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.
KICKOFF PARTY + BOX OFFICE PICKUP
THURSDAY, AUGUST 21
with a year ten retrospective screening
+ special performance by
Gardening, Not Architecture
$15 or FREE with Defy Pass
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. We are putting together a retrospective film screening of some of our fave films from the past ten years, and we will be presenting a special performance by friend-of-the-Fest Sarah Saturday (Gardening, Not Architecture) of her multimedia performance, Voyage: A Live Visual Album, featuring an original score set to several short films directed by Defy's own Dycee Wildman.
All Pass holders (Weekend or Day) get FREE entry into this amazing night of art, music, and film! Be sure to grab your free tickets, as there is limited seating.
Box office pickup: Stop by the kickoff party between 6pm-10pm to pick up your tickets for the weekend, and skip the will call line at the fest!
Questions? Email contact@defyfilmfestival.com
FRIDAY, AUGUST 22
CLICK ON EACH PROGRAM FOR DETAILS
Friday, August 22, 2025
8:45 PM - 10:30* PM
Main Theatre
World Premiere
Nashville filmmaker Madeline 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
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
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
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!!
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
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.
