LACOSTE, FRANCE — The Savannah College of Art and Design is proud to present the SCAD Lacoste Film Festival, July 1–4, at the university’s global location in majestic Lacoste, France. Celebrating entertainment’s brightest stars, the festival brings renowned filmmakers and celebrities to the exquisitely preserved medieval village for four dynamic days of programming. The premier event offers intimate access to creative geniuses in film and entertainment and demonstrates SCAD’s historic legacy of cultivating creativity in resplendent Provence for the past 20 years.
“Je suis absolument ravie du SCAD Lacoste Film Festival! For over 20 years, SCAD has imbued the Luberon Valley with beauty, art, and les superlatifs only SCAD can conjure, and once again we bring the magic of SCAD to our home among the lavender fields,” said SCAD President and Founder Paula Wallace. “Provence has long inspired artistry and legendary films. From Picasso to Paglieri, from Van Gogh to Vadim, Renoir to Reisz, artists the world over have flocked to this extraordinary pastoral gem. The iconic films fashioned in this region are legendary—Jean De Florette, Manon des Sources, And God Created Woman—the list goes on and on. There could be no more fitting place for SCAD, higher education’s leader in film and entertainment, to continue its world-renowned series of film festivals and celebrations of artistic achievement. Come join us at the SCAD Lacoste Film Festival!”
The SCAD Lacoste Film Festival commences Friday, July 1, with an opening-night gala screening, followed by a starlight soirée held on the gorgeous lawn of La Maison Basse.
SCAD will present Academy Award-winning actor Jeremy Irons with the SCAD Etoile for Lifetime Achievement in Cinema, and throughout the festival, Irons’ outstanding career will be honored with a dedicated film series titled Cinéma Elégance: A Celebration of Jeremy Irons that will include screenings of Reversal of Fortune, The French Lieutenant’s Woman, and The Man Who Knew Infinity. On the evening of Sunday, July 3, following the screening of The French
Lieutenant’s Woman, Irons joins Andra Reeve-Rabb, dean of the SCAD School of Entertainment Arts, in conversation for an audience of festival attendees and students.
Additional SCAD Lacoste Film Festival highlights include a tribute to revolutionary filmmaker and artist Agnès Varda with screenings of Varda’s films Cléo from 5 to 7 and Faces Places. Quinn Orear, SCAD associate chair of film and television, and Brantly Watts, director of SCADFILM, will also present Une lettre d’amour: The Original Multi-Hyphenate, Agnès Varda, which will explore Varda’s multifaceted and boundless career. Other notable screenings include Murder in Provence on Sunday, July 3, followed by a panel discussion with executive producer Alison Owen, actor Keala Settle, and writer Shelagh Stephenson.
Throughout the festival, the university will screen SCAD original content in the breathtaking Chemin Parc, showcasing award-winning films, documentaries, animated shorts, and television series created and produced by SCAD professionals, faculty, and students. More than 8,500 SCAD students and alumni work in film and entertainment industries around the world, and have won Oscars, Emmys, Golden Reels, Tonys, Grammys, Annies, and other prestigious awards. The festival will conclude with a Fourth of July celebration on the lawn of La Maison Basse with a quintessential BBQ cookout and a screening of the classic American blockbuster Jaws.
“Celebrating the entertainment arts at our beautiful SCAD Lacoste location provides us the opportunity to enjoy the thrill audiences regularly experience at SCAD festivals and events,” said Leigh Seaman, senior executive director of SCADFILM. “Notable film and television luminaries from around the globe visit SCAD throughout the year to host screenings and share their expertise and insight, and it’s very exciting to expand our event programming to Lacoste. We look forward to broadening our tradition of entertainment excellence with the SCAD Lacoste Film Festival this year.”
Over the past 20 years, SCAD Lacoste has served as the university’s flagship European residential study abroad program, offering a premier educational experience with state-of-the- art resources to SCAD students from an array of top-ranked degree programs including architecture, art history, interior design, painting, film and television, illustration, dramatic writing, animation, fashion, advertising, fibers, sound design, luxury and brand management, and more.
A medieval village once home to the revolutionary Marquis de Sade, Lacoste’s majestic setting and purity of light have long inspired creative visionaries such as Claude Monet, Vincent van Gogh, and Pablo Picasso. A globally recognized leader in preservation and adaptive reuse, SCAD has been heralded for infusing the ancient village with new life and purpose, preserving more than 30 centuries-old structures. The university’s expert team of preservationists, led by SCAD President and Founder Paula Wallace, restored the treasured village and historically significant archaeological site, transforming former dwellings and medieval caves into cutting- edge contemporary instructional spaces with high-end resources, including a digitally connected library, studios and lecture classrooms, galleries, theaters, and residences.
The SCAD Lacoste Film Festival is presented by SCADFILM, the leading program for students and working professionals in film and television, animation, gaming, virtual reality, and digital media. Tickets for the SCAD Lacoste Film Festival are on sale now at scad.edu/filmfestlacoste.
