If there’s one thing Memphis has always known how to do, it’s tell a story. Through music, through food, through the kind of lived-in grit and grace that makes this city unlike anywhere else on the planet, we have always had something to say. And now, we’ve got a brand new stage to say it on.
Meet the Ain’t Film Festival, Memphis’s newest independent film festival, hitting the 901 from February 26 through February 28, 2026. It’s three days of films, community, and the kind of cultural energy that reminds you exactly why you chose Memphis. Head to aint.mov for everything you need to know.
What Is the Ain’t Film Festival?
The Ain’t Film Festival is an inaugural independent film festival right here in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded by Memphian Zaire Love, whose mission is to honor, amplify, and immortalize the stories and voices of the Black South, the Ain’t Film Festival is destined to be one for the books.
Zaire Love is known for her iconic Slice film featured in The New Yorker about Memphis’ pool culture. While most of her work focuses on Memphis, TN, and Mississippi, many of her projects have been featured on Hulu, STARZ, PBS, and more.
“Ain’t” is a word Memphis knows well. It’s in our music, in our conversations, in the way we talk to each other. It’s grammatically defiant and completely unapologetic, which is honestly the most Memphis thing imaginable.
The .mov domain is a little wink to the film world, too, with .mov being a video file format, which tells you right away that the people behind this thing are creative down to the details.
Memphis Has Always Been a Film City
This might surprise people who don’t pay close attention, but Memphis has a rich filmmaking legacy. Craig Brewer shot Hustle & Flow and Black Snake Moan right here in the 901, turning our streets and our stories into internationally acclaimed cinema. Ira Sachs, a Memphis native, won the Sundance Grand Jury Prize with Forty Shades of Blue. Jim Jarmusch used our city as the moody, magnetic backdrop for Mystery Train. Memphis has been a filming location, a source of inspiration, and a home base for real filmmaking talent for decades.
What a festival like Ain’t does is create more infrastructure for that talent to stay, grow, and be celebrated locally. Every time a Memphis filmmaker gets to screen their work in Memphisis a win for our creative ecosystem.
What to Expect at the Ain’t Film Festival
THURSDAY, FEB. 26TH
MALCO POWERHOUSE THEATER at 6:30 PM
Gather together to enjoy films from Memphis filmmakers, keynotes from extraordinary culturebearers, and experience creativity through activities for activism.
FRIDAY, FEB. 27TH
THE ARTIST TABLE at 6:30 PM
A night of tasty film screenings, delicious drinks, and finger-licking light bites. You’ll hear from Southern filmmakers from the Prototype Film Residency and get knowledge from food justice advocates in Memphis
SATURDAY, FEB. 28TH
SELF-GUIDED TOUR
Grab the AIN’T City Guide and tour Memphis! You’ll be able to meet up
with festival folks at dedicated times to continue the fun!
