Variety's 'Pixels and Pencils' Panel Returns to SCAD Savannah

Variety's "Pixels and Pencils" animation panel returns to the SCAD Savannah Film Festival for a fifth year, with six directors of the year's standout animated features confirmed for the conversation.

The lineup includes Brad Bird for Netflix's "Ray Gunn," Daniel Chong for Pixar's "Hoppers," Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado for DreamWorks Animation's "Forgotten Island," Travis Knight for Laika's "Wildwood," and Leah Nelson for Independent Film Company's "Tangles."

Crawford comes back four years after appearing on the inaugural 2022 panel with "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish." He is only the second filmmaker invited back, following Domee Shi, who appeared in 2022 with "Turning Red" and again in 2025 with "Elio."

The panel has become an essential stop for animated contenders on the road to the Oscars. Four of the five best animated feature nominees at the 98th Academy Awards came through the 2025 lineup, led by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans, whose Netflix hit "KPop Demon Hunters" won the category. They shared the stage with Ugo Bienvenu ("Arco"), Shi ("Elio") and Maïlys Vallade ("Little Amélie or the Character of Rain").

The 2024 panel featured eventual winner "Flow" alongside fellow nominees "Inside Out 2," "Memoir of a Snail" and "The Wild Robot." In 2023, Peter Sohn ("Elemental"), Nick Bruno and Troy Quane ("Nimona"), and Joaquim Dos Santos, Justin K. Thompson and Kemp Powers ("Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse") all launched Oscar-nominated runs from the Savannah stage. The inaugural 2022 edition set the template with three eventual nominees: Crawford, Dean Fleischer Camp ("Marcel the Shell With Shoes On") and Shi.

The event strengthens the relationship between Variety and SCAD, following the hosting of the 2026 class of 10 Animators to Watch at SCAD AnimationFest at its Atlanta campus earlier this month.

Variety will also present its fifth annual 10 Artisans to Watch at the festival, honoring standout talent in cinematography, costume design, editing, hair and makeup, production design, sound editing and design, and visual effects. Jazz Tangcay, Variety's senior artisans editor, will moderate that conversation.

Presented by the Savannah College of Art and Design, the festival draws more than 63,000 attendees over eight days, showcasing work from award-winning professionals and emerging student filmmakers alike.

The festival's 29th edition runs Oct. 24-31. Festival passes for the 2026 SCAD Savannah Film Festival are on sale now, and individual event tickets go on sale Friday, Oct. 2. With Bird, Knight and Chong all carrying films into the awards season, this year's panel could again preview the eventual Oscar field.