One of the many creative people in the city’s film industry is Allison Inman, a filmmaker and the education and engagement director at the Belcourt Theatre, Nashville’s nonprofit film center. There, she hosts filmmaker Q&As, panel discussions, performances and seminars, and she takes the Belcourt’s Mobile Movie Theatre to schools and community centers, teaching visual literacy and cinema appreciation. A degree in journalism, plus a sense of curiosity instilled by her late mother, gave her the tools she needed to organize and lead a public documentary screening series, ITVS Community Cinema, first in Denver before bringing it here. Soon after, Allison got a request from Executive Director Stephanie Silverman to see if she would do some education and audience engagement work for the Belcourt, and it didn’t take long for her contract jobs to evolve into a permanent position.
For engagement, Allison welcomes numerous celebrities to the Belcourt, but she gets just as much joy finding the perfect guest speakers from the community. “So many academic speakers generously share their expertise with our audience,” says Allison. “How amazing to present Fire of Love and get volcanologists from Vanderbilt to come over and talk about their research!” The education piece involves seminars, film club meetings and classes on-site, private field trips for students, after-school programming, screenings at places like Oasis Center and teaching tools for educators.
When she’s not working with stars, scholars or students, Allison is making films. Her short documentary, Carthage House of Beauty, made with Jace Freeman and Sean Clark of The Moving Picture Boys (more on them in this issue), was recently named Best Tennessee Short at the Nashville Film Festival. We caught up with Allison at the Belcourt to hear more about her most memorable discussion, her favorite movie director and more.
Who is the most memorable person you’ve hosted for a discussion at the Belcourt? I so enjoyed a weekend of Q&As with Ethan Hawke, Ben Dickey and Charlie Sexton for Ethan’s film Blaze. But the guests of a lifetime were Kathryn Altman and Michael Murphy during our Robert Altman retrospective. A dazzling experience. It was like the end of summer camp when they left.
What’s your favorite Belcourt education program? The Strong Leads: A Film Seminar for High School Girls is the highlight of every semester.
What’s the best part about working with after-school programs? Bringing some joy and movie magic at the end of a long school day. We provide a learning experience, but we mostly hope the students will fall in love with the art form.
What is your all-time favorite movie? An impossible question, but if you’re ever trying to rouse me from a coma, try Coal Miner’s Daughter.
Who is your favorite director, and do you have a favorite film by them? Lynne Ramsay’s Morvern Callar has had a spell on me since I saw it three nights in a row at the Belcourt in 2003.
When you have out-of-town guests visiting, where do you take them? Farmers’ Market, Bicentennial Park, Tennessee State Museum, then a drink at Henrietta Red before or after dinner at City House. Grimey’s. And Station Inn, always.
What’s your favorite locally made product? Jackalope Thunder Ann. Bastion nachos. Siam Café’s Hung Ray Curry with tofu is my desert island dish.
Which fundraising event do you look most forward to every year? The Belcourt’s Red Carpet Evening, of course! It’s a blast to watch the Academy Awards with our beloved patrons and to see everyone dressed up in Belcourt black tie.
What’s one thing you want to cross off your bucket list? Driving through the Scottish Highlands, which I’m doing this month in a rented Mini Cooper! I’m practicing shifting gears with my left hand.
If you could invite any three people to a dinner, who would they be? Tina Turner, Elvis Costello and Judy Blume
What’s the one thing you hope never changes in Nashville? Our warm welcome for immigrants and refugees. Our willingness to look after our neighbors, especially elders. Our unwritten Nashville rule of letting celebrities eat dinner or see a movie in peace.
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