Schedule Has Dropped: A Guide to Film Fest 2024

Written by Miller Bough. Graphic by Abby Chadwick.

While leaves might not fall at our feet in autumnal Savannah, films sure do. For over 25 years, Savannah has been lucky enough to host the SCAD Savannah Film Festival, bringing hundreds of Oscar-nominated movies and talented artisans to our gothic home in October. The wait to see what will be shown each year is restless, but finally, we can heave a sigh of relief. The festival powers that be have finally released the packed schedule for this year’s festivities which features dozens of awards contenders, fan-favorite blockbusters and stars from both sides of the camera. The full schedule can be found here, but what is one to make of all of it? Well, do not panic. Let us parse the schedule together and find the diamonds in the rough.

Saturday, Oct. 26:

On Saturday, Oct. 26, there are eight events in total, but the points of interest can be boiled down to four. One of the opening events of the day, at 10 a.m., is the Student Narrative Shorts event. This block features eight student short films, five of which are SCAD student projects. Later, in the afternoon, the critical hit “Sing Sing” will be screened at the Trustees. This 3 p.m. film was screened earlier this year at SCAD and was a heart-wrenching experience in the best way possible. It is certainly worth seeing on its own merits, but, as a nice cherry on top, Oscar-nominated actor Coleman Domingo will make an appearance and receive the Spotlight Award for his performance in the film. The other two productions of note are both gala screenings. The first screening at 6 p.m. is a World War II drama entitled “Blitz.” “Blitz” is an upcoming release from Academy Award Winner Steve McQueen (“12 Years a Slave”), who will also receive the festival’s Outstanding Achievement in Directing award before the screening. About two and a half hours later in the Trustees, “The Piano Lesson” is set to play. “The Piano Lesson” is an adaptation of the award-winning play by August Wilson of the same name. The film was made for the screen by Malcolm Washington and features a stellar ensemble composed of Malcolm’s brother John David Washington (“The Creator,” ”Tenet”), Samuel L. Jackson (“Pulp Fiction,” “The Avengers”), Danielle Deadwyler (“Till”), Ray Fisher (“Justice League”), and many others. To end the opening day with a bang, Malcolm will join us for the screening along with four members of the cast, who are also being awarded the Ensemble Award.

Sunday, Oct. 27:

On the second day of the festival, Sunday, Oct. 27, there are twelve events scheduled. Among them are surefire crowd pleasures like “Alien: Romulus” (with star Isabela Merced), the narratively rich, body horror hit “The Substance” (with stars Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley), “Transformers One” and a special screening of “How to Train Your Dragon” for Dreamwork’s 30th anniversary. While these flashy events will surely make for great theatrical experiences with a SCAD crowd, it is worth reminding ourselves of the quieter titles of the day like “On Becoming a Guinea Fowl” and “September 5”. These thrilling and thoughtful offerings provide a strong bookend to a strong opening weekend of the festival.

Monday, Oct. 28:

After a strong opening weekend, the festival kicks into high gear on Monday. Highlights of the day include animated features like “Inside Out 2” and the upcoming film “Flow,” conversations with industry professionals and plenty of signature screenings. Some of the events in the latter category include a 4:30 p.m. screening of Disney+ title “The Young Woman and the Sea” with star Daisy Ridley, a 7:30 p.m. screening of Jesse Eisenberg’s upcoming road trip drama “A Real Pain” with the film’s co-lead Kieran Culkin and a 9:30 pm showing of SNL alum Kyle Mooney’s directorial debut “Y2K” with Kyle and his co-writer Evan Winter. These titles only scratch the surface of the offerings on Oct. 28. On festival days like this, the freedom attendees have to schedule their days and discover various offerings is a blessing.

Tuesday, Oct. 29:

The following day sustains the pace set on Monday, providing attendees with thirteen total events and screening opportunities. Tuesday features programming blocks like the Professional Animated Shorts (at 8:30 a.m.) and LGBTQIA+ Shorts (4 p.m.) that will provide audiences with a variety of content within a compact period. This day is also home to animated films like “Memoir of a Snail,” documentaries like “Daughters” and even “Piece by Piece”, the Pharrell Williams film that is a blend of both forms. Signature live-action films of the day include the musical, biopic “Better Man” about British singer-songwriter Robbie Williams (with Director Michael Gracey), the upcoming dark comedy “Nightbitch” (with the film’s star Amy Adams) and, closing out the night, the Palme d’Or winning “Anora” will be shown with breakthrough star Mikey Madison in attendance.

Wednesday, Oct 30:

On Wednesday, the sheer quantity of festivities really begins to peak; fifteen events are scheduled including first looks, behind-the-scenes conversations, feature-length presentations and more docs than you can shake a stick at. Documentaries are the star of the show this day with acclaimed upcoming and recently released nonfiction films like “Will & Harper,” “Union,” and “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” screening. At 5 p.m., nine festival-featured documentarians will meet for a roundtable discussion at the Lucas Theatre. While docs are certainly the highlight of the day, there are still noteworthy narrative films showing. The day closes out with two major narrative films. At 7 p.m., recent critical and box office success “The Wild Robot” will screen at the Trustees. Star Lupita N’yong’o and director Chris Sanders will be awarded at the event and will attend a Q&A afterward with the film’s composer Kris Bowers. An hour after “The Wild Robot” starts, around the corner at the Lucas, Jason Reitman’s new comedic thriller on the birth of “SNL,” “Saturday Night,” is set to screen. Reitman will be joining us for the screening and will be presented with the festival’s Vanguard award. These true and fictitious stories provide escape and engagement in equal measure as the festival moves into its final stretch.

Thursday, Oct. 31:

The fifth day of the festival is fortunately anything but a trick. With another fifteen events on the schedule, this Halloween on Broughton is certain to be a real treat. In honor of the horrifying holiday, the SCAD film festival has organized some special events and screenings. First of these spine-chilling screenings is a presentation of “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” at the Lucas. This noon show will also feature costume designer Colleen Atwood who will discuss the process of costuming for this surreal and gothic world. Not long after that event wraps up, another nerve-wracking entry will make its debut at the festival. Similar to last year’s presentation of “The Phantom of the Opera” (1925), this year, the festival is presenting F.W. Murneau’s German-expressionist classic, “Nosferatu” (1922). With Robert Eggers’ remake on the horizon, this is the perfect time to experience one of silent cinema’s most influential titles. Other chilling cinema populates the schedule on Oct. 31, but there are still some major, non-horror titles to see before the spooky season comes to an end. One of these titles is Brady Corbet’s upcoming historic drama “The Brutalist.” This potential awards season contender is set to screen at the Lucas in stunning 35mm. The 7 p.m. screening will also feature actress Felicity Jones as she is presented with the Spotlight Award. Once that screening is underway, we have a film which is actually premiering at the festival. Director Jordan Weiss’ debut feature, “Sweethearts,” is set to premiere at the Trustees. Following the screening of the film, the Weiss (director, co-writer and executive producer, of the film) will be joined by her co-writer and three of the film’s stars for a Q&A. This halloween will certainly be one to remember for every film fanatic in attendance.

Friday, Nov. 1:

The first day of November marks the second to last day of the festival. Fifteen more movies and panels are scheduled. Among the offerings are upcoming arthouse and indie releases like Mike Leigh’s “Hard Truths”. The real peaks of the day are scheduled toward the end. Netflix’s big awards season play “Emilia Pérez” is set to screen at 8 p.m. The film’s leads, Karla Sofía Gascón and Zoe Saldaña, are set to receive awards and participate in a Q&A after the screening. In the Lucas at 8:30 p.m., “Small Things Like These,” a historical drama starring Academy Award winner Cillian Murphy, will be shown. No member from that production is scheduled to appear, but fans of the performers or the genres are sure to find something to love in this upcoming release.

Saturday, Nov. 2:

Last, but certainly not least, Saturday, Nov. 2. This final day of the festival has a smaller slate of offerings, but the star power could just be at its mightiest. Stars like Diego Luna (with the documentary “State of Silence”), Kathryn Hahn (“Agatha All Along”), Sebastian Stan (“A Different Man”) and Jodie Comer (who will receive an award and have a conversation with a moderator) will be in attendance. Even noteworthy directors like Pablo Larrain and Gia Coppola will make appearances with their new films (“Maria” and “The Last Showgirl” respectively). One screening of particular note for all Savannah residents is Clint Eastwood’s latest film “Juror #2.” This courtroom thriller stars Nicholas Hoult and was shot in our fair city. Despite only eight total offerings, this final day of the festival is sure to leave attendees satisfied.

Well, was the wait worth it? Looking at this slate of a little over 100 events, it is hard to argue in the negative. We here at SCAD are incredibly lucky to have such an amazing and extensive festival in our backyard. As Oct. 26 inches ever closer and the anticipation grows ever stronger, do not forget that as you make your way through the flavorings that the festival has to offer, we here at District will be there with you every step of the way.