Film Seminars | Discussions | Intros

Few classics of Indian cinema are as exhilarating as Ramesh Sippy’s 1975 hit SHOLAY, a delirious four-course meal of action, musical numbers, Indian cinema’s most iconic actors and jaw-dropping widescreen 70mm cinematography. Riffing off Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns, Akira Kurosawa’s Samurai films, and classic westerns, the film follows two ne’er-do-wells asked to rid a village of a notorious bandit. (New 4K Restoration of the Original Cut)

Grace Glowicki writes, directs and gives a barkingly daring lead performance in this bizarre, performance art-coded, gender-bending lo-fi Frankenstein comedy about a lonely gravedigger who will do anything to build the perfect man. Preceded by a live opening set from U.S. Girls, who scored the film.

While on vacation in Poland, a British tourist (Charli xcx) breaks away from her doting boyfriend (Will Madden), reuniting instead with an old friend (Lena Góra) in this idiosyncratic postcard romance of serendipity and synchronicity.

Fearlessly ambitious, scathingly funny and thoroughly original, this satirical tale of a telemarketer in alternate-present Oakland loudly heralds the arrival of a fresh filmmaking talent in writer-director-musician Boots Riley.

When an aimless young punk accidentally stumbles into the intense world of vehicular repossession, he gets caught up in the search for a 1964 Chevy Malibu which may or may not be carrying the corpses of several extraterrestrials in its trunk.

May the 4th be with you. Always. The Rebels scatter after the Empire attacks their base on the ice planet Hoth. Han Solo and Princess Leia are pursued by Imperials, while Luke trains with Jedi Master Yoda. But when Luke battles Darth Vader, he learns the shocking truth of his past. Iconic score from John Williams + May 4th = an otherworldly edition of Music City Mondays.

Part of Staff Picks and programmed by Jessie, who says: “Grab your best friend — time to fall in love with PRETTY WOMAN all over again! In true Vivian fashion it would be ‘a big mistake, HUGE’ to miss on the big screen."

In the wake of the 2023 shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Ketch Secor, lead singer of the popular country-bluegrass band Old Crow Medicine Show felt compelled to write an op-ed in the New York Times titled, “Country Music Can Lead America Out of Its Obsession with Guns.” This caught the attention of Ketch’s friend, public radio journalist David Greene — and the two set out to kickstart productive and open dialogue about gun rights and gun violence in America.

How the Belcourt Was Saved traces how grassroots organizers, staff, artists, and audiences helped transform the theater after 1999 into Nashville’s nonprofit film center and a leading American arthouse. This seminar explores the theater’s recovery, mission, and place in the city’s cultural and cinematic history.