Arts Agenda: Independent films, fests and special screenings

Each week, ArtsATL delivers a critic’s short list of the shows, exhibitions, concerts and events we recommend for the coming weeks within one discipline or venue type in the kaleidoscope of Atlanta arts and culture. Every week, we’ll present a different art form. 

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April 11

Club Silencio (Jeffrey Bützer, Meghan Dowlen, TT Mahony, Ben Davis, Matt Steadman, Henry Jack, Sean Zearfoss) will perform music from David Lynch films live before a screening of a 4K restoration of Lynch’s classic Blue Velvet at the Plaza on April 11.

April 15 and May 3

See John Huston’s 1941 noir classic The Maltese Falcon, starring Humphrey Bogart as a private detective who takes on a case that involves the quest for a priceless statuette. It’s at the Plaza on April 15. There will also be a screening of the film at Landmark Midtown Art Cinema on May 3.

April 17

A Cappella Books welcomes Blair Underwood to the Plaza Theatre for a conversation about his new book, A Soldier’s Wife: My Mother, the Marvelous Mrs. Marilyn A. Underwood, at 7 p.m. April 17.  There’s also a pre-event meet-and-greet and a signing line with Underwood from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. The evening concludes with a screening of one of Underwood’s most popular films, Madea’s Family Reunion, with an intro by Underwood. 

April 18

With the 1941 film The Lady Eve, writer-director Preston Sturges created what many consider the greatest screwball comedy ever. On board an ocean liner, con artist Jean Harrington (Barbara Stanwyck) targets a wealthy brewery heir (Henry Fonda). The chemistry between Stanwyck and Fonda is a joy to behold. See it at 7:30 p.m. on April 15 at Emory University’s White Hall.

April 22

Jean Renoir’s The Rules of the Game (1939), a satire of the French bourgeoisie in the years leading up to World War II, is a perennial entry in lists of the best films of all time. It screens at 7:30 p.m. on April 22 at Emory University’s White Hall.

April 23-May 3

The Atlanta Film Festival is marking 50 years with the 2026 edition of this annual celebration of independent filmmaking. Every spring, the Festival presents approximately 150 local and international works representing more than 50 countries. The Festival will also include the Creative Conference, which will offer 40 panels, workshops and discussions, available both in-person and virtually. The Festival and conference will take place from April 23 through May 3.

April 25

Christopher Guest plays aspiring director Corky St. Clair, who brings together a marginally talented amateur cast for his hokey small-town musical production in Waiting for Guffman. As usual, the late, great Catherine O’Hara is a highlight. It screens at the Tara on April 25.

May 13

WussyVision presents Grey Gardens on May 13 at the Plaza. The 1975 documentary by Albert and David Maysles tells the story of Edie Bouvier Beale and her mother, Edith, the aging, eccentric relatives of Jackie Kennedy Onassis.

May 13-16

The European Film Festival of Atlanta, a partnership between Alliance Française and Goethe-Zentrum, will team up with the consulates of 12 European countries for the Fest’s fourth edition from May 13 through May 16 at the Plaza and Tara theatres.

May 30 and June 2

Get an early start on Pride Month with a screening of the beloved Australian classic The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994) at the Landmark Midtown Art Cinema on May 30 and June 2

June 2

The dance crew from Breakin’ bands together to save a community center from a greedy developer bent on building a shopping center in its place in Breakin’ 2: Electric Bugaloo in a special screening sponsored by Atlanta Roller Derby on June 2 at the Plaza.

June 6 and 9

Confident and opinionated, 17-year-old Megan is far too strong-willed for her unsupportive parents, who begin to worry she is a lesbian in But I’m a Cheerleader.  Natasha Lyonne, Clea DuVall and RuPaul Charles star in this campy satire from 1999, which screens on June 6 and June 9 at Landmark Midtown Art Cinema.

June 19-21

The Georgia Shorts Film Festival features screenings of short films and screenplays at 7 Stages Theatre June 19 through June 21.

July 11

The Atlanta Micro Short Film Festival highlights films that are six minutes or shorter. On July 11, the Fest will screen more than 100 short films at 7 Stages.