SCAD will honor Hollywood luminaries Salma Hayek Pinault, Patrick Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Aaron Sorkin, John Boyega, and Holly Hunter at the 2017 SCAD Savannah Film Festival. From October 28 to November 4, the festival, celebrating its 20th anniversary, will honor excellence in film with screenings, workshops, and a star-studded red carpet.
Salma Hayek Pinault will be awarded the Outstanding Achievement in Cinema Award. The Oscar-nominated actress, producer, and director has been nominated for Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, and British Academy of Film and Television Awards. Currently, Hayek can be seen in the leading role in Beatriz at Dinner. Her resume includes acclaimed films like Frida, The Hitman’s Bodyguard, Desperado, Once Upon a Time In Mexico, The Prophet, Sausage Party, and more. Sir Patrick Stewart, receiving the Legends of Cinema Award, is one of the most acclaimed actors working today. As Professor Charles Xavier, he defined the X-Men franchise; as Captain Jean-Luc Picard, he carved his rightful place in the Star Trek canon. Stewart has earned multiple Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, Emmy, and Tony Nominations. His film credits also include Green Room¸ Ted and Ted 2, Jeffrey, Dune, Excalibur, L.A. Story, Conspiracy Theory, I, Claudius and Tinker Tailor Solider Spy.
Aaron Sorkin is an Academy Award-winning writer and playwright. He will receive The Outstanding Achievement in Directing Award at the Savannah Film Festival. Sorkin is the winner of an Academy Award, Golden Globe, Critics Choice, and British Academy of Film and Television Arts Award (BAFTA) for Best Adapted Screenplay for The Social Network. The film was also nominated for eight Academy Awards including “Best Picture,” was named “Best Drama” at the Golden Globes and appeared on over 350 critics’ lists of the top ten films of 2010. Sorkin marks his directorial debut in Molly’s Game which he also wrote. The film is based on the true story of Molly Bloom, an Olympic-class skier who ran the world's most exclusive high-stakes poker game before being arrested in the middle of the night by 17 FBI agents wielding automatic weapons. His other screenwriting credits include A Few Good Men, which was nominated for four Academy Awards and five Golden Globes, including Best Screenplay, Malice, The American President, Charlie Wilson’s War, Steve Jobs and Moneyball, which earned Sorkin an Academy Award nomination for Best Screenplay.
John Boyega, earning the Vanguard Award, found his place in the Star Wars canon in his role as Finn in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. He’ll reprise the role in Star Wars: The Last Jedi this year. . Most recently, Boyega starred in director Kathryn Bigelow’s Detroit, the true story of the civil unrest and riots that sieged Detroit for five days during the summer of 1967. Boyega recently wrapped filming on Pacific Rim: Uprising, his next franchise-leading role, which he is also producing through his production company, UpperRoom Productions. His other film credits include Imperial Dreams and Attack the Block.
Holly Hunter receives the Icon Award. The Academy and Emmy award winner been nominated for an Academy Award for her performances in Broadcast News, The Firm, Thirteen, and The Piano, for which she won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1993. She won Primetime Emmy Awards for her performances in Roe vs. Wade and The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom, and she was nominated for her work in Things You Can Tell Just By Looking at Her, When Billie Beat Bobby, Saving Grace, and Top of the Lake. She can be seen in Raising Arizona, Miss Firecracker, Home for the Holidays, Crash, A Life Less Ordinary, Living Out Loud, O Brother Where Art Thou?, The Incredibles, and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. Most recently, Hunter starred in The Big Sick as well as Strange Weather. Soon, she can be seen in the Alan Ball HBO series Here, Now.
Maverick Award winner Robert Pattinson became a household name as the heartthrob of a generation: Edward Cullen of the Twilight series. Prior to that role, he starred as Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Pattinson currently stars in Good Time, a film centered around “Constantine Nikas,” who embarks on a journey through New York City’s underworld in a desperate attempt to get his brother out of jail. His performance is hailed by many critics as a career-defining moment. His other film credits include The Lost City of Z, Life, Queen of the Desert, The Rover, Cosmopolis, Life, Queen of the Desert, Map to the Stars, Water For Elephants, Remember Me and Bel Ami. Pattinson is currently in production on Claire Denis’ High Life and he recently wrapped production on Damsel.
