet’s “The Brutalist,” which netted the filmmaker the Silver Lion for directing in Venice earlier this year.
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Daisy Ridley, who is set to receive the Lumiere Award in recognition of her work in “Magpie” and “Young Woman and the Sea,” will attend SCAD for the first time. Ridley said what drew her to the latter film was the opportunity to spotlight the accomplishments of Trudy Ederle, the first woman to swim across the English Channel. “It’s such a beautiful connective story,” Ridley says. “When I read the script, my opinion was ‘How do I not know this woman?’”
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Festival executive director Christina Routhier observes that SCAD is especially keen to celebrate artisans. “When we curate the festival, we aim to bring in films and talent that will enhance our students’ education by offering deeper insights into their fields,” she explains, noting that it’s this commitment to all filmmaking disciplines that led the festival to partner with Variety on its annual Artisans to Watch list. Led by Variety senior artisans editor Jazz Tangcay, this program celebrate unique voices across a spectrum of creative roles, from costume design to cinematography.
Colleen Atwood, who has won four Academy Awards for her work as a costume designer, will receive Variety’s Creative Impact in Costume Design award. Though her schedule typically does not allow her to participate in the festival circuit, she says she’s excited to attend SCAD this year. Atwood, who most recently worked on “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” explains that her approach to costume designing for Tim Burton’s sequel prioritized physically making the actual materials and costumes, which facilitated some unique creative opportunities.
“We found this great old thing that looked like a cheesy 70s dress, and [the film’s star] Winona [Ryder] and I both loved it,” Atwood remembers. “It was one of the first things I found at a thrift store, and it was just perfect.” By contrast, Atwood says she designed the wardrobe of Astrid Deetz [played by Jenna Ortega] to underscore her estrangement from her mother Lydia (Ryder) and the rest of the Deetz family.
“[She wore] totally different styles, light colors and darker ones,” Atwood says. “It immediately creates that kind of conflict of character with using those different textures, different elements.”
In addition to honoring Atwood, Routhier points to the festival’s “Behind Her Lens” panels, which highlight top female producers, as further examples of SCAD’s emphasis on championing women from across the entertainment industry. Among those attending in 2024 are Joanna Calo (“The Bear”), Carla Hacken (“Hell or High Water,” “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone”), Laura Lewis (“Mr. Malcolm’s List,” “Tell Me Lies”), Alison Owen (“Back to Black,” “Ghosts”), Elizabeth Heather Rae (“Fancy Dance”) and Ridley (“Young Woman and the Sea,” “Magpie,” “Sometimes I Think About Dying”).
Herself an alumna of SCAD and a 25-year veteran of the festival, Routhier says she utilizes lessons learned during her time as a student every single day while in her job managing film programming. “I come to work every day eager to give my heart and soul to our students and community,” she says.
