The Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) has a decades-long legacy of contributing to the most prestigious cinematic awards in the world. This year, SCAD is proud to announce that 136 alumni and current students have provided their industry talents to films nominated for the 97th Academy Awards. The awards ceremony will be televised live on Sunday, March 2, 2025 at 7 pm on ABC.
These talented filmmakers and artisans contributed to 18 films receiving nominations from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, including five Best Picture nominees, two Best Animated Film nominees, and all five films nominated for Best Visual Effects. These films include global blockbusters like Wicked, Dune: Part Two, The Wild Robot, Inside Out 2 and critical favorite Anora.
SCAD’s School of Film and Acting and School of Animation and Motion have launched thousands of alumni into the movie industry, with resources that rival Hollywood studios, Oscar award-winning professors, stunning locations including an 11-acre backlot and two LED volume stages, two professionally run casting offices, and renowned film and television festivals.
“Our Oscar-nominated alumni are a source of pride and inspiration for all of our current students, other alumni, but most of all their mentor professors who helped put them on these stellar paths,” said Andra Reeve-Rabb, dean of SCAD’s School of Film and Acting. “SCAD provides resources like no other university and we teach every aspect of filmmaking, that’s what sets us apart. We send our students into the industry, even before they graduate, placing them on film sets in Georgia, New York, Los Angeles, and beyond.”
Katerina Kojeva (B.F.A., production design, 2016) was the costume concept artist on Wicked which is nominated for Best PIcture, Best Costume Design, and Best Production Design. Alyssa Bracken (B.F.A., production design, 2012) was the assistant costume designer on A Complete Unknown which is nominated for eight awards including Best Picture and Best Costume Design. Wyatt Garfield (B.F.A., film and television, 2007) was the cinematographer on A Different Man which is nominated for Best Makeup and Hairstyling.
Fifty-two of the alumni who worked on Oscar-nominated films graduated from SCAD with a degree in visual effects. Hyun Huh (B.F.A., computer art, 1999) was the visual effects modeling supervisor and Yukinori Inagaki (M.F.A., visual effects, 2008) was the character rigging lead on The Wild Robot. Ryan Gillis (B.F.A., computer art, 2004) and Steve Bevins (B.F.A., visual effects, 2013) were both VFX department supervisors on Wicked. Gina Niespodziani (B.F.A., animation, 2011) was the visual effects executive producer on A Different Man. These visual effects artists allow filmmakers to create worlds and scenarios that would be impossible to capture realistically on camera, expanding creative possibilities, enhancing storytelling, and immersing audiences in fantastical narratives.
“No matter how the voting goes, a SCAD alumni will be on the winning team for Best Achievement in Visual Effects on March 2nd!” said SCAD visual effects chair Gray Marshal. “At SCAD, we prepare our students to lead the industry, and this year’s Oscars are a testament to that. The sheer number of our visual effects graduates who contributed to these nominated films, both animated and live-action, is a proud moment for our department and the university as a whole. Our alumni continue to push the boundaries of storytelling through innovation, artistry, and technical excellence.”
The SCAD Savannah Film Festival, the largest university run film festival in the world, has a spectacular record of screening Oscar-nominated films, months before the Oscar nominees are even announced. Twenty-three Academy Award-nominated films, and 7 out of the 10 best picture nominees, including Emilia Peréz, Anora, and The Brutalist were screened at the 2024 SCAD Savannah Film Festival. In addition, 26 of the film festival’s honorees, panelists and guests subsequently received Oscar nominations including actresses Demi Moore (The Substance) and Zoe Saldana (Emilia Peréz), actor Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain), and costume designer Janty Yates (Gladiator II).
The SCAD Savannah Film Festival has established itself as a distinguished stop on the road to the Academy Awards. Since its inception in 1997, the festival has screened more than 200 Oscar-nominated films and honored more than 150 legendary actors, directors, producers, writers, and filmmakers.
