Catalyst Cinema Film Block

Love short films and documentaries? Want to support local and regional filmmakers? The Asheville Film Festival has film blocks and feature screenings that you don't want to miss!

Tickets are $10/ person, drinks and snacks will be available for purchase, and all ticket sales go to supporting the Asheville Film Festival 501(c)3 nonprofit.

Films to be Screened:

“Highway 251”

Directed by: Grace Ellen Callihan

In July 2025, Jacob Hill and Lennie Antonelli, were struck and killed by a dump truck while riding on Highway 251. This moment impacted not only the cycling community, but the broader Asheville area. Following this event, Brooke Darby, a mountain biker, made a last-minute decision to rush home from college for the Asheville Gran Fondo to be in her home, and do what she loves – bike in her beloved Appalachian Mountains.

“Compass Point”

Directed by: Katie Damien

Follow three homeless individuals as they move from a life on the streets in Asheville, North Carolina into a new supportive housing residence.

“The Other Roe”

Directed by: Wendy Eley Jackson

The Other Roe uncovers the untold story of attorney Margie Pitts Hames, whose Supreme Court victory in Doe v. Bolton—the companion case to Roe v. Wade—reshaped reproductive rights in America and restored a missing chapter of history.

“Wildfire Kitchen”

Directed by: Lily Eliana Levin

In February 2024, Chile's deadliest wildfires ignited in the Valparaíso region, decimating its hillside poor and rural communities. But in the aftermath of this disaster, ollas comunes — grassroots community kitchens — emerged to feed hundreds each day. These 'ollas' were a labor of love, a practice for which to channel care through grief and solidarity through despair. Interwoven with the filmmaker's self-reflexive experience, Wildfire Kitchen tells the stories of three such 'ollas' and the women who led them. Juxtaposing the horrific with the hopeful, this documentary is a testament to the power of community care in the face of catastrophic loss.

"The Damned Thing"

Directed by: Maya Haston

Based on the original 19th-century horror short story, The Damned Thing, comes a modern found-footage spin on the classic tale...

After the violent and unexplainable death of his friend during a remote hunting trip, William Harker - An African American Man- becomes the sole witness and prime suspect, forced to recount an encounter with an invisible predator in this. As he faces growing suspicions and racial bias, the question looms: Is he a traumatized survivor? Or did he do it…?

Get tickets to this screening here: https://theashevillefilmfestival.as.me/?appointmentType=96077255

Want to enjoy the entire festival weekend without paying for every event separately? Get your All-Access Festival Pass here: https://theashevillefilmfestival.as.me/?appointmentType=81064462