Georgia Magazine - May 2017 - 28

COURTESY SAVANNAH COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN

"Some will find collaborators
for their next project or make new
friends," Ingram says. Others will see
the potential of shooting in Rome,
Milledgeville or Macon and may
come back to work.
Networking opportunities and
celebrity guests are part of the fun,
but aspiring creatives come to learn.
"Our focus is on Southern and
music films, but we also sponsor
workshops on screenwriting, makeup
and filmmaking," says Julie Wilkerson,
president of the board for the Macon
Film Festival, now in its 12th year.
"[The Macon festival] draws 1,000 to
1,500 attendees and filmmakers from
around the country. We want central
Georgia to be a destination for film,
and the festival helps make downtown a vibrant place."

Support emerging talent
Before the Atlanta native became
a famous director and household
name, the AFF showed Spike Lee's
first film, "Last Hustle in Brooklyn." In
2011, BronzeLens screened director
Ava DuVernay's first feature-length
film, "I Will Follow." She came back
recently to talk about her Golden
Globe-winning "Selma" and her latest
project, "A Wrinkle in Time." Issa Rae,
executive producer of HBO's "Insecure," also addressed BronzeLens audiences early in her career.
"These two [DuVernay and Rae]
have shot to the top, and our audiences love following their careers,"
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The Savannah Film Festival started 20 years ago and now draws about 50,000 attendees.

Renowned actor William H. Macy leads a
master class during the Atlanta Film Festival
in April 2016.

Kathleen Bertrand says.
The Savannah Film Festival honors industry people with rising-star
and emerging-star awards each year,
giving students in the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) entertainment arts, digital media and
cinema programs a chance to interact
with the talent of the future.

Experience something unique
"Beyond entertainment, film takes
you on a journey to new places, to be
with new characters and experience
new cultures," says Kenny Blank, executive director of the Atlanta Jewish
Film Festival, a 23-day festival that
shows about 75 films around Atlanta.
The festival started, in part, to
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build bridges between the Jewish
and larger Atlanta communities,
and now about one-quarter of the
37,500 attendees are non-Jewish.
"We're seen as a major exhibitor of high-caliber, international
films," Blank says. "It's not just
showing films, but getting close to
an industry and unpacking important subjects afterward. You won't
get those special moments watching at home on your couch."
Mahershala Ali won the 2017
Academy Award for best supporting actor for "Moonlight," which
was named the year's best picture.
He had promoted that movie at the
Savannah Film Festival.
"[He] spoke to SCAD students
about his journey from college basketball to 'House of Cards' to the film
that won Oscar glory," says Paula
Wallace, SCAD president and founder
of the Savannah Film Festival. "What
an unforgettable moment during the
Academy Awards for our students to
see this amazing artist, their mentor,
lift that statuette high!"
Wallace remembers raised eyebrows when the festival launched 20
years ago. Now, "our state is the thirdlargest filming region in the world,"
she says, and the festival attracts
50,000 people.

Build community
"Film festivals have increasing
relevance as conveners of community," Blank says. "Films entertain, challenge and provoke us, and a festival
provides a space for shared conversation, for honest and meaningful dialogue."
It's a place to make friends, share
common interests and hear different
points of view.
"Some people say they are intimidated by the idea of a film festival,
but we're working to change that,"
says Ingram of the Rome International Film Festival. "This year we're
holding a 'How to Fest' workshop to
help people choose films and make
the most of the experience."
Laura Raines is a freelance writer
who lives in Mableton and is a member of GreyStone Power Corp.
GEORGIA MAGAZINE

http://www.georgiamagazine.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Georgia Magazine - May 2017