Variety will publish its second annual 10 Artisans to Watch list on Oct. 18 and recognize the honorees at this year’s SCAD Savannah Film Festival.
In celebration of Variety’s continued coverage of crafts, the 10 artisans selected will be spotlighted in a panel conversation at the festival moderated by Variety senior artisans editor Jazz Tangcay. The list will include artisans across cinematography, costume design, editing, hair/makeup, production design, sound editing/design and visual effects.
The event will highlight the behind-the-scenes artists that are invaluable to this year’s best films and shows.
“Our SCAD students are the next generation of artists and storytellers, and having access to the best in the business is an exciting opportunity to help us prepare them for their future professions,” said SCAD Savannah Film Festival executive director Christina Routhier. “It is our honor to continue our partnership with Variety at the SCAD Savannah Film Festival. These creatives are integral to film and television production, and we look forward to recognizing these outstanding individuals at this year’s event.”
“Collaborating with the SCAD Savannah Film Festival team to shine a light on the rising artisans is a tremendous joy,” said Tangcay. “The crafts are such an important part of the visual storytelling process and to celebrate those who tell this story brings such joy. For the second year in a row, we get to share the craft with the SCAD students and inspire the next generation of artisans.”
The inaugural Artisans to Watch recipients included cinematographer Todd Banhazl (“Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty”), make-up head Michelle Chung (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”), composer Amie Doherty (“She-Hulk: Attorney at Law”), sound designer Mike James Gallagher (“Weird: The Al Yankovic Story”), costume designer Gersha Phillips (“The Woman King”), supervising sound editor Mac Smith (“Moon Knight) and production designer Ethan Tobman (“The Menu”).
Previous honorees at the festival include Kenneth Branagh, Adrien Brody, Brendan Fraser and Aunjanue Ellis. Passes for SCAD Savannah Film Festival are on sale now. The event, which runs from Oct. 21-28 celebrates cinematic creativity from both award-winning professionals and emerging student filmmakers. Each year, more than 63,000 people attend the eight-day festival, which hosts a wide variety of feature-length and short-form competition film screenings, special screenings, workshops and panels.
Variety is looking for rising artisans in the aforementioned fields who are in the awards race this season. Submissions are due Aug. 29 via this form.
