Scott received his MFA in Documentary Film from Wake Forest University in 2017 and joined the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa that same year. He spent his first four years at the university with the School of Communication and joined SCA in 2021.
Before his work in film, Scott was a consultant and GIS analyst on environmental and climate-related projects in the Western Pacific and Oceania. It was during this period that he discovered his passion for storytelling and saw the potential of film as a tool to bring about greater environmental awareness and sustainability.
His award-winning films have screened at festivals and on public television around the world and explored topics such as the fight against poverty and hunger in North Carolina, the challenges of coastal sustainability in Belize, the triumph of overcoming the limitations of disability, and the struggles to adapt to a changing climate in Vanuatu. He has worked with international partners including the BBC, KUA, and World Wildlife Fund.
Through his creative scholarship, he seeks new and innovative ways to use storytelling as a way to raise awareness of environmental issues and to encourage positive social change. His recent work includes Hui Mālama Loko Iʻa which highlights the work Native Hawaiians are doing to restore ancient loko i‘a (fishponds) across ka paeʻāina o Hawaiʻi (the Hawaiian archipelago) and premiered at the 2020 Red Nation International Film Festival, the first and largest global native-led film festival; Xiqu Goes West which follows a training program to preserve traditional Chinese theater and was broadcast on Guam Public Television in 2019; and Goodbye Paradise, a 360-degree immersive experience that puts viewers on the front line of climate change in Vanuatu and was exhibited at the 2020 Cinequest Film and VR Festival, was a must-see at the 2019 New Orleans Film Festival, and received a Best of Show award from the Broadcast Educators Association’s 2019 On-Location Festival of Media Arts.
Scott advises students across the university on documentary-related projects. Feel free to reach out to him if you need any help or guidance with your work.
Email: sschim@hawaii.edu
Phone: (808) 956-8782
