Shanna and Skylar Schanen, the mother-daughter duo behind the Round Top Film Festival, have no trouble listing the ways that Round Top, Texas is unlike anywhere else on earth.
“It’s truly a boutique, destination festival centrally located between Houston and Austin (with Dallas not far) — a place where film lovers can come together, gather, enjoy the music, and celebrate the art of film,” says Shanna Schanen, a film producer and the mom in the duo.
“It’s such an escape that if somebody just dropped you off on a plane in the middle of Round Top, you wouldn’t really know that a city was an hour away,” adds daughter Skylar, an actor, director and screenwriter who nestles up in Round Top when she’s working on screenplays.
“The starry nights just take you away,” adds Shanna. “They’re breathtaking. Very peaceful.”
Round Top has a population of less than 100 when the festival isn’t in swing, but it’s known for shopping, music, culture and a renowned antique show that leans toward eclectic, one-of-a-kind discoveries. Despite its small size, it’s a cultural hub that recently served as a location for the new film Family Movie, starring and co-directed by Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick.
The creative energy picks up even more when the festival arrives. This year’s edition takes place November 6-9, and you can submit a project through Film Freeway until August 25.
The History of the Round Top Film Festival
Shanna Schanen grew up in La Grange, Texas, about 15 miles from Round Top, but Skylar grew up in Houston.
“When Skylar was in first grade and we were living in Houston, everything was concrete,” Shanna recalls. “I was like, ‘Our child needs to experience what I had.’ And Round Top ended up being that place that brought me back to my roots…. It was a place that we could go to as a family to kick back and enjoy a slower pace of life.”
Round Top helped fuel Skylar’s creativity: “I’ve always had a really overactive imagination, and I’ve been writing as long as I could,” she explains. “I can remember even writing when I wasn’t spelling right. But I think it was just a good way for me to let out my imagination and anxieties.”
Skylar went to film school at Chapman University’s acclaimed Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, and lived in both New York and Los Angeles as an actor and filmmaker. But she often returned to Round Top to write, she says, because “there’s something magical out there.”
“Two years ago, my mom and I were just talking about how this town is starting to grow, and there’s so many creatives all around. And really, ‘I can’t believe there hasn’t been a film festival here’ — and that kind of just sparked a whole big dream,” Skylar adds. “Through a lot of luck and serendipity, we met amazing people that helped us get it together.”
Their team includes programming director Mickey Duzdevich, a veteran of the prestigious Santa Barbara International Film Festival, and artistic director Blair Hunt, a veteran of the beloved Napa Valley Film Festival. Their resumes, coupled with the Schanens’ film credentials, helped Round Top gain immediate respect.
Round Top Film Festival Highlights
Last year’s premiere edition of the festival, which welcomes attendees from as far away as the United Kingdom and Denmark, included actors Vondie Curtis-Hall and Virginia Madsen, who attended in support of their film Sheepdog, directed by and also starring Steven Grayhm.
Also in attendance was Christian Wallace, who co-created Landman with Taylor Sheridan. He gave the Round Top audience a special screening of the Billy Bob Thornton-led hit, days before the Texas-set series premiered on Paramount+.
In a departure from festivals known for velvet ropes, the guests mixed and mingled freely with everyone else.
“It was just a very nice, inviting environment – small, quaint and relaxing,” notes Shanna.
Thanks in part to the popularity of the antiques festival, Round Top has plenty of hotel rooms and Airbnbs available. The town is too small for Ubers, so the festival brought in its own shuttles for guests, as well as Porsche-sponsored vehicles to help transport talent from venue to venue. (Porsche will be back this year, as well.)
One of the goals of the festival is to provide film education to young, aspiring students located in rural areas in and around Round Top — especially those who love creating, like Skylar did from a very young age.
So she and filmmaker Giovanni M. Porta held a screenwriting program earlier this year, and the festival plans to expand into programs on acting, directing and more.
The festival also aims to become Academy-qualifying within the next seven years. The festival’s biggest challenge, at the moment, is a good one to have: sorting through the many films applying to be admitted for year two. “We only have 40 film slots, and with the submissions growing, it is becoming more daunting,” says Shanna.
“When two are similar, it’s hard to pick because they could be equally outstanding,” adds Skylar. “All told, we are trying to have really nice variety and offer the audience a well-rounded program.”
Main image: Round Top Film Festival founders Skylar Schanen, left, and Shanna Schanen. Photo courtesy of Jordan Geibel, Round Top Film Festival.