On Feb. 7, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) hosted the Variety Artisans Award at the Arlington Theatre. The award honors artisans in editing, sound, cinematography, production design, hair and makeup, and costume design. This year’s honorees included EJAE, songwriter for “K-pop Demon Hunters”, production designer Jack Fisk of “Marty Supreme”, composer Alexandre Desplat, costume designer Kate Hawley, and makeup artist Mike Hill of “Frankenstein”, supervising sound editor Al Nelson and editor Andy Jergensen of “F1”, visual effects artist Eric Saindon of “Avatar: Fire and Ash” cinematographer Adolpho Veloso of “Train Dreams”, and sound mixer Chris Welcker of “Sinners”.
Prior to the panel, artisans and emerging artists represented their respective films on the SBIFF red carpet, sharing their experiences with professional and amateur journalists. Among the honorees that walked the red carpet, other SBIFF recognized creators were featured including: Emiliana Jasper, actor in “Memory Experiment”; Eden Sobalboro, producer of “FIL-AM”; Minnie Mills, actor in “California Scenario”; Deborah Lee Smith, producer of “Sell Your House”; Hunter Stiebel, actor in “FIL-AM”, and others. Conversations with these artists highlighted their passion and dedication to their craft.
Following the red carpet was a Q&A panel with the honorees, moderated by Variety’s Senior Artisans editor Jazz Tangcay. EJAE, co-writer and singing voice of Rumi in “K-pop Demon Hunters”, spoke about the importance of Korean culture being represented in America. Reflecting on the film’s impact, she shared, “To see Korea portrayed in such a beautiful way and for people to accept Korea is truly… it’s so beautiful.”
awardee for his work on Frankenstien (audio). Photo by Ethan Maday (Ethan Maday)
Following EJAE was the legendary production designer Jack Fisk, honored for “Marty Supreme”. He described the energy on set and noted that it was, “one of the most fun films I’ve ever worked on.” Several of the creative minds behind “Frankenstein” also shared their artistic processes.
Composer Alexandre Desplat spoke about his emotional, gothic score. He shared that when creating music, he likes to “get inside the character’s brain” so he can convey real emotions to the audience.
Costume designer Kate Hawley spoke about the impressive wedding dress and coat seen in “Frankenstein”. “Frankenstein’s” makeup and hairstyling artist, Mike Hill, described the transformation of Jacob Elordi into “The Creature”. The film has received high praise, including nine Academy Award nominations. Following Mike Hill, “F1” editor Andy Jergensen, and sound editor Al Nelson spoke to the challenges of capturing the intense car races in the film. “A lot of the shots that are the best shots are things where it just happened,” Jergensen said.
The panel concluded with insights from Adolpho Veloso, cinematographer in “Train Dreams”; Chris Welcker, sound editor of “Sinners”; and Eric Saindon, visual effects artist in “Avatar: Fire and Ash”.
