Our Weekend Pass gets you access to all screenings all weekend long (August 22-23), plus access to our after-parties! IMPORTANT: Please read Festival FAQs for how to get in to each screening with your Weekend Pass.
Our Friday Pass gets you access to all screenings on Friday August 22nd, plus access to our after-party that night! IMPORTANT: Please read Festival FAQs for how to get in to each screening with your Friday Pass.
Our Saturday Pass gets you access to all our screenings on Saturday August 23rd, plus access to our after-party that night! IMPORTANT: Please read Festival FAQs for how to get in to each screening with your Saturday Pass.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 22
CLICK ON EACH PROGRAM FOR DETAILS
Friday, August 22, 2025
6:45 PM - 8:00* PM
Main Theatre
A selection of some of the BEST of the BEST short films from Defy’s first 10 years. But since the world is burning all around us, curating this program took on a life of its own. What emerged is bold, erratic, emotional, absurd… and yes, unhinged.
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Friday, August 22, 2025
7:00 PM - 8:15* PM
Headphone Theatre
An experiential collection of boundary-pushing short films. This program is packed with recorded memories, explosive visuals, and disorienting beauty. A sensory dive into inner worlds and far-reaching realities.
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Friday, August 22, 2025
8:45 PM - 10:30* PM
Main Theatre
World Premiere
Nashville filmmaker Madeleine Hicks debuts her first feature as a feminist sci-fi satire… and fully commits. Equal parts bold, strange, and sharply funny, this film is a dark mirror of the moment, reflecting the struggle to live a life of value in a world that feels increasingly bleak.
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Friday, August 22, 2025
9:00 PM - 10:15* PM
Headphone Theater
Yes, that John Lilly - the one who tried to teach dolphins to speak, took LSD in sensory deprivation tanks, and believed in cosmic entities controlling coincidences. This is a sharply crafted documentary, and it’s as strange as you'd hope. Oh yeah… it’s narrated by Chloë Sevigny!!
Here, we have specially curated films on a loop all day, waiting for you to drop in, and let them wash over you. It’s a bit like stumbling into a video installation at a museum. Fine art cinema, unfolding in its own time. These works are singular, challenging, and absolutely worth the detour from the main programs. Stay for five minutes or an hour… then come back anytime for more.
Friday, August 22, 2025
10:00 PM - 1:00 AM
Come join us for the first night of Defy’s 10th-year celebration! Jackalope will be pouring their great beer and signature cocktails, Nashville’s own Andrew Golden will set the groove with his boundary-pushing jazz sounds, and the whole night will carry that true Defy energy — where filmmakers, film lovers, and the just-here-for-the-party crowd all mix together. Your Defy Pass gets you into the Opening Night Party!
SATURDAY, august 23
CLICK ON EACH PROGRAM FOR DETAILS
Saturday, August 23, 2025
11:45 PM - 1:15* PM
Headphone Theatre
Some of the most thought-provoking and emotionally devastating short films we’ve ever programmed. So grab a coffee and get ready to dig deep. And just a quick heads-up… not a big deal, but you’ll probably come out a different person than when you came in.
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Saturday August 23, 2025
12:00 PM - 1:15* PM
Main Theatre
Whenever we can pull together a legitimate dramedy program, we don’t pass up the chance. These short films ride that wonderful light wave of comedy but know exactly when to dive deeper, unafraid to face those things we sometimes must face.
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Saturday, August 23, 2025
1:45 PM - 3:00* PM
Main Theatre
The debut feature from $eck, a former Nashvillian now working out of Brooklyn, is a raw, gritty, and unrelenting ride from beginning to end. Made for just $500 using whatever fit in a backpack, this is the kind of brave, intentional, take-no-prisoners filmmaking Defy is all about.
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Saturday August 23, 2025
2:00 PM - 3:15* PM
Headphone Theatre
A curated mix of real-life moments… childhood memories, personal challenges, and some fun conversations about body parts and missing gloves. These short documentaries will surprise, amuse, and leave you hopeful for the rest of the day.
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Saturday, August 23, 2025
3:45 PM - 5:45 PM
Main Theatre
A 10-year documentary project set inside an illegal video gambling outfit in a North Carolina strip mall. It’s a far-out, deeply human film - made all the more powerful by its unbelievable access to its subjects. Heartbreaking, heartwarming, and just has to be seen to be believed.
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Saturday August 23, 2025
7:00 PM - 8:15* PM
Main Theatre
Comedy… plus what? We’re not exactly sure, but these very funny, very odd short films carry a strange energy that lingers. Maybe something reflective? Human? Existential? Whatever it is, it’s not your typical comedy fare. Best to come see for yourself.
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Saturday August 23, 2025
9:00 PM - 10:15* PM
Main Theatre
Our festival-closing banger comes straight out of the deep annals of Nashville lore. The subject is Chris Crofton. A once-in-a-lifetime musical and comedic genius just waiting to be discovered. And waiting… waiting… I mean, there’s only so much one man can take, right?!
*Run time includes 15+ minute filmmaker Q&A after screening
Here, we have specially curated films on a loop all day, waiting for you to drop in, and let them wash over you. It’s a bit like stumbling into a video installation at a museum. Fine art cinema, unfolding in its own time. These works are singular, challenging, and absolutely worth the detour from the main programs. Stay for five minutes or an hour… then come back anytime for more.
Saturday, August 23, 2025
10:00 PM - 2:00 AM
Closing night of Defy Film Festival's 10th birthday celebration brings the vibes with DJ Raiden, a birthday cake (of course), and the $10,000 film equipment rental raffle draw! Jackalope will be serving up great beer and cocktails. Come one, come all... come ready to move! Your Defy Pass gets you into the Closing Night Party!
PARTIES
Thursday, August 21, 2025
6:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Center615 Main Street Gallery
Box office pickup: Stop by the kickoff party to pick up your tickets for the weekend, and skip the will call line at the fest!
7:00 PM — UNTAMED: A DEFY RETROSPECTIVE
8:00 PM — VOYAGE: A LIVE VISUAL ALBUM
Help us kick off our 10th year of Defy with our first-ever Festival Kickoff Party on Thursday, August 21st, at the Center615 Main Street Gallery, featuring a retrospective film screening with some of our fave films from the past ten years, followed by a special performance by friend-of-the-Fest Sarah Saturday (Gardening, Not Architecture) of her multimedia musical Voyage: A Live Visual Album, featuring several short films directed by Defy's own Dycee Wildman.
Your Defy Pass gets you into the Kickoff Party for free. General Admission tickets are $15.
Friday, August 22, 2025
10:00 PM - 1:00 AM
Come join us for the first night of Defy’s 10th-year celebration! Jackalope will be pouring their great beer and signature cocktails, Nashville’s own Andrew Golden will set the groove with his boundary-pushing jazz sounds, and the whole night will carry that true Defy energy — where filmmakers, film lovers, and the just-here-for-the-party crowd all mix together. Your Defy Pass gets you into the Opening Night Party!
Saturday, August 23, 2025
10:00 PM - 2:00 AM
Closing night of Defy Film Festival's 10th birthday celebration brings the vibes with DJ Raiden, a birthday cake (of course), and the $10,000 film equipment rental raffle draw! Jackalope will be serving up great beer and cocktails. Come one, come all... come ready to move! Your Defy Pass gets you into the Closing Night Party!
ART INSTALLATIONS
An Art Film Installation
The Grove (Outside)
Artist Talk with Fjolla Hoxha Friday at 6:00 PM
“The Three Clairs (cardinal version)” is the latest offering from the sensory-driven, multi-media artist Bunny Nunn. The outdoor film experience is a visual poem that moves you through field and forest, consciousness and unconsciousness. An incantation. A mystery that transforms the everyday into the sacred.
An Immersive Multimedia Installation
Defy Lobby
Contemporary Shamanism gathers artists who navigate the thresholds between material and immaterial worlds, channeling technology as both ritual tool and altered state. In a culture where screens replace landscapes and algorithms mediate desire, these works act as conduits—part interface, part invocation—guiding participants through experiences that disrupt routine perception and reawaken embodied attention.
The WEEKEND PASS allows you to fully immerse yourself in the spirit of Defy — from the films to the afterparties, as well as the first-ever Thursday night kick-off party at Center615 Main Street Gallery in East Nashville!
You'll have the chance to meet the filmmakers and artists, as there's no VIP space separating anyone. Everyone is here to celebrate art, meet new people, and engage in great discussions.
The FRIDAY PASS and SATURDAY PASS get you unlimited screenings all day each day. If you can’t make it for the entire weekend but want to see as many films as you can at a discounted rate, the day passes are for you! These also get you access to the afterparties and the Thursday night kick-off party at Center615 Main Street Gallery.
2025 Films AT A GLANCE
A Fine and Private Place : Sarah Kaitlyn Pearce
A Story Of Fish : Rusty Enger
Apology Ghost : Brian Padian
Baxter Bi-rite : Allison Inman, Jace Freeman, and Sean Clark
Beefmastor Inn : Zach Strum
Brought To You By Satan : Holly Laurent
…But I’ll Be Back Before You Are Done : Federico Trasparente Montaresi
Call My Sister, Last Year : Dylan R Simon
Chairs : Avner Pinchover
Checkmate : Nichole Lim
CITY BIRD : Sunny Rae Keller
Cliff : Jess Anderson
Climate Control : Sarah Lasley
Clovers : Jacob Hatley and Tom Vickers
DREAMER : Balca Elif Sagmanli
Ephemera : Cici Clancy
The Future : Greg Sharp
The Genie : Enricka M.H
Getting To Know You Again : Desirée Tolchin
Gioia : Nixon Singa
Glorious Times : Stan
Gnomes : Ruwan Heggelman
Guadalupe : David Guillermo Barba
Hang On, Little Tomato : Asya Hildenbrand, Shalyn Grow
Hubbards : Kevin Ralston
The Invisible Crown : Amelia Kramer
John Lilly and the Earth Coincidence Control Office : Michael Almereyda, Courtney Stephens
KIA SUMMER SALES EVENT : Brendan Walter
kid with a pearl earring : Abigail Holland
Living Reality : Philip Thompson
Lollygag : Tij D'oyen
Midsummer : Masha Vlasova
The Motherfucker's Birthday : Saif Alsaegh
Nashville Famous : Seth Pomeroy
Nathan Loves Ricky Martin : Steven Arriagada
The Never Ending Passion Boys Crew at Captain Daniel David's on the Coast : Jeffrey Sundin
Night Warriors : Bill E Mitchell
The Nose Knows: Foreignness and Fortune in China : Bill Callahan, Kieran Hanson
Only one glove : Fotis Zampetakis
Panic Attack! : Eileen O'Meara
Pauline : Annie Gallup
The Phalanx : Benjamin Balcom
PONYTAILHEAD : Brent Michal
SARDINE : Andrea Dratch
Self-Tape : Conway Preston
Shelly Belly : Stephanie Mishelle Ard
So Far All Good : $ECK
spot healing : Ryan Woodring
The Split : Lindsay Kent, Lauren Kent
STATELESS : Seyed Mohamadhosein Hoseini
The Streetlight : Sophia Parella
Sulfur : Karen Akerman, Miguel Seabra Lopes
Sunshine Girls : Madeleine Hicks
Supervenus : Frédéric Doazan
Take Me Drunk I'm Home : Nolan J Downs
Talking With Hands — Organic Machine : T.J. Masters
This is Us : Kevin Ralston
Tribu : Carlos Gómez-Trigo
The Wake : Dave Coleman
Waves Won't Stop : Ioannis Papaloizou
Welcome to the Ball : Adam Vincent Wright
We Need To Talk About Balloons : Jennifer Bonior
Wolf Puppy : Sam Osborn
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