SCAD Star Power at 2025 Oscars®
137 SCAD alumni and students worked on
Academy Award®-nominated films
ATLANTA and SAVANNAH, GA – February 24, 2025 – 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 137 alumni and current students 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.
"Our Oscar-nominated alumni are a source of pride and inspiration for all of our current students, other alumni, and 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."
SCAD's School of Film and Acting and School of Animation and Motion have launched thousands of alumni into the movie industry, with Oscar award-winning professors, resources that rival Hollywood studios, and stunning locations including an 11-acre backlot and two LED volume stages, two professionally run casting offices, and renowned film and television festivals.
Kayli Carter (B.F.A., performing arts, 2015) is an actress in A Complete Unknown. Carter plays Maria Muldaur, a folk singer in the film. 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 Marshall. "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.
SCAD: The University for Creative Careers
SCAD is a private, nonprofit, accredited university, offering more than 100 graduate and undergraduate degree programs across locations in Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia; Lacoste, France; and online via SCADnow. SCAD enrolls more than 18,500 undergraduate and graduate students from more than 110 countries. The future-minded SCAD curriculum engages professional-level technology and myriad advanced learning resources, affording students opportunities for internships, professional certifications, and real-world assignments with corporate partners through SCADpro, the university's renowned research lab and prototype generator. SCAD has earned top rankings for degree programs in interior design, architecture, film, fashion, digital media, and more. Career success is woven into every fiber of the university, resulting in a superior alumni employment rate. A 2024 study found that 99% of recent SCAD graduates were employed, pursuing further education, or both within 12 months of graduation. SCAD provides students and alumni with ongoing career support through personal coaching, alumni programs, a professional presentation studio, and more.
SCAD School of Film and Acting
With resources that rival Hollywood studios, award-winning professors, stunning locations, professionally run casting offices, and stellar film and television festivals, the SCAD School of Film and Acting is the ideal place to launch into the film and television industry. Students are prepared to command roles onstage and on screen through live performances, sitcoms, dramatic series, music videos, commercials, and more.
SCAD School of Animation and Motion
SCAD School of Animation and Motion students deliver captivating moments across multiple platforms. From illuminating fantastical realms and characters to expertly integrating motion media in virtual studio environments and public spaces, students develop the acumen, creativity, and dexterity necessary to launch their creative careers.
Media Contacts:
Michelle Gavin
Executive Director of Communication
mgavin@scad.edu
912.323.5321
Wendy Gardner
Senior Director of Public Relations
wgardner@scad.edu