March 6, 2025
VALDOSTA, GA – The 2025 South Georgia Film Festival features a strong number of faculty and alumni from Valdosta State University. Along with the annual Alumni Panel, featuring three graduates from the Mass Media program returning to celebrate their achievements, this year you’ll see more VSU faculty throughout the weekend’s events. Passes are still available for all weekend events on North Campus across from the South Georgia Medical Center. The public is invited.
With so many visiting filmmakers, Valdosta State University faculty have stepped up to help moderate some amazing conversations. Festival Director Jason Brown gets things started Thursday night at the Turner Arts Center, discussing PINEVALE HIGH: SEPARATE UNEQUAL … UNDETERRED with filmmakers Mark Patrick George and Willie Housel. You’ll see Professor Brown all weekend talking to filmmakers Ebony Blanding, Joey Travolta, and many more.
Friday, Music Professor David Springfield will lead a conversation with visiting film composer Matthew Cravener. Prof. Springfield is the Director of Jazz Studies and leads the Jazz Ensemble. He has published books on jazz and musical composition. Earlier in the day Friday, Professor Christy Yates leads a panel called “Once You See It, You Can’t Unlearn it – an Academic Panel,” featuring techniques incorporating film to benefit teaching and learning. Professor Yates has returned to the classroom full time after spending the last few years as the Deputy CHRO of VSU’s Office of Human Resources. Instructor Rafiah Jenkins will be leading question and answer sessions Friday with visiting filmmakers, including German Lopez Tirado, James Faucett and Karlyn Hoon.
This year’s returning alumni panel will be held Saturday at 5 pm at the Health Science and Business Administration building. It includes Brandi Moore, Class of 2015; Ray Hannah and Ryan Bryant (both Class of 2019). Moore went got her start in TV News at Fox 5 Atlanta, which she says VSU’s Mass Media program prepared her to work in a Top 10 market. She’s currently a Producer on the Portia Show. Hannah grew up around Atlanta, attended school in Valdosta, and has worked in Jacksonville since graduation. He currently is a Videographer/Editor with the Haskell Company, a global Architecture, Engineering, and Construction company. Bryant graduated Hart County High School on the Audio/Video Technology pathway before attending VSU’s Mass Media program. Ryan’s passion for movies and writing sprung from the 2nd Grade and has continued as he has won Young Georgia Authors’ Writing Competitions, film festival acting awards, and produced his own films. Ryan currently resides in Atlanta where he is still pursuing work both in-front and behind the camera.
Saturday’s schedule is jam packed. Moderating question and answer sessions with visiting filmmakers will be VSU Professors Dennis Conway, Joe Culverhouse, and Jonmichael Siebert, along with Wiregrass Georgia Technical College’s 2025 Instuctor of the Year John Patten, an alum of VSU’s Mass Media program. Greg Brown, faculty advisor with the award-winning VSU Spectator, will be leading a conversation with Georgia State professor Kate Fortmueller about her book “Below the Stars,” about the impact of labor in Hollywood.
Professor Melissa Pihos will be leading a workshop with Joey Travolta on Sunday at 1 pm at Pound Hall to take a behind-the-scenese look at “Lights Camera Friendship … On the Spectrum.” Pihos was involved both in-front and behind the camera of the production that took place here in 2024.
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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Valdosta State University alumni Brandi Moore, Ray Hannah, and Ryan Bryant.
