The Savannah College of Art and Design announced the award winners for the 25th annual SCAD Savannah Film Festival. Pinball – The Man Who Saved the Game, directed by Austin Bragg and Meredith Bragg won the award for Best Narrative Feature; and Sam Now won the award Best Documentary Feature along with Best Director for Reed Harkness.
Pinball – The Man Who Saved the Game is based on the true story of Roger Sharpe, the young Midwesterner who overturned New York City’s 35-year-old ban on pinball machines; and Sam Now is a documentary filmed over 25 years that follows a boy’s search for his missing mom.
In total, 21 awards were announced from the 81 films chosen to compete across eight categories: Narrative Features, Documentary Features, Professional Shorts, Animated Shorts, Documentary Shorts, Student Shorts, Global Shorts Forum, and Shorts Spotlight.
Three SCAD alums earned awards in the festival’s short film categories: Sourab Reddy (B.F.A., film and television, 2022), for his film Maayanagri (A City of Dreams); Janantik Shukla (M.A., film and television, 2009), for his film Mulsotan — The Rooted; and Joshua Harding (B.F.A., photography, 2009), for his film Chasin’ Butterflies.
A key stop on the festival circuit leading up to the Academy Awards, the 2022 SCAD Savannah Film Festival screened 143 films, including 53 narrative feature films, 20 documentary feature films, and 79 shorts, with eight world premieres and six U.S. premieres.
Professional Competition
Best Animated Short – New Moon, directed by Jeremie Balais, Jeff LeBars, and Raul Domingo
Best Documentary Feature – Sam Now, directed by Reed Harkness
Best Documentary Short – The Flagmakers, directed by Cynthia Wade and Sharon Liese
Best Professional Short – North Star, directed by P.J. Palmer
Best Narrative Feature – Pinball – The Man Who Saved the Game, directed by Austin Bragg and Meredith Bragg
Best Director – Reed Harkness, Sam Now
Best Editing – Butterfly in the Sky, edited by Bradford Thomason
Jury Award for Animation Excellence – Black Slide, directed by Uri Lotan.
Narrative Features: Jury Award for Best Ensemble Cast – The Big Bend, directed by Brett Wagner
Documentary Features: Jury Award for Excellence in Inspirational Storytelling – Afghan Dreamers, directed by David Greenwald
Documentary Features: Jury Award for Excellence in Cinematography – Crows are White, directed by Ahsen Nadeem
Professional Shorts: Jury Award for Comedic Excellence – Miss Patti, directed by Kate Hamilton and Grasie Mercedes
Documentary Shorts: Jury Award for Powerful Storytelling – Angola Do You Hear Us? Voices from a Plantation Prison, directed by Cinque Northern
Student Competition
Best Student Short – This Wild Abyss, directed by Thomas Mendolia
Best Student Animation – The Soloists, directed by Mehrnaz Abdollahinia, Feben Elias Woldehawariat, Razahk Issaka, Celeste Jamneck, and Yi Liu
Student Shorts Jury Award for Artistic Excellence – Maayanagri (A City of Dreams), directed by Sourab Reddy*
Global Shorts Forum
Global Shorts: Best of Show – Wax and Wane, directed by Beidi Wang
Best Global Short: Of The Land – Mulsotan — The Rooted, directed by Janantik Shukla*
Best Global Short: XX – Hysterical, directed by April Moreau
Global Shorts: Jury Award for Artistic Excellence – Murmurs of the Jungle, directed by Sohil Vaidya
Global Shorts: Jury Award for Unique Storytelling – Feeling the Apocalypse, directed by Chen Sing Yap
Shorts Spotlight
Shorts Spotlight: Best of Show – Burros, directed by Jefferson Stein
Shorts Spotlight Best Short: Amusing Perspectives – Chasin’ Butterflies, directed by Joshua Harding,* Adam Hobbs, and Matt Klug.
Shorts Spotlight Best Short: Person First – Murder Tongue, directed by Ali Sohail Jaura
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