‘Spiegelman’ to Screen at SGFF ‘25
February 27, 2025
VALDOSTA, GA – The new documentary about author Art Spiegelman will screen March 7 and 9 as part of the 2025 South Georgia Film Festival. Spiegelman, a renowned artist with the New Yorker, TOPPS, and many 1960’s underground comics, is the only graphic novelist to receive the Pulitzer Prize. His work, MAUS: A SUVIVOR’S TALE, retells his father’s time as a Jewish prisoner during the Holocaust with the characters depicted as animals, particularly mice, cats and dogs.
“We are so lucky to be able to show this timely film during this year’s South Georgia Film Festival,” said Festival Director, Jason Brown. “The power of MAUS is not only in its story of survival but by using the comics medium it helped millions of people connect with a story better than through words alone.”
Spiegelman has returned to notoriety due outcries of book censorship when libraries in Tennessee banned his books due to the coarse language and not being “age-appropriate.” Spiegelman’s early work with MAD Magazine as well as experimental and transgressive comics of the late 1960’s and 70’s appears to some as contrast to his work with TOPPS bubble gum cards, but Spiegelman also famously created the parody series “Garbage Pail Kids.” Parental discretion is advised.
The Spiegelman documentary will be paired with the short film “Watching Walter,” about the true story of Wladyslaw “Walter” Wojnas, who became a master watchmaker during World War II’s Nazi occupied Poland. Both screenings will be at Pound Hall. See schedule for times.
This year’s South Georgia Film Festival will take place March 6, 7, 8, & 9 on the North Campus of Valdosta State University, with films from across the world with an emphasis on the art and industry growing here in the Southeast. College and high school students can register for free day passes, giving them access to all screenings and panels. Festival and VIP Passes provide access to our Friday and Saturday night receptions, along with other benefits.
“For the last decade, we’ve built a strong network of filmmakers across the country and the world,” said Jason Brown Festival Director. “Bringing filmmakers from across the country to Valdosta to engage our community has been our driving force for all of these years and we don’t plan to stop now!”
Along with the many films to be screened at this year’s festival, panels and networking opportunities will be held to help our community learn more about the film industry and ways to participate. This year’s panels include Allison Hogue with the SALVATION ARMY of Georgia, who will talk about her work specifically during Hurricane Helene to use video to get resources to those in need; Melissa Simpson of FILM IMPACT GEORGIA (FIG), who will discuss FIG’s bi-annual grant for native Georgia Filmmakers along with many resources available across the state for those interested in filmmaking; Marty Lang of the University of Georgia and John Rash of University of Mississippi, who will discuss their respective MFA programs in filmmaking in the South; Kate Fortmueller of Georgia State University, who will take about her recent book BELOW THE STARS; Brooke Sonenreich with Moonshine Post, and director Ebony Blanding, who will discuss her time as the 2024 Emerging Creative in Residence at Trilith Studios and the production of her film “A Mess of Memories.”
The festival will also provide question and answer sessions after each film block for visiting filmmakers to discuss their work, along with a panel with alumni from the Valdosta State University Mass Media program and contributions from Valdosta State University faculty including Melissa Pihos and Christy Yates.
This year’s festival could not happen without the support of our community sponsors, including Georgia Council for the Arts, Valdosta State University, the Walmart Community Grant, Georgia Power, the Georgia Film Office, Wild Adventures Theme Park, the Miracle League of Valdosta, Lowndes-Valdosta Tourism, the City of Valdosta, Wiregrass Georgia Technical College, Georgia Production Partnership, the Valdosta-Lowndes County Chamber of Commerce, the Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts, Downtown Social, Inclusion Films and Film Impact Georgia. Please support our sponsors.
For more information on the South Georgia Film Festival, visit SouthGeorgiaFilm.com , SGFF25.Eventive.org , or contact Prof. Jason Brown at 229-219-1298 or jasonebrown@valdosta.edu.
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