Your Field Guide to FILM FEST KNOX 2026

FILM FEST KNOX is underway! Through Sunday, Nov. 15, the festival transforms downtown’s Regal Riviera into a showcase of independent film. Now in its fourth year, the festival features 17 feature films, 17 shorts, filmmaker Q&As, panels and parties.

Last night, after catching the first handful of PechaKucha presentations at The Mill and Mine, I popped up Gay Street for the tail-end of FILM FEST’s sold-out kickoff event, the Elev8or Pitch competition. Filmmakers create an eight-minute proof-of-concept short film and a one-minute pitch for a feature-length project, and the eight finalists screen their films and pitch to a panel of industry professionals, competing for cash prizes and opportunities to develop their projects. New this year is a partnership with Ten Acre Films, led by veteran producers Jonathan Duffy and Kelly Williams, to help promising projects take the next steps toward feature production.

It’s so crazy to me that Knoxville hosts this event, which brings in filmmakers and film buffs from all over the place to show their stuff and commune with others on the cutting edge of the art form. And this year’s festival has some serious star power, too. Actor, writer and filmmaker Tim Blake Nelson (O Brother, Where Art Thou?, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs) will receive the James Agee Prize, named for Knoxville’s own Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and film critic. Nelson will attend a screening of his new film, The Leader, on Saturday, followed by the award presentation.

Meanwhile, the festival continues building its reputation as a destination for independent cinema, landing on MovieMaker Magazine’s list of “50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee” for the second year running. And speaking of entry fees, there are several ticket options, all surprisingly reasonable when you consider what it costs to see a regular movie these days.

Artistic Director Darren Hughes, whom I interviewed earlier this year, says this year’s five American Regional Cinema Competition films are “wildly different from one another,” each capturing the sense of place the festival champions.

As much as I would love to spend the entirety of my weekend sitting alone in a dark theater, enjoying art, I have a small child, a birthday-boy husband, 300 unanswered emails and a backlog of stories to write. So! I reached out to my film-buffiest friend, the illustrious Eric Dawson, who agreed to write up some reflections on this year’s festival next week. I owe you one, Eric.

If you, like me, get lightheaded scanning the lineup or panicky that you are an under-qualified film-fester, let me assure you right now: You don’t have to be a snoot or even know what the word “juried” means. You just have to show up with a willingness to be surprised.

Consider this your no-pretension, link-heavy cheat sheet to navigating it all. I cannot promise you won’t end up with 37 browser tabs open.

🗓️ THE BASICS

• When: Thursday, Nov. 12, through Sunday, Nov. 15
• Where: Regal Riviera, 510 S. Gay St., downtown Knoxville
• Schedule: Full 2026 schedule and screening times
• Tickets: Individual screenings ($20), Five-Ticket Package ($75), All-Festival Pass ($100), VIP Festival Pass ($275). Compare options and purchase here.
• Presented by: Visit Knoxville and Regal
• Why it matters: FILM FEST KNOX celebrates films made with heart, vision and a sense of place, particularly those created far from Hollywood’s assembly line.

At a glance:

• Friday, Nov. 13: Screenings begin at 2 p.m.; opening-night film Mouse at 7:30 p.m.
• Saturday, Nov. 14: Filmmaker panel at 10 a.m.; screenings throughout the day and evening; Tim Blake Nelson and the James Agee Prize presentation.
• Sunday, Nov. 15: Screenings, filmmaker panel at 10 a.m., free Awards Ceremony at 6 p.m., closing film Clarissa at 7:15 p.m.

🎟️ HOW TO “FEST” LIKE A PRO

• Get your tickets. Compare the options here. If you only want to dip your toes into the festival, individual tickets are $20. Five screenings for $75 is a pretty sweet deal or go whole-hog with an all-festival pass for $100.
• Reserve your seats. Even if you’ve purchased an All-Festival or VIP pass, you still need to reserve tickets for individual screenings through the Eventive ticketing platform.
• Pace yourself. With multiple theaters, overlapping screenings and filmmaker appearances, there’s no way to see everything. Browse the individual film links below for descriptions, screening times and more.

🎥 THE MAIN EVENTS

🏆 AMERICAN REGIONAL CINEMA COMPETITION

The festival’s centerpiece. Five feature films made outside Los Angeles and New York City compete for Best Film, Best Director and Jury Prize, with cash awards and an Oscar-qualifying theatrical run courtesy of Regal for the Best Film winner.

Filmmakers will be on hand to introduce their work and answer questions. This year’s selections take us from the suburbs of New Jersey to East Austin, Oregon, Chicago and Virginia Beach.

Showing:

• Ponderosa — A young man attracts the attention of a wealthy, would-be father figure with increasingly strange intentions. Friday, 5:15 p.m.
• And Then I Knew ‘Twas Wind — A writer disappears during a canoe trip in Oregon. Saturday, 1:45 p.m.
• Airport BLVD — A jazz-infused, black-and-white love letter to a changing East Austin. Saturday, 4:15 p.m.
• Act One — An aspiring actress falls under the spell of a manipulative acting coach. Saturday, 9 p.m.
• The Pirate King — A Marine veteran struggling with PTSD and addiction finds an unlikely path toward redemption through pirate re-enactment. Sunday, 1:45 p.m.

🎬 MADE IN TENNESSEE COMPETITION

Three feature films and 15 shorts made right here in the Volunteer State, selected from more than 120 qualifying submissions. Expect everything from intimate dramas and documentaries to zombies and whatever else Tennessee filmmakers have been cooking up.

Winners receive cash prizes for Best Film, Best Director and Jury Prize.

Showing:

• Opryland USA: A Circle Broken (and shorts) — Brandon Vestal’s nostalgic documentary revisits the beloved Nashville theme park and its controversial closure. Saturday, 11:30 a.m.
• My Mayfly (and shorts) — Paula Kay Hornick’s feature directorial debut, filmed in Knoxville and the Great Smoky Mountains, makes its world premiere. Saturday, 9:15 p.m.
• Narrative Shorts 2026 — Nine films about love, family, identity, and also a zombie apocalypse or two. Sunday, 11:30 a.m.
• Vol State 500K (and shorts) — A documentary about 129 ordinary people attempting a decidedly extraordinary 314-mile journey across Tennessee. Sunday, 2 p.m.

A special shoutout to My Mayfly, which stars Adelaide Clemens, Alicia Witt and Johnathon Schaech. The production filmed extensively in the Smokies and Knoxville, and director Paula Kay Hornick and Clemens will participate in a post-screening Q&A. There’s even a trained Knoxville squirrel reportedly scheduled to walk the premiere’s red carpet. I have so many questions.

Read more about the film and its East Tennessee connections here.

🌊 CURRENTS

A curated selection of acclaimed new films from the international festival circuit, the kind of movies you might otherwise have to drive to Atlanta, New York or another considerably larger city to see on a big screen.

Showing:

• Mouse — Friday’s 7:30 p.m. opening-night film, directed by Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson. Set in Arkansas in 2002, this coming-of-age drama explores a friendship upended just before senior year. O’Sullivan will attend the screening and Q&A.
• The Leader — Tim Blake Nelson stars as Heaven’s Gate cult leader Marshall Applewhite, opposite Vera Farmiga. Saturday, 6:30 p.m., followed by the James Agee Prize presentation.
• Union Town — Documentary filmmaker Barbara Kopple follows New York City delivery workers challenging some of the world’s most powerful corporations. Sunday, 11:15 a.m.
• Everything Else Is Noise — Nicolás Pereda’s witty comedy about artistic pretension and female friendship. Sunday, 4:30 p.m.
• Clarissa — The festival’s closing film transports Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway to contemporary Lagos, Nigeria. Sunday, 7:15 p.m.
• Flicker and Wow 2026 — Three experimental films, including work from Knoxville-based artists Nathan Swann and Janelle VanderKelen. Sunday, 9:45 a.m.

🎞️ REVIVAL

The Revival program brings overlooked, underseen and newly restored works of American regional cinema back to the big screen.

This year’s selections include a rare screening of Tim Blake Nelson’s directorial debut and two noteworthy restorations.

Showing:

• Eye of God (1997) — Tim Blake Nelson’s haunting directorial debut starring Martha Plimpton. Friday, 2 p.m.
• Mississippi Triangle (1984) — A newly restored documentary exploring the complex relationships among Chinese, Black and white communities in the Mississippi Delta. Friday, 5 p.m.
• Wendigo (2001) — Larry Fessenden’s unsettling tale of a family getaway gone very wrong, presented in a new restoration. Friday, 10 p.m.
• I Used to Be Darker (2013) — Matthew Porterfield’s Baltimore-set family drama, with music woven throughout. Saturday, 9:30 p.m.

💬 PANELS, TALKS & EVENTS

For filmmakers, film-curious people, and anyone who enjoys hearing how the sausage gets made — cinematically speaking.

• Adventures in Distribution — Saturday, Nov. 14, 10 a.m., Hyatt Place. Filmmakers Tracie Laymon (Bob Trevino Likes It) and Peter Gilbert (Hoop Dreams) discuss the challenges and opportunities of bringing independent films to audiences. Free.
• Casting and Directing Actors — Sunday, Nov. 15, 10 a.m., Hyatt Place. Five directors discuss how they find performers, shape performances and bring characters to life. Free.

Parties and celebrations:

• Awards Ceremony — Sunday, 6 p.m., Regal Riviera. Free and open to the public.
• Closing Night Party — Sunday, 7 p.m., Scruffy City Hall. VIP and All-Festival passholders.

💡 PRO TIPS

• You can’t see everything. Make peace with this immediately. Pick a few films that intrigue you and let curiosity take over.
• Stay for the Q&As. The chance to hear directly from filmmakers is part of what makes a festival like this special.
• Eat between screenings. You’re right in the middle of downtown, with Gay Street and Market Square restaurants a short walk away. Also Scruffy City Hall is the official afterparty each day; your festival pass gets you in, no cover.
• Talk to strangers. Everyone’s just watched something interesting, and sometimes the conversations afterward are as memorable as the films themselves.

And a final thought: We spend plenty of time staring at screens by ourselves. There’s something especially wonderful about sitting in a dark theater with a roomful of strangers, watching a story unfold that none of us quite knows what to expect from.

See you at the movies, Knoxville!

FILM FEST KNOX: Website | Facebook | Instagram