Events

As the Belcourt celebrates its 100th birthday (and our 25th year as a nonprofit) we launch an ongoing project exploring the history of films shot in and around Nashville — and others that tie more broadly to both the Belcourt’s and Nashville’s cinema and cultural history. From studio-backed features to scrappy indie productions, these films capture a city in flux and reflect a legacy that continues to evolve — much of it intersecting with the Belcourt’s own past. This initial series highlights just eight such titles — but it’s only the beginning. In other words, watch this space!

He’s been called a maverick, trailblazer, legend, visionary. But the moniker most often ascribed to Robert Altman (1925-2006) is “the father of independent cinema.” This highly prolific filmmaker whose roving cameras, overlapping dialogue, and pioneering use of multitrack recording earned the commonly used term “Altmanesque” had already made some 60+ industrial films and documentaries before his very first feature in the 1950s. His career was catapulted into high gear in the early ‘70s, continuing at a dazzling pace until his passing in 2006.

In this year’s iteration of the Belcourt’s Queer Qlassics, the series focuses on finding stability in hostile times and representing how the queer experience diffuses in mainstream discourse. Varying in tone, aesthetic and form, these films interrogate gender, sexuality and societal expectations. Diverging in mood and aligning in focus, they subvert the mainstream, explore the marginalized, and challenge the dominant — while remaining entertaining and edifying.

Forget your worries, abandon all reason, and set sail on a sea of squibs and ‘splosions this July — as we whisk you away to the magical land of outlandish, high-octane cinema with this majestic medley of movie mayhem.