The Savannah Film Festival wrapped on Saturday after screening awards-circuit favorites including “Foxcatcher” and “The Imitation Game.”
But a former constant presence was missing — Bobby Zarem, the New York p.r. legend who returned to his hometown in 2010 at 73, and was given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the festival.
After working since 1998 to woo talent and films to Savannah, his contract wasn’t renewed for 2014.
“He was blindsided,” said a pal. “He abruptly got a letter that after all his hard work, they weren’t renewing. He knew it wasn’t going to go on forever. But the festival had been successful. To some he was the festival.”
The fest’s run by the Savannah College of Art and Design, which brought in power p.r. firm BWR to replace Zarem.
Murray Silver, who dubs himself “Savannah’s goodwill ambassador,” groused online that without Zarem, “The wheeler dealers have vanished . . . ‘who’s who’ has turned into ‘who’s that?’”
That wasn’t entirely the case.
Spotted last week were HBO’s Len Amato, Shep Gordon, Mike Myers, Norman Reedus, Adam Shankman and Matt Bomer.
A Zarem rep said he couldn’t comment for legal reasons.
A SCAD staffer said the school “has presented the [festival] for 17 years to spotlight cinematic creativity. . . Bobby Zarem has been an important part in building the festival’s stellar reputation and we wish him well in future endeavors.”