ATL EXP - Atlanta Experimental Film Festival

ATL EXP – Atlanta Experimental Festival
July 10, 2026. Held at 7 Stages Theatre in Atlanta 

 ATL EXP is a live celebration of experimental cinema, underground performance, and creative risk taking.

Held at 7 Stages Theatre in Atlanta’s Little Five Points neighborhood, the festival brings together filmmakers, artists, musicians, performers, and audiences looking for work that feels unexpected, challenging, strange, emotional, funny, hypnotic, or impossible to categorize.4

Some films tell stories in unconventional ways. Others break structure completely. We welcome experimental narrative, avant garde cinema, abstract work, underground media, hybrid documentary, analog experimentation, animation, AI-assisted projects, live visual work, and films that exist somewhere between genres.

But ATL EXP is not just a screening event.

We’re building an immersive live experience where film collides with performance art, sound, movement, live visuals, experimental drag, underground comedy, audience interaction, and creative chaos. One moment you may be watching a deeply personal avant garde short. The next, a live performer may take the stage between film blocks. We want the night to feel alive, communal, and unpredictable.

ATL EXP is part film festival, part underground happening, and part creative gathering for artists pushing beyond traditional filmmaking rules.

If you want a festival that leans into art, risk and experimentation, ATL EXP is part of the Atlanta Film Series which has supported independent film and underground culture for nearly 25 years.

Visit Atlanta Experimental Festival 

AWARDS & PRIZES – ATLANTA EXPERIMENTAL FILM FESTIVAL

ATL EXP honors films and creators who break things on purpose: structure, tools, genres, expectations. These awards recognize the best of experimental cinema in all categories.

Best Director
Awarded for outstanding direction and creative vision.

Best Experimental Film
Presented to the overall standout film of the festival.

Experimental Vision Award
For a filmmaker with a unique artistic voice.

Innovation Award
For work that pushes technique, process, or form.

Best Experimental Narrative
For narrative work that takes creative risks.

Best Experimental Documentary
For nonfiction filmmaking with an experimental approach.

Best Animated / Motion Art Film
For animated or visually driven experimental work.

The Mindbender Award
For the most strange, hypnotic, or unforgettable film.

Disruptor Award
For a film that breaks convention in unexpected ways.

Audience Choice Award
Voted on by the live audience.

Each award winner receives a crystal trophy - a physical reminder that your strange, rule-breaking film found its place.