Chattanooga Film Fest

MovieMaker Magazine 25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World

MovieMaker Magazine Top 25 Genre Film Festivals in the World” 2019/2020/2021

FilmFreeway Top 100 Best Reviewed Film Festivals in the World 2022 & 2023

Dread Central’s Best Horror Film Festivals in the World 2021 & 2022

A Fangoria Approved Film Festival

CFF is an entirely volunteer-run non-profit film festival. Though we’ve often been billed as a genre or a horror film festival, the truth is every year; we gather a selection of films we genuinely love and share them with an audience we also LOVE. So whatever type of film your project is, don't hesitate to send it our way. We think of CFF as our yearly movie mixtape, and any mixtape worth its salt owes it to its listener to have a good mix of all kinds of things. We also encourage weirdness: There, we said it.

We share films that are unique, challenging, significant (both critically and well, haha otherwise), and most importantly, fun. We particularly love little films that feel like big films because we like to think of Chattanooga as a small town with big ideas. Our ultimate goal is to remember, discover and cultivate cinema worthy of everyone's love and respect and create a community of warm-hearted cinephiles around it.

Accessibility MATTERS and we believe more film festivals need to remember that.

CFF is simply put, a summer camp for cinephiles, and we hope you'll consider sending your film our way for consideration. Please don't take our word for it, though here's what the press and a few of our past guests are saying about us:

"The Southern Sundance. Given my experience at this year’s fest, I wouldn’t find it surprising if the Chattanooga Film Festival one day surpassed its elder cousin in the North. For the non-film nerds among you, this is a killer lineup. This is Haight-Ashbury in 1969."
SOUTHERN LIVING MAGAZINE

"The Chattanooga Film Festival [rated among the top 30 genre fests in the world] has rapidly developed a solid rep as a back-to-basics exhibition of noteworthy cinema. On the genre circuit, it has become a key destination for Southern fans in search of the best fear fare, shown in both its main CFFeatures and MES After Hours categories. It treats aspiring auteur attendees right, as well."
MOVIEMAKER MAGAZINE

"I tell ya, a fest like this will restore your faith in this scene and send you out of its orbit floating on air. The CFF is one fest that not only pivoted to virtual when they needed to; they recognized the value and importance of that accessibility beyond the pandemic, and have navigated a path to maintain both. It’s quite a feat. Theirs is not a model that can be replicated by larger film fests, but I walked away believing that the CFF is the gold standard on how to run a welcoming, unpretentious, no-bullshit film fest for folks who want to hang out and have a good time together. It was a good three-day reminder that the horror scene is, when we put a little effort in, a pretty positive and joyous one."
Phil Nobile Jr. - FANGORIA

“A Must-Visit Genre Festival!” As a journalist, programmer, and filmmaker, I've been to my fair share of film festivals. I've just arrived home from Chattanooga Film Festival, and.... WOW.”
SCREEN ANARCHY

“Honestly, just hell yeah.” When it comes to Tennessee’s Chattanooga Film Festival. This is maybe one of the best all-around festivals in the entire country. The programming is impressive, tight, and truly supportive of provocative, independent voices. There’s a real love of the city itself at Chatt, and anyone that attends comes away promising to attend again.”
DREAD CENTRAL

“CFF combines a giddy reverence for lost classics with a discerning eye for the next wave of great filmmakers. Chattanooga Film Festival is an impressive DIY effort that has grown into a marvelous impressive showcase of inspiring, punk and original programming.”
MOVIEMAKER MAGAZINE

“ Chris is also one of the coolest guys you’ll ever meet. He is fueled by pure geek enthusiasm for all things horror and he wants to cultivate a family of like-minded folks. Before every screening, Chris takes the stage and speaks like a shaken-up can of Mountain Dew and you can’t help but feel the same energy bubble up inside you. The festival feels like a summer camp for the black T-shirt kids. At one point, when we were forking into plates of brisket at a filmmakers lunch hosted by a BBQ joint called Puckett’s, we were told by another director, “You’ve been spoiled, premiering your film here. Not every festival feeds you. Not every festival invites you to parties. Not every festival gives you a gift bag of merch and whiskey. Not every festival wants everyone to mingle and become best friends. Not every festival treats everyone with respect and fellowship. But Chris and his team sure as hell do.” - BENJAMIN PERCY (Filmmaker 13th Night/Writer of Wolverine, Ghost Rider, The Ninth Metal series and MANY more) in Fangoria Magazine

“The Chattanooga Film Fest has [quickly] done what many festivals strive for for decades: to collect an electric group of filmmakers and connect them to a community tremendously eager to meet them. The energy is palpable, the films exceptional, and the backdrop of Chattanooga’s arts and technology scene only serves to create one of the most attractive young festivals in the nation.”
EMILY BEST, SEED&SPARK

“Chris Dortch and his incredible team have crafted an excellent film festival with fantastic programming that brought everyone together in a celebration of cinema. I look forward to its continued growth and to hang out in Chattanooga again!”
ELIJAH WOOD, ACTOR/PRODUCER

“I was so fortunate as a youngster to find a productive place in the film and television industry, and when the Chattanooga Film Festival wanted to honor my 55 years of contributions to entertainment, I was humbled and proud. I’m not a center-of- the-bulls-eye kind of actor, so when a truly independent festival, run by independent folks, want to acknowledge me, it makes me realize that I’m doing something right. I love how the festival began, I love it that Chris Dortch has tremendous passion for film, and I love how the filmgoers in Chattanooga (and the surround-ing region) support and embrace projects three minutes to three hours.”
CLINT HOWARD, ACTOR

“In an era when film festivals have become bloated commercial bazaars full of hustlers, propagandists and job seekers, Chattanooga has a refreshing innocence as a place where movie lovers gather by the Tennessee River, expecting to be amazed by the art form itself. There’s a renewal going on here, a return to basics, and anyone who cares about the future of cinema should become part of it.”
JOE BOB BRIGGS, FILM HISTORIAN/CRITIC

“The Chattanooga film festival is more than just another fledgling, regional film festival. It is truly special and has the potential to become one of the mini-majors. The force that makes CFF a standout is founder Chris Dortch, who is both a serious and passionate cineaste and a civic-minded community builder. The movies are great, but as important is the support for regional artists. It was an honor to be a part of the festival program this year.” ALEX WINTER, DIRECTOR, DEEP WEB

"An amazing festival! It was hard to believe how young it is!’ BOBCAT GOLDTHWAIT, DIRECTOR, CALL ME LUCKY