BIO

SADIE SCOTT

I am a Brussels-based media researcher, documentarian, and film festival organizer focused on transformative justice, social impact, and environmental stories. Through an analytically rigorous, interdisciplinary approach that synthesizes quantitative and qualitative research with multimedia production and public events, I collaborate with individuals, organizers, non-profits, and companies to ensure their stories resonate with their communities.

Since graduating from Pitzer College with Honors in Psychology and Media Studies, I have aimed to understand storytelling about justice not just as a cultural phenomenon but also as a psychological one.

Currently, I am conducting a Fulbright Research Project in Brussels examining representations of incarceration throughout Belgian film history, leading up to the adoption of the country’s recently revised penal code, in order to better understand the relationship between shifting political, sociopsychological, and cultural landscapes. In May 2026, I am organizing a film festival entitled Ciel Ouvert (Open Sky) about transformative visions of the justice system in Belgium.

I previously served as the Media and Event Coordinator for the William James Association (WJA), an arts nonprofit primarily serving those currently and formerly incarcerated. My role included producing WJA's Poetic Justice Film Festival, a screening and speaker series that highlighted the power of the arts to heal, transform, and rectify the harms of the carceral system; producing WJA's 50th Anniversary Event; and shooting documentary content with program alumni. I also worked as the Production Assistant for Traceroute, an Apple Top 25 Technology Podcast, researching the people and stories that bring meaning to our digital world.

In addition to this work, I reserve time for independent and freelance projects that are aligned with my core values. A few of these projects include: Feeding the Empire, a public information campaign about the impact of the logistics industry on hunger in the Inland Empire using digital mapping, photographs, and a long-form essay; "A Portrait of Home," a documentary film about artists resisting the displacement caused by climate change in order to save their communities; and HERE NOW/IF THEN, a photobook about the uncertain future of the Inland Empire in the face of hyper-industrialization.

Pitzer College - May 2025

B.A. Media Studies with Honors; B.A. Psychology with Honors

Honors in Psychology Research Thesis: "The Effects of Media Format on Empathy, Justice Orientations, and Prosocial Behavior" - Year-long research study on the impact of VR documentaries about incarceration on empathy.

Honors in Media Studies Thesis - Interstitial - Collaborative multi-channel video installation about the meaningful relationships that emerge from Pitzer College's Inside-Out Program.