Submissions for the 2026 American Regional Cinema and Made in Tennessee competitions are now open.
A Sense of Place …
“As smaller festivals feel the squeeze from clout-chasing funders and boards, the decline of local journalism, and the numbing allure of algorithmically surfaced streaming content, the question becomes whether there’s still much will, domestically, to maintain the kind of infrastructure from which the next The Damned or Eephus, or the next Wanda or Northern Lights, might emerge—or through which it might connect with an audience eager to see their own quirks and concerns reflected on screen. Film Fest Knox is one attempt to answer in the affirmative; let’s hope there are more where that came from.” — Film Comment
The Latest
Miroirs No. 3
Dir. by Christian Petzold
After a car crash kills her boyfriend, piano student Laura is taken in by Betty, who witnessed the accident.April 22 · Regal Riviera · 7:00 p.m.
MUBI: New American Portraiture – At Film Fest Knox
December 18, 2025
"It seems right that Knoxville would be the site of a renewed focus on a regional, independent American cinema."
Filmmaker: 96 Hours in Knoxville
December 4, 2025
"It’s one thing to admire a mission statement, another thing entirely for a festival to introduce me to two filmmakers I didn’t previously know and push me to seek out more of their work on my own time."
Film Fest Knox Wraps Year 3; Winners Revealed
December 4, 2025
Awards were given in the American Regional Cinema Competition, the Made in Tennessee Competition, and the Elev8or Pitch competition.
In Review Online: FILM FEST KNOX 2025
November 12, 2025
"Such spaces are an invaluable contrast to our increasingly homebound viewing habits, even more for the community and critical discussion than for the bigger screens."
