The SCAD Savannah Film Festival continued with an abundance of star power including Kevin Bacon who walked the red carpet on Monday, Oct. 23. Days three and four brought festival goers “Barbie,” “Saltburn,” “Trolls Band Together,” “Flamin’ Hot,” “Maestro,” and “May December” (which was filmed in Savannah), to name a few.

Golden Globe-winning actor Kevin Bacon had a conversation in front of a packed house at the Trustees Theater. Bacon had a wide-ranging talk on his multifaceted career, philanthropy, inspirations, experiences in the entertainment industry, and his latest project, the podcast “Six Degrees with Kevin Bacon.”

“It was really hard when you are not used to being on that side of the microphone. I struggled a little at the beginning, but like anything else, you have to practice and get better. Whether you act or it’s a podcast,” said Bacon on the red carpet.

In “Six Degrees with Kevin Bacon,” he uses his fame to feature celebrity guests and highlight their favorite charitable organizations and the changemaking work they are doing.

“I feel good because it has brought some eyes to some interesting and important causes, and I think people are getting to see celebrities in a different way than their work; now you see something they deeply care about,” said Bacon.

The latest troll movie, “Trolls Band Together,” brought music, dance, and color to the screen. This film comes ten years after the first troll movie premiered in 2013 and several others in between.

“It’s been ten years of trolls now, and it has been a joy. It is a challenge too, but we have fun, and we have fun with the crew; it’s a big, colorful playground, and with the music and the dancers, it’s hard to not be grateful and have a good time,” said the film’s director Walt Dohrn.

Also on Monday, some of the cast and crew from “May December” took to the red carpet. The film, which was shot in Savannah in 2022, has been having a good run on the film festival circuit and is generating Oscar buzz.

In “May December,” twenty years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation, a married couple buckles under the pressure when an actress arrives to do research for a film about their past. The melodramatic tone of the film, which stars Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore, and Charles Melton, has been captivating audiences.

“I think the goal in general is to get the audience to feel something, to want to have a discussion, and to ask questions. That is something I am interested in as a writer,” said Samy Burch, the writer of the film.

“I think this was written to be Tybee Island, and it became itself. We fell in love with it visually and cinematically. It’s such a beautiful place, and then we fell in love with it again with our crew and family created around it. We’re happy to be back. It is like a homecoming for us,” said the film’s cinematographer, Chris Blauvelt.

The film’s director, Todd Haynes, was presented with the Outstanding Achievement in Directing Award.

Eva Longoria attended a Q&A and Discovery Director Award Presentation for her film “Flamin’ Hot” at the SCAD Museum of Art Theater held on Tuesday, Oct. 24. 

While Longoria did not hit the red carpet, many others did to talk about their projects that screened at the festival.

“Saltburn” director, producer, and writer Emerald Fennell was on the red carpet and was presented with the Spotlight Director Award. The film touches on privilege and desire. Struggling to find his place at Oxford University, student Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan) finds himself drawn into the world of the charming and aristocratic Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi).

“I describe it as a good old-fashioned neurotic thriller. Taking the restraints off of the gothic British country house tradition genre and making something dark, interesting, complicated, and sexy,” said Fennell.

Peter Sohn, the director of Disney and Pixar’s animated film “Elemental,” was on the red carpet and talked about going into animation. “The amount of work that these films take is incredible. I worked on this movie for seven years, and it takes a lot of flesh, so when you’re done, it’s about recharging and reconnecting with those around,” he said.

The festival continues through Saturday with many screenings, including some films that were created in Savannah and surrounding regions of coastal Georgia.

Filmed in Savannah:

First Look: Warner Bros. Pictures and Domain Entertainment’s ‘The Color Purple’
Friday, Oct. 27 at 1 p.m., Trustees Theater

Join director Blitz Bazawule for an inside look at his bold new take on the beloved classic, which was filmed in Savannah and throughout coastal Georgia. The film, from all-star producers Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Scott Sanders, and Quincy Jones, features an award-winning cast that includes Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins, Halle Bailey, H.E.R., and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor.

Isle of Hope
Friday, Oct. 27 at 3 p.m., SCAD Museum of Art

A film about Victoria, a university professor with a grudge against her self-absorbed mother, the famed actress Carmen Crawford, for crushing her dreams of becoming a playwright.

Origin
Saturday, Oct. 28 at 7 p.m.

Origin is an adaptation of Isabel Wilkerson’s nonfiction bestseller Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents for the screen, directed by Ava DuVernay. The film puts Pulitzer Prize-winning Wilkerson at the center of the story. Looking at a shared history of American racism, India’s caste system, Nazi persecution of Jews, and one woman’s grief in the face of tremendous personal tragedy

See the full schedule here: Schedule 2023 | Filmfest (scad.edu).

This article appears in Connect Savannah | October, 2023.