The annual CHATTANOOGA FILM FEST (CFF) has rightfully earned its distinction as “One of the Coolest 25 Film Festivals in the World,” according to MovieMaker Magazine. Over the past eleven years, the event has been a showcase for groundbreaking cinema, bringing creators, their works and an intensely devoted fanbase together in appreciation of the art and magic of moviemaking.
This year’s edition continues that tradition with both in-person screenings (June 21 through 23) and virtual screenings (June 21 through 28) as well as a celebration of Twilight Zone host and creator Rod Serling’s 100th birthday. The following films comprise the first wave of announcements and are denoted as either hybrid or in-person-only screenings:
A Guide to Becoming an Elm Tree
Directors Adam Mann, Skye Mann | Canada 2023
Padraig embarks on a journey to turn a living tree into a coffin for his dead and buried wife. He bargains his way into an eccentric carpenter’s shop. What starts as an act to help alleviate grief and guilt slowly devolves into a harrowing, selfish game of discovery as Padraig descends deeper into the world of Irish folklore and ancient magic. *Hybrid
Flipside
Director Christopher Wilcha | United States 2023
When filmmaker Chris Wilcha revisits the record store he worked at as a teenager in New Jersey, he finds the once-thriving bastion of music and weirdness from his youth slowly falling apart and out of touch with the times. FLIPSIDE documents his tragicomic attempt to revive the store while revisiting other documentary projects he has abandoned over the years. In the process, Wilcha captures This American Life icon Ira Glass in the midst of a creative rebirth, discovers the origin story of David Bowie’s ode to a local New Jersey cable television hero and uncovers the unlikely connection between jazz photographer Herman Leonard and TV writer David Milch. This disparate collection of stories coheres into something strange and expansive – a moving meditation on music, work and the sacrifices and satisfaction of trying to live a creative life. *In-Person Only
Ganymede
Directors Coby Holt, Sam Probst | United States 2023
When the son of a small-town politician develops a crush on his openly gay classmate, he finds himself stalked by a grotesque creature that increasingly inhabits his thoughts and threatens physical harm. *Hybrid
Ghost Game
Director Jill Gevargizian | United States 2024
Presented by DREAD – Participating in an internet challenge that requires breaking into homes and living undetected alongside the residents, a thrill-seeking couple targets an infamous haunted house and endure a series of chilling incidents as they witness a family descending into madness. *In-Person Only
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person
Director Ariane Louis-Seize | Australia 2024
Sasha is a young vampire with a serious problem: She’s too sensitive to kill. When her exasperated parents cut off her blood supply, Sasha’s life is in jeopardy. Luckily, she meets Paul, a lonely teenager with suicidal tendencies who is willing to give his life to save hers. However, their friendly agreement soon becomes a nocturnal quest to fulfill Paul’s last wishes before day breaks. *In-Person Only
Sleep
Director Jason Yu | South Korea 2023
An expectant young wife must figure out how to stop her husband’s nightmarish sleepwalking habits before he harms himself or his family. *In-Person Only
Someone Dies!
Director Justin Petty | United States 2023
North American Premiere – A deadbeat detective investigates a cryptic note that leads to the discovery of an incomprehensible kitchen sink. *Hybrid
Sweet Relief
Director Nick Verdi | United States 2023
Presented by Art Brut Films – A woman’s dangerous inclinations, a sadistic child killer and a panic surrounding an online murder challenge reveal the insidious violence of a small New England town. *Hybrid
The Vourdalak
Director Adrien Beau | France 2023
Lost in a hostile forest, the Marquis d’Urfé, a noble emissary of the King of France, finds refuge in the home of a strange family. *In-Person Only
Video Vision
Director Michael Turney | United States 2023
World Premiere – When an old VCR mysteriously shows up at the digitizing facility Video Vision, it starts affecting employee Kibby (Andrea Figliomeni) in strange ways. Meanwhile, an unlikely romance with a trans man (Chrystal Peterson) has Kibby’s head in the clouds until she’s brought to her knees by the supernatural force that’s slowly taking control of her body and mind. When Kibby and Gator investigate the VCR’s origins. they discover she has unwittingly unlocked the dark dimension of Dr. Analog. *Hybrid
The Wheel of Heaven
Director Joe Badon | United States 2024
A woman caught up in predatory relationships is thrown into a multi-layered world of choices after she discovers a mystical book in a thrift store. *Hybrid
