Variety’s ‘Pixels and Pencils’ Series Returns to SCAD Savannah Film Festival With Record Number of Women Directors and First Animated Short
Variety is proud to announce the fourth edition of its “Pixels and Pencils” series, highlighting the directors behind some of this year’s animated films at this year’s SCAD Savannah Film Festival.
Among the directors of the six animated films — “Arco,” “Elio,” “In Your Dreams,” “KPop Demon Hunters,” “Little Amélie or the Character of Rain” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Chrome Alone 2: Lost in New Jersey” — are a record-breaking number of women filmmakers and the first-ever animated short to participate in the roundtable.
As part of Variety’s unmatched awards season coverage and its longstanding partnership with SCAD, the selected directors showcase a wide range of artistic visions and animation styles. Their work will culminate in a roundtable discussion moderated by Clayton Davis, Variety’s chief awards editor, on Monday, Oct. 27.
A total of nine auteurs will join the conversation, including Domee Shi from Pixar’s “Elio,” who is the first returning participant of the panel after being selected in 2022 for Pixar’s “Turning Red.” Shi is among the four women on the panel this year, the most ever in a given year. The others include her fellow “Elio” director Madeline Sharafian, Maïlys Vallade from GKids’ acclaimed “Little Amélie or the Character of Rain” and Maggie Kang, one of the co-helmers of Netflix’s smash hit “KPop Demon Hunters.”
Another notable first-timer to the panel is Kent Seki, who will represent “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Chrome Alone 2 — Lost in New Jersey,” the first animated short ever to be invited to the panel. The film premiered at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in June and will be qualified in the animated short film category this Oscar season, playing along with screenings of the upcoming “The SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants.” Produced by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, Jeff Rowe and Ramsay McBean, the film’s animated feature relative, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem,” participated in the 2023 edition.
The full list of directors on the panel are:
The panel has become the go-to destination for animated contenders during awards season. The 2024 panel included Academy Award nominees “Inside Out 2,” “Memoir of a Snail” and “The Wild Robot,” as well as the eventual Oscar winner “Flow.” In 2023, nominated filmmakers such as Peter Sohn (“Elemental”), Nick Bruno and Troy Quane (“Nimona”) and Joaquim Dos Santos, Justin K. Thompson and Kemp Powers (“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”) started their Oscar runs on the panel, following the inaugural 2022 panel, which included Joel Crawford (“Puss in Boots: The Last Wish”), Dean Fleischer Camp (“Marcel the Shell with Shoes On”) and Shi (“Turning Red”).
Variety will also present its fourth annual 10 Artisans to Watch honorees at the festival, recognizing standout artists across cinematography, costume design, editing, hair and makeup, production design, sound editing/design and visual effects. That panel will be moderated by Jazz Tangcay, Variety’s senior artisans editor.
Presented by the Savannah College of Art and Design, the SCAD Savannah Film Festival is filled with cinematic creativity from award-winning professionals and emerging student filmmakers. Each year, more than 63,000 people attend the eight-day festival.
Among the directors of the six animated films — “Arco,” “Elio,” “In Your Dreams,” “KPop Demon Hunters,” “Little Amélie or the Character of Rain” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Chrome Alone 2: Lost in New Jersey” — are a record-breaking number of women filmmakers and the first-ever animated short to participate in the roundtable.
As part of Variety’s unmatched awards season coverage and its longstanding partnership with SCAD, the selected directors showcase a wide range of artistic visions and animation styles. Their work will culminate in a roundtable discussion moderated by Clayton Davis, Variety’s chief awards editor, on Monday, Oct. 27.
A total of nine auteurs will join the conversation, including Domee Shi from Pixar’s “Elio,” who is the first returning participant of the panel after being selected in 2022 for Pixar’s “Turning Red.” Shi is among the four women on the panel this year, the most ever in a given year. The others include her fellow “Elio” director Madeline Sharafian, Maïlys Vallade from GKids’ acclaimed “Little Amélie or the Character of Rain” and Maggie Kang, one of the co-helmers of Netflix’s smash hit “KPop Demon Hunters.”
Another notable first-timer to the panel is Kent Seki, who will represent “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Chrome Alone 2 — Lost in New Jersey,” the first animated short ever to be invited to the panel. The film premiered at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in June and will be qualified in the animated short film category this Oscar season, playing along with screenings of the upcoming “The SpongeBob Movie: Search for Squarepants.” Produced by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, Jeff Rowe and Ramsay McBean, the film’s animated feature relative, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem,” participated in the 2023 edition.
The full list of directors on the panel are:
The panel has become the go-to destination for animated contenders during awards season. The 2024 panel included Academy Award nominees “Inside Out 2,” “Memoir of a Snail” and “The Wild Robot,” as well as the eventual Oscar winner “Flow.” In 2023, nominated filmmakers such as Peter Sohn (“Elemental”), Nick Bruno and Troy Quane (“Nimona”) and Joaquim Dos Santos, Justin K. Thompson and Kemp Powers (“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”) started their Oscar runs on the panel, following the inaugural 2022 panel, which included Joel Crawford (“Puss in Boots: The Last Wish”), Dean Fleischer Camp (“Marcel the Shell with Shoes On”) and Shi (“Turning Red”).
Variety will also present its fourth annual 10 Artisans to Watch honorees at the festival, recognizing standout artists across cinematography, costume design, editing, hair and makeup, production design, sound editing/design and visual effects. That panel will be moderated by Jazz Tangcay, Variety’s senior artisans editor.
Presented by the Savannah College of Art and Design, the SCAD Savannah Film Festival is filled with cinematic creativity from award-winning professionals and emerging student filmmakers. Each year, more than 63,000 people attend the eight-day festival.