At the SCAD Savannah Film Festival on October 27, the 4th annual “Pixels and Pencils” Directors Roundtable brought together some of animation’s brightest talent and scored multiple historic firsts at the event, the go-to for animation Oscar nominees during awards season.
Moderated by Variety Awards Editor-in-Chief Clayton Davis, the discussion featured some of the year’s most acclaimed animated directors, including Hugo Bienvenu (Arco), Dome Shi (Elio), Alex Wu (In Your Dreams), Chris Appelhans and Maggie Kang (KPop Demon Hunters), and Mairis Valade (Little Amelie). “Or Rain Character”), Kent Seki (“Teenage”) appeared. Mutant Ninja Turtles: Chrome Alone 2 – Lost in New Jersey”).
The panel featured a record number of female filmmakers and made history as the first panel to feature both returning directors and animated shorts. Mr. Shih became the first director to return to the committee for a second year, and Mr. Seki marked a new milestone as the first short film director to be invited to participate.
Part of Variety’s long-standing partnership with SCAD and its awards season coverage, the “Pixels and Pencils” series has featured Oscar nominees and winners from the past few years, including 2024’s “Inside Head 2,” “Snail Memoirs,” “Wild Robot” and eventual winner “Flow.”
The directors shared candid insights into their creative processes and the challenges of working in animation. For Shi, who will be making Elio his second panel appearance after 2022’s Turning Red, the story was a way to connect with his younger self.
“We wanted to tell a story about being a weird kid who’s just trying to find his place,” she said. “For us, it was about finding a mate, even if it was an alien creature in space.”
Director Shi also explained the inspiration behind the film’s unconventional alien abduction scene: “Isn’t it funny when sci-fi movies have kidnapping scenes where the characters are being carried away on tractor beams and cheering and cheering? Because isn’t that how we all feel these days? Sometimes I think the world is over and I want them to take me away.”
Several directors emphasized the collaborative nature of animation.
Getty Images for SCAD
Kang and Appelhans discussed the collaborative process behind “KPop Demon Hunter,” celebrating the freedom to express Korean culture in bold and fresh ways. “Let’s make these characters real. Sometimes they’re ugly, sometimes they’re stupid, and sometimes they’re really charming,” Kang said with a laugh. The duo’s natural chemistry and shared creative vision made their partnership a crowd favorite.
“Once we realized that we could tackle problems and make improvements together, it became difficult to work separately,” Appelhans added. “We just have the exact same tastes, which is really crazy,” Kang said, noting how they like to make all decisions together, despite the production pressures of sharing responsibilities.
Throughout the afternoon, panelists talked about the inspiration, anxieties, and ambitions behind their work.
Bienvenue spoke about creating the neon “Arco” during the pandemic, inspired by a desire to imagine a better future. “Maybe the world is the way it is because we only have bad imaginations,” he says. “Let’s imagine it better.”
Valade, director of GKids’ hand-drawn “Little Amelie,” spoke through an interpreter about embracing the emotional power of animation. “Well, animation involves a lot of suffering,” she said with a laugh. “But it’s also about sharing love, dreams, and emotions. Maybe we can make a little difference in the world.”
Wu described Netflix’s “In Your Dreams” as a deeply personal exploration of disappointment and resilience. “I grew up hearing stories that if you really wanted something, it would come true, but that wasn’t always the case,” he says. “I wanted to make a movie for kids that asks the question, ‘What happens if your dreams don’t come true?'”
Seki, whose “Chrome Alone 2” was screened at SCAD earlier in the day, reflected on his decision to push through the rejection. “I once had someone in power tell me to my face, ‘They don’t see you as a coach,'” he said. “But keep going. It takes creative endurance and resilience.”
Getty Images for SCAD
As a surprise to the sold-out audience, Anthony DeMarco, a SCAD animation student from Middletown, New Jersey, was invited on stage to co-moderate part of the discussion after confidently announcing that he would direct the first animated film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture.
In a powerful final segment, DiMarco asked each filmmaker for one piece of advice for future directors. Reactions range from the philosophical (“tell the truth,” Wu says) to the practical. “Don’t be afraid to embarrass yourself,” Shi advised. Kang may have summed it up best. “Network up and down and left and right and don’t be an asshole.”
DeMarco’s participation was a highlight of the event, as students asked thoughtful questions about overcoming imposter syndrome and dealing with rejection. “This experience today taught me that animation requires passion, perseverance, and at least three, probably four backup drives,” DiMarco joked as he read the cue cards provided. “Animation is film. It’s a medium, not a genre.”
Seki also shared some wisdom from director Jon Favreau. “Your job is to be a politician. You have information that you have to convey to everyone on board. Your job is to know when, where, and how to convey that information.”
The eight-day SCAD Savannah Film Festival, hosted by the Savannah College of Art and Design, showcases cinematic creativity from award-winning professionals and emerging student filmmakers. Previous Pixels and Pencils panels have launched Oscar campaigns for filmmakers such as Peter Thorne (Elementals), the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse directorial team, and Dean Fleischer Camp (Marcel with Shoes on Shoes).
Boasting more than 63,000 attendees each year, the SCAD Savannah Film Festival continues to be a thriving venue for both emerging talent and established artists. “Pixels and Pencils” remains a standout moment during the eight-day celebration. It is a space where art and industry meet, where the next great animation work may be born.
As many of us believe, an animated film will win Best Picture. And maybe, just maybe, the person who directed it was sitting in that room. And judging by DeMarco and the eight standout filmmakers who dropped out along the way, everyone seems ready to take that shot.
(Top photo: Hugo Bienvenue, Alex Wu, Chris Appelhans, Maggie Kang, Clayton Davis, Domey Cee, Kent Seki, Maylis Valard, Hélène Renaud)
