AWARDS
The Maureen Saari-Wildman Memorial Award
for Excellence in Defiance
(a.k.a. “The Moe”)
This award is presented to the film that best captures the love of storytelling, passion for art, and the appreciation for esoteric philosophy of the late Maureen Saari-Wildman, known to her friends as Moe.
Maureen loved teaching, painting, writing, reading, art galleries, parties, tequila, visiting the beaches of Florida and San Juan, dancing in the kitchen, and embracing new adventures — which led her to performing in the 2019 feature film The Dead Center as Ms. Lewis. She was known for wanting to hear stories from friends and strangers and delighting in all things surprising and fun! She was a passionate supporter of Defy Film Festival, always arriving early and staying late to see as many films as possible.
In early 2023, Maureen passed away after a long battle with cancer. Her estate wishes to keep her love of defiant art alive by offering this unique award at Defy Film Festival, and has generously attached a $500 cash prize to the award.
The Moe Award will be given to one film (feature or short) every year that her surviving family believes she would have loved and wanted to support. The process of choosing that film follows a nomination process by the festival founders and is decided by her husband of over 40 years, Kent Wildman.
The Moe Award is intended to foster artistic expression for generations to come.
About Maureen Saari-Wildman:
Maureen was born in Plattsburgh, New York, in 1949, the third of five children. In 1970 she graduated from SUNY Plattsburgh with a degree in psychology. She was a celebrated Montessori teacher in Nashville for 30 years, retiring in 2022. Having had a monumental impact on her students, she was beloved by teachers and families alike. She encouraged her students' personal expression in all forms, fostering the unique voices of each young artist. Maureen was a long-time Brentwood resident living with the love of her life, husband of 40 years, Rue Kent Wildman.
IN ADDITION TO THE MOE,
Defy Awards TWO winners each year, chosen by guest judges
Best of Festival — Feature & SHORT
Visit our past years’ festival pages for the list of winners.
2026 JUDGE:
Daniel Jones (he/him) is a Nashville-based creative producer, director, writer, and curator passionate about facilitating shared live arts experiences that ignite social change. In 2022, the Nashville Scene named him "Best Advocate for Artists." As a Co-Founder & Co-Artistic Director of the nonprofit organization Kindling Arts, Daniel has worked with hundreds of Nashville-based artists to launch more than 175 unique artistic experiences since the organization was founded in 2018. Kindling's programming has been hailed by the Nashville Scene as "freewheeling, uncensored and full of heart, pushing the boundaries of what we imagine performance art to be." In 2027, Kindling will celebrate its 10th year of programming and community impact, and Daniel will also collaborate with Lenin Fernandez to develop a new immersive theatrical experience, Jock Night, which explores queer masculinity in the digital age.
Daniel also serves as the Associate Director of Programming & Partnerships at OZ Arts Nashville where he has supported hundreds of visiting artists from around the world, including companies from Brazil, Japan, Chile, Germany, South Africa, France, and more. He also works closely with Nashville artists as they develop new works in OZ's unique 10,000 square-foot creative warehouse, including the annual Brave New Works Lab which has developed 20 short-form projects over the past 5 years.
Daniel's creative producing and directing credits include The Naughty Tree, an interdisciplinary, queer retelling of the Garden of Eden creation story created in collaboration with choreographer Lenin Ferndandez, playwright River Timms, and indie rock band Fable Cry; two installments of Heroic Couplets: Poetry into Film Collaborations with Defy Film Festival; and HAUNTED, a multimedia, immersive experience inspired by the deadliest train crash in American history.