Savannah Film Festival: Where Southern charm meets Hollywood glitz

The Savannah Film Festival might not be the most well-known festival in the country, but Hollywood people sure know about it. The festival, which is still continuing at the moment, is currently in its 17th year and is hosted by the Savannah College of Art & Design.

Both the Trustees Theatre, which hosts the major events, and the Lucas Theatre are located in the heart of Savannah’s historic district, which has a distinctly Southern charm and right on the Savannah River. Broughton Street is lined with unique restaurants and you have to take a long walk before you see any chains like McDonald’s. I made sure I tried Leopold’s Ice Cream, which is right next to the Trustees Theatre and got a malt with peanut butter ice cream. It definitely was worth the $5.75.

I was only at the festival for this past Sunday and Monday, but it continues until Nov. 1. Even if you could only go to a few days, there were still several major screenings, both from major Hollywood players and indie studios. Most of the major films aren’t actually screened in competition, though.

Sunday was a day of darkness. Not because the weather was bad, but because all three movies I saw were incredibly dark. First up was Tommy Lee Jones’ The Homesman, then the HBO film The Normal Heart. The night was finished with Bennett Miller’s Foxcatcher.

Prior to Foxcatcher, Matt Bomer picked up the Spotlight Award with many members of the Magic Mike XXL cast in the audience. The Magic Mike sequel is being filmed in Savannah, so it was definitely convenient for them to come. Bomer also participated in a Q&A after The Normal Heart and, on Monday morning, met with SCAD students.

Monday was a bit lighter, but still started off with a rather gloomy movie. I decided that I needed to see at least one movie in competition, so I dragged myself out of bed to see Slony Sow’s Parisian at 9 a.m. The 90-minute French film crawled by and really wasn’t very good, although the short film that preceded it, The Karman Line, was quite funny.

That was followed by Reel FX and 20th Century Fox’s The Book of Life, with director Jorge Gutierrez in attendance. The audience adored the movie and Gutierrez told me that he had never seen the film with such a welcoming audience.

Finally, I saw Disney’s Big Hero 6, which was amazing. The film comes out on Nov. 7 and everyone should see it.

While I certainly wish I could have stayed for a few more days, I believe I got a nice taste of SAVFF. The festival brings in Hollywood stars (including Gena Rowlands, who is picking up a lifetime achievement award there today), but, thanks to its location, still has a welcoming and leisurely charm.

image by Daniel S Levine

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