SCAD Savannah Film Festival Announces Additional Honorees

Honorees inclide Park Chan-wook, Brendan Fraser, Spike Lee, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, Amanda Seyfried, Kristen Stewart, and Sydney Sweeney.

Award Presentations to Take Place Alongside Screenings of ‘Christy,’ ‘The Chronology of Water,’ Highest 2 Lowest,’ ‘No Other Choice,’ ‘Rental Family,’ ‘Sentimental Value,’ and ‘The Testament of Ann Lee’

SAVANNAH, GEORGIA (Oct. 3, 2025)—The Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) proudly announces additional honorees for the 2025 SCAD Savannah Film Festival, scheduled to take place from Oct. 25 to Nov. 1. The largest university-run film festival in the nation, the SCAD Savannah Film Festival will celebrate a star-studded lineup of actors and directors from this year’s most anticipated films.

This year’s honorees will participate in awards presentations, moderated conversations, and master classes with SCAD students, offering a unique opportunity to connect with some of the most celebrated individuals working in the entertainment industry. These newly announced honorees include:

• Park Chan-wook will receive the International Auteur Award at a screening of No Other Choice.
• Brendan Fraser will receive the Outstanding Achievement in Cinema Award at a screening of Rental Family.
• Spike Lee will receive the Legend of Cinema Award at a screening of Highest 2 Lowest.
• Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas will receive the Discovery Award at a screening of Sentimental Value.
• Amanda Seyfried will receive the Vanguard Award at a screening of The Testament of Ann Lee.
• Kristen Stewart will receive the Rising Star Director Award at a screening of The Chronology of Water.
• Sydney Sweeney will receive the Spotlight Award at a screening of Christy.

“I’m overjoyed with the lineup of remarkable honorees joining us this year,” said Christina Routhier, executive director of the SCAD Savannah Film Festival. “Their contributions to the industry are truly inspiring, and I’m especially excited for the opportunities our students and audiences will have to learn from them, which is what makes the SCAD Savannah Film Festival such a singular and transformative experience.”

Additional information about this year’s honorees:

Park Chan-wook is a South Korean film director, screenwriter, and producer who is among the most acclaimed auteurs in the world. His current project, No Other Choice, is based on Donald E. Westlake’s novel The Ax and follows Man-su on his desperate hunt for a new job after his abrupt layoff from the paper company he served for 25 years. Known for his Vengeance Trilogy, consisting of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy, and Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, he has continued to receive worldwide acclaim with films such as Thirst, Stoker, The Handmaiden, Decision to Leave, and with the TV series The Little Drummer Girl and The Sympathizer. He has also produced Snowpiercer and Uprising.

Brendan Fraser is an Academy Award winner whose nuanced performances and compelling role choices have earned widespread acclaim. He won the Oscar for Best Actor for Darren Aronofsky’s The Whale, which also earned him honors from the Critics’ Choice Awards, SAG Awards, and more. Fraser will next be seen in Hikari’s Rental Family, as Dwight D. Eisenhower in Pressure, and Breaking Bear. He recently appeared in Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon and Steven Soderbergh’s No Sudden Move, as well as on television in the series Doom Patrol and Trust. Fraser is also beloved for his iconic role as Rick O’Connell in The Mummy franchise, which grossed more than $1.4 billion worldwide. His stage work Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in London’s West End. His film credits include Airheads, The Affair, Bedazzled, Blast From the Past, Brothers, Condor, Crash, Dudley Do-Right, Encino Man, Extraordinary Measures, The Field, Furry Vengeance, George of the Jungle, Gimme Shelter, Gods and Monsters, Inkheart, Journey to the Center of the Earth, The Looney Tunes: Back in Action, Monkey Bone, The Quiet American, School Ties, The Scout, Texas Rising, The Secret of Karma, The Twilight of the Golds, Whole Lotta Sole, and With Honors.

Spike Lee has received two Academy Awards in his illustrious career, Best Adapted Screenplay for BlacKkKlansman and an Academy Honorary Award in 2015 for his lifetime contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences. He is a five-time Oscar nominee: Best Original Screenplay for Do the Right Thing, Best Documentary Feature for 4 Little Girls, and Best Picture, Best Director, and his Best Adapted Screenplay win for BlacKkKlansman. His latest joint, Highest 2 Lowest, is his fifth film with Denzel Washington. His career spans over 30 years and includes She’s Gotta Have It, School Daze, Da 5 Bloods, Mo' Better Blues, Jungle Fever, Malcolm X, Crooklyn, Clockers, Girl 6, Get on the Bus, He Got Game, Summer of Sam, Bamboozled, 25th Hour, She Hate Me, Inside Man, Miracle at St. Anna, Red Hook Summer, Old Boy, Chi-Raq, the four-part documentary essay NYC EPICENTERS 9/11➔2021½, and American Utopia. Lee’s additional outstanding feature documentary work includes the double Emmy Award-winning If God Is Willing and Da Creek Don't Rise, a follow up to his HBO documentary film When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts.

Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas stars in Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value alongside Renate Reinsve, Stellan Skarsgård, and Elle Fanning, which made its debut at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and won the coveted Grand Prix. Her breakthrough performance in the film has been widely lauded by critics, with IndieWire declaring it “one of the year’s best performances;” Variety noting that she “delivers a performance so emotionally precise and unaffected, it’s hard to believe this is her international breakout;” The Hollywood Reporter calling it “a star-making turn,” praising how “Lilleaas is magnetic in every frame, blending vulnerability with fierce emotional intelligence;” and Screen Daily aptly putting it, “the kind of breakout that lingers: Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas is a name we’ll be hearing for years to come.” Her other credits include A Beautiful Life, the award-winning series Norwegian miniseries Rekyl, the award-winning series Young and Promising and Sjit Happens, and the Norwegian film Women in Oversized Men’s Shirts, for which she was nominated for Best Actress at the Amanda Awards in 2015. Lilleaas speaks three languages: English, Norwegian, and Portuguese.

Amanda Seyfried received both Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nominations for her portrayal of Marion Davies in David Fincher’s critically acclaimed Mank. Notably, for her portrayal of Elizabeth Holmes in Hulu’s The Dropout, Seyfried won an Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Critics’ Choice Award as well as a selection to the TIME 100 list for 2022. Her other film and TV credits include Seven Veils, Chloe, Long Bright River, The Crowded Room, Things Heard & Seen, A Mouthful of Air, Mamma Mia!, Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again, First Reformed, Lovelace, Les Miserables, Dear John, Jennifer’s Body, While We’re Young, Ted 2, A Millions Ways to Die in the West, In Time, Letters to Juliet, Mean Girls, Nine Lives, Big Love, and Alpha Dog. Seyfried will next star in The Housemaid, a psychological thriller from Lionsgate based on Freida McFadden’s New York Times-bestselling novel. The film is set for release Dec. 19, 2025. Seyfried can also be seen in Mona Fastvold’s historical drama musical The Testament of Ann Lee, which was acquired by Searchlight Pictures and debuted at the 2025 Venice International Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival.  

Kristen Stewart is an Academy Award-nominated actress for her portrayal of Princess Diana in the Pablo Larraín directed Spencer. Stewart won 22 critic awards for her performance and received Best Actress nominations from the Critics’ Choice Awards and Golden Globe Awards. Stewart makes her feature directorial debut with The Chronology of Water, which she also wrote and co-produced. She has also directed the short film Come Swim, which premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival, and a short film for the band Boygenius, which tied together three music videos of songs from their recent album. In 2015, she became the first American actress to be awarded a Cesar Award in the Best Supporting Actress category for her role in Olivier Assayas’ Clouds of Sils Maria. Her other credits include Love Lies Bleeding, Love Me, Panic Room, The Twilight Saga, Snow White and The Huntsman, On the Road, Adventureland, Into the Wild, The Runaways, Welcome to the Rileys, The Cake Eaters, The Yellow Handkerchief, What Just Happened, In The Land of Women, The Messengers, Zathura, Speak, Fierce People, Catch That Kid, Undertow, Cold Creek Manor, The Safety of Objects, Camp X-Ray, Still Alice, Anesthesia, American Ultra, Equals, War/Drama, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk, and Lizzie. Her notable recent credits include Personal Shopper, Café Society, Certain Women, JT LeRoy, Charlie’s Angels, Seberg, Underwater, Happiest Season, and Crimes of the Future.

Sydney Sweeney is a two-time Emmy-nominated actress and producer, widely regarded as one of the most compelling talents of her generation, captivating global audiences with her dynamic and memorable performances. She most recently starred in and produced the upcoming film Christy, a powerful drama based on the true story of boxer Christy Martin, which follows her turbulent rise from obscurity to stardom while exploring the private battles she faced with family, identity, and a volatile relationship that turns life-threatening. Additional recent and upcoming films include Echo Valley, Barbarella, I Pretended to be a Missing Girl, Scandalous!, and The Housemaid. In 2024, Sweeney starred in and produced the box office hit, Anyone But You. On television, Sweeney is widely known for her Emmy-nominated roles in Euphoria and The White Lotus. Sweeney will receive the Spotlight Award at the festival, which was previously awarded to Colman Domingo, Kathyrn Hahn, and Felicity Jones.

They join previously announced honorees Will Arnett (Luminary Award), Hannah Beachler (Variety Creative Impact in Production Design Award), Craig Brewer (Spotlight Director Award), Rose Byrne (Luminary Award), Miles Caton (Rising Star Award), Jon M. Chu (Vanguard Director Award), Zoey Deutch (Breakthrough Performance Award), Joel Edgerton (Vanguard Award), Mark Hamill (Lifetime Achievement Award), Oscar Isaac (Icon Award), Rian Johnson (Outstanding Achievement in Directing Award), Jennifer Lopez (Virtuoso Award), Dylan O’Brien (Lumiere Award), Benny Safdie (Maverick Director Award), Miles Teller (Distinguished Performance Award), and Tessa Thompson (Distinguished Performance Award).

Festival passes for 2025 are available now. Individual event tickets are on sale now.

About the SCAD Savannah Film Festival

Presented by the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), the SCAD Savannah Film Festival is filled with cinematic creativity from award-winning professionals and emerging student filmmakers. Each year, more than 75,000 people attend the eight-day festival. The festival has become a distinguished stop on the road to the Academy Awards, hosting exclusive screenings, competition films, feature films, documentaries, shorts, animated films, panel discussions, and workshops at SCAD's historic theaters and industry-leading studio spaces. Presented in Savannah, a premier film hub in the Southeast, the festival promotes quality movies produced by independent and studio filmmakers.

Follow the festival on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok @savfilmfest. For additional information and tickets, visit filmfest.scad.edu.
 

SCAD: The University for Creative Careers

SCAD is a private, nonprofit, accredited university, offering 100 graduate and undergraduate degree programs across locations in Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia; Lacoste, France; and online via SCADnow. SCAD enrolls approximately 18,500 undergraduate and graduate students from more than 100 countries. The future-minded SCAD curriculum engages professional-level technology and myriad advanced learning resources, affording students opportunities for internships, professional certifications, and real-world assignments with corporate partners through SCADpro, the university’s renowned research lab and prototype generator. SCAD has earned top rankings for degree programs in interior design, architecture, film, fashion, digital media, and more. Career success is woven into every fiber of the university, resulting in a superior alumni employment rate. A 2025 study found that 99% of recent SCAD graduates were employed, pursuing further education, or both within 12 months of graduation. SCAD provides students and alumni with ongoing career support through personal coaching, alumni programs, a professional presentation studio, and more. Visit scad.edu.
 

About the SCAD School of Film and Acting

With resources that rival Hollywood studios — including stunning locations, two professionally run casting offices, stellar film and television festivals, and award-winning faculty from film, television, Broadway, and beyond — the SCAD School of Film and Acting is the ideal place for students to launch into the multibillion-dollar film and television industry. The SCAD acting, cinematography, editing, film and television, production design, and sound design programs prepare students to collaborate and command roles on stage, screen, and behind the scenes through unparalleled instruction and real-world experience on productions for short films, live performances, TV sitcoms, dramatic series, music videos, commercials, and more.

SCAD students pursuing careers in film, entertainment, and media find a home base at SCAD Film Studios in Savannah, the largest and most comprehensive university film studio complex in higher education. This 11-acre studio complex includes a Hollywood-style backlot with more than 40 street facades and 8,000 square feet of dressed interiors, a magnificent 17,000-square-foot facility with a production scene shop and costume sewing labs, and a next-generation LED volume stage for virtual productions. The complex is complemented by SCAD Film Studios in Atlanta, the site of the university's second LED volume stage, as well as three stories of editing suites and broadcast studios. At SCAD, every set, stage, and studio is a classroom.

During the 2025 festival, SCAD will debut new backlot sets in Savannah: 18th-century New England-style facades, a 1950s-era police station, a house of worship, and a mansion. In 2026, two industry-ready soundstages totaling nearly 9,000 square feet will open, along with 11 classrooms and additional backlot facades and interiors.
 

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