Nashville Film Festival Kicked Off Sept. 18 with Screenings, Guests + Creators Conference

The Nashville Film Festival (NashFilm), a week-long celebration of film, music and culture, announced the 56th annual festival highlights including special screenings and the 2025 Creators Conference program, which will include topical panels with film industry professionals and a pitch competition as part of the 56th annual festival taking place September 18-24, 2024. Tickets for individual events and VIP Badges are on sale now for the 2025 Nashville Film Festival.

Special Screenings

In addition to the previously announced lineup of over 150 films, NashFilm will hold several special screening events, including a highly anticipated encore screening by popular demand of “OPRYLAND, USA: A CIRCLE BROKEN” at the Belcourt Theater on September 24 at 3 p.m.

Additionally, a presentation of “THE EASY KIND,” directed by Kate Chevigny, will be at Riverside Revival on September 22 at 7 p.m. Audiences will enjoy an exclusive musical performance by Charles Esten (“Nashville”,” Outer Banks”) following the screening.

As part of NashFilm’s Education Program, “SPEAK.,” directed by Jennifer Tiexiera and Guy Mossman, will screen on September 21 at the Regal Green Hills with a Q&A following the screening.

This moving documentary follows five of the nation’s top teenage speech competitors, capturing the euphoria of victory and the devastation of defeat as they craft and perform original oratories over the course of a 9-month season. Their dream is simple: To win the Super Bowl of public speaking, the NSDA Nationals. We witness them, their coaches and their parents as they fight to keep school speech programs alive amid budget cuts, book bans and censorship efforts that reach a fevered pitch during the 2024 election year.

During the festival, NashFilm  will welcome over 500 Metro Nashville Public Schools students, grades 7-12, to two private screenings of “SPEAK.” at the Frist Art Museum, followed by interactive Q&As with the film’s producer, Pamela Griner, and one of the film’s star speech competitors, Mfaz Mohamed Ali. This no-cost program eliminates barriers to world-class film and ensures the next generation of storytellers can be inspired by the art of cinema.

NashFilm Creators Conference

This three-day professional conference connects filmmakers and industry leaders in a mix of panels that explore current industry trends and cultural topics in film and music. This year, the conference will take place September 19-21 and feature film, screenwriting and scoring-focused panels at Hilton Green Hills and Soho House.

Featured panels will give attendees the opportunity to learn directly from acclaimed creators and industry leaders. Ethics & Innovation: AI at the Crossroads of Creativity brings together experts such as Warner Music Nashville’s Senior VP of Legal and Business Affairs Patrick Sabatini, Nashville Songwriters Association International Executive Director Bart Herbison and astrophysicist, author and senior advisor to the Human Artistry Campaign Dr. Moiya McTier to examine how AI is reshaping creative workflows, authorship and consent. In From Script to Set: Launching Your Debut Feature, filmmaker Annapurna Sriram (Fucktoys, Feral) and David Fortune, named one of Variety’s “10 Directors to Watch” for his award-winning debut feature “COLOR BOOK,” will share essential insights on the journey from script to screen. These exciting events join the previously announced conversations In Conversation with Jay Duplass: The Art of Indie Filmmaking at Soho House, featuring the celebrated writer-director-actor-producer, and Nicole Kidman: Where Art Meets Home in Nashville at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, with the Academy Award-winning actress and producer. More information can be found here.

This year’s impressive lineup of panelists and moderators includes; Elizabeth Arnott, Hamish Berry, Adam Cobb, Luanne Dietz, Jay Duplass, Hannah Epstein, Chris Everett, Autumn Bailey Ford, David Fortune, Bart Herbison, Allison Inman, Matt Jacobs, Henry Jones, Jake Mahaffy, Moiya McTier, Erin Miller, Karla Murthy, Emily Neumann, David Ngo, Courtney Sabatini, Patrick Sabatini, Noopur Sinha, Annapurna Sriram, Shanna Strassberg, Julien Thuan and Lisa Trifone.

Pitch Competition

As a part of the 2025 Creators Conference, the top 10 finalists selected in either Episodic or Feature will have the unique opportunity to pitch their ideas for television shows or feature films to an industry panel live at the 56th Nashville Film Festival Pitch Event. Beneficial to writers and filmmakers alike, creators will receive live feedback and tips from experienced professionals in an educational and supportive environment, with one winner chosen from feature concepts and one from episodic. The pitch competition will be held on Saturday, September 20, from 1:30-5 p.m. at the Hilton Green Hills. 

“This year’s highlights showcase the incredible range of storytelling and creative exchange that make NashFilm such a special gathering,” said Jason Padgitt, NashFilm’s Executive Director. “From thought-provoking screenings and student programs to conversations with some of the most innovative voices in film and music, we are excited to offer experiences that both inspire audiences and empower the next generation of creators.”

Creators Conference events are open to the public, and individual tickets are available on the NashFilm website; the festival’s VIP badges offer the opportunity for admission to all events. In addition, the Festival offers a Creators Conference Badge for festival attendees interested in attending all panels and networking events. The full 2025 Creators Conference and pitch competition schedule can be found here.

For more information and to purchase tickets and passes to this year’s Nashville Film Festival, visit www.nashvillefilmfestival.org.

About the Nashville Film Festival

The Nashville Film Festival (NashFilm) is a globally recognized nonprofit organization and cultural event presenting the best in world cinema, American independent films and documentaries by veteran masters, up-and-coming directors, and first-time filmmakers. With Academy Award® qualifying status, the Nashville Film Festival celebrates innovation, music and the many voices of the human spirit through the art of film. Originally founded in 1969, the Nashville Film Festival is one of the first film festivals in the United States and will host its 56th festival from September 18-24, 2025. For a glimpse of what to expect at this year’s event, view this video to see highlights from the 2024 festival. For more information, visit www.nashfilm.org.