FreedomFest 2025

FreedomFest 2025

11:45am PDT

How to Get the Most Out of FreedomFest, with Mark Skousen

Wednesday June 11, 2025 11:45am - 12:00pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Want to get the most out of your FreedomFest experience? What’s new, what’s back, and what’s better — FreedomFest Producer Mark Skousen will give you the scoop! With over 200 speakers, dozens of breakout sessions, 24 films, and fun social activities every night, you need help planning your week! Join FreedomFest producer Mark Skousen and Anthem producer Jo Ann Skousen as they share highlights of the week and what they are most looking forward to seeing, hearing, and doing.

Speakers

Mark Skousen

America's Economist

Dr. Mark Skousen is a leading economist, financial publisher, and tireless advocate for liberty whose work bridges the worlds of academia, business, and public policy. As the founder and producer of FreedomFest, Mark has created one of the largest gatherings of free minds in the world—a... Read More →

Jo Ann Skousen

Champion of the Culture of Liberty

Jo Ann Skousen is the cultural compass of the liberty movement. As the co-founder of FreedomFest and director of the Anthem Film Festival, she has carved out a unique space where the arts meet ideas, and where storytelling becomes a powerful vehicle for freedom.With a background as... Read More →

Wednesday June 11, 2025 11:45am - 12:00pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

12:00pm PDT

The Secret Game: A Fast Break to Freedom (Dir. Greg deDeugd 16 min)

Wednesday June 11, 2025 12:00pm - 12:15pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Two college basketball teams in Jim Crow North Carolina, each at it peak, risk it all to play an illegal interracial game. This secret game changed the trajectory of basketball and helped set the stage for the coming Civil Rights era and a new kind of America.

Wednesday June 11, 2025 12:00pm - 12:15pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

12:30pm PDT

Spares: Second Chance Stories (Dir. Jason Pearson 21 min.)

Wednesday June 11, 2025 12:30pm - 1:00pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Two decades ago, Jason Pearson and his wife were confronted with a profound question: they had created spare embryos through in vitro fertilization, but now what should they do with them? “Spares” tells the personal stories of four couples who chose to adopt or put their fertilized embryos up for adoption, taking viewers on a riveting journey through the ethical, scientific, and legal landscape of this new and somewhat bizarre technology.

Wednesday June 11, 2025 12:30pm - 1:00pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

1:10pm PDT

Last Days of a Revolutionary (Dir. Ian Reid 8 min.)

Wednesday June 11, 2025 1:10pm - 1:20pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Just ten days before his death, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to the Mayor of Washington replying to an invitation to attend a Jubilee of the nation’s founding. This film is a fine retelling of that last letter, reflecting on his full life of creation and contribution, made more timely by the coming 250th anniversary of his most famous work, the Declaration of Independence. John Fund, Q&A.

Speakers

John Fund

Political Expert

John Fund is the National Affairs Columnist for National Review and an on-air analyst for the Fox News Channel, widely regarded as an expert on American politics and the intersection of politics and economics. With a career spanning decades, he has previously served as a columnist... Read More →

Wednesday June 11, 2025 1:10pm - 1:20pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

1:30pm PDT

Dear Mr. President (Dir. Destry Edwards 47 min.)

Wednesday June 11, 2025 1:30pm - 2:15pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

In 1881, America gasped at the assassination of President Garfield – cut down by the bullet of Charles Guiteau, an avid believer in the spoils system of corrupt appointments to government jobs. Garfield had opposed this system, but his death led to – very much intentionally by Guiteau – the rise of Vice President Chester Arthur. In contrast, Arthur had not only supported the spoils system, but owed his entire career in government to the corruption of the New York political machine. No one expected anything different from Arthur’s presidency – except for one person. Julia Sand, a 30-year-old New Yorker of no renown, believed Arthur could become someone better, and challenged him to smash the bureaucratic system that brought him to power.

Speakers

John Fund

Political Expert

John Fund is the National Affairs Columnist for National Review and an on-air analyst for the Fox News Channel, widely regarded as an expert on American politics and the intersection of politics and economics. With a career spanning decades, he has previously served as a columnist... Read More →

Wednesday June 11, 2025 1:30pm - 2:15pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

2:45pm PDT

Anthem Panel: Carl Menger: Notes on the Margin

Wednesday June 11, 2025 2:45pm - 3:30pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

(Sneak peek– not in competition) Following an excerpt of the upcoming film “Carl Menger,” director Tomasz Agencki, economist Mark Skousen, and Center’s director Barbara Kolm will discuss the significance of Carl Menger as a major voice in the Austrian Economics movement. The will explain how Menger built his system, what shaped it, and how he tried to change reality. Are Menger’s ideas still valid today? What can modern economists do with tools that were unavailable to Menger?

Speakers

Tomasz Agencki

Filmmaker

A filmmaker and a producer of documentary movies that revolve around the theme of liberty and progress. Polish Film School graduate, 20 years of video production experience with the last 10 years focused on directing documentary materials. His filmography contains among others the... Read More →

Barbara Kolm

The Global Voice for Free Markets

Few have done more to champion Austrian economics and free-market principles on the world stage than Barbara Kolm. As President of the Friedrich A. v. Hayek Institute and Founding Director of the Austrian Economics Center, she has been a driving force for economic liberty and sound... Read More →

Mark Skousen

America's Economist

Dr. Mark Skousen is a leading economist, financial publisher, and tireless advocate for liberty whose work bridges the worlds of academia, business, and public policy. As the founder and producer of FreedomFest, Mark has created one of the largest gatherings of free minds in the world—a... Read More →

Wednesday June 11, 2025 2:45pm - 3:30pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

8:30am PDT

The Reformers (Dir Michael Nayna 87 min)

Thursday June 12, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

“The Reformers” is a behind-the-scenes documentary about the infamous Grievance Studies Affair—an audacious academic hoax that set out to expose the entrenchment of illiberal ideology within Western universities. In a daring undercover experiment, a ragtag group of concerned intellectuals submitted fabricated social research papers to prestigious journals in politically charged fields. The aim? To reveal a worldwide research and credential-laundering racket. The film follows their often hilarious journey while probing the alarming state of the modern academy, raising urgent questions about intellectual integrity, free speech, and the future of higher education. Bret Weinstein and James Lindsay lead the post-screening discussion.

Thursday June 12, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

10:00am PDT

Panel: The Audacious Hoax on Academia

Thursday June 12, 2025 10:00am - 10:30am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Join Bret Weinstein and James Lindsay as the take you behind-the-scenes to learn more about the infamous Grievance Studies Affair—an audacious academic hoax created to expose the rise of illiberal ideology within Western universities–and the film they made to document it. Don’t miss their film “The Reformers” before the panel.

Speakers

Bret Weinstein

Evolution, Truth, and the Fight for Free Thought

Dr. Bret Weinstein is an evolutionary biologist, thought leader, and fearless challenger of conventional wisdom. With a PhD from the University of Michigan, he spent 14 years as a professor at Evergreen State College before resigning in 2017 after taking a principled stand for free... Read More →

James Lindsay

Exposing the Ideologies Undermining Liberty

Dr. James Lindsay is a political and cultural critic, author, and founder of New Discourses, a platform dedicated to advancing reason, free speech, and classical liberal values in a time of growing ideological conformity. With a background in mathematics and a sharp analytical mind... Read More →

Michael Nayna

Filmmaker

Michael Nayna is an award-winning Australian writer and filmmaker acclaimed for his incisive explorations of mass media, internet culture, and ideology. His work pushes the boundaries of documentary storytelling, blending investigative rigour, sharp cultural insight, and a distinctive... Read More →

Thursday June 12, 2025 10:00am - 10:30am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

10:30am PDT

Censorship Royale (Greg Burke 6 min)

Thursday June 12, 2025 10:30am - 10:40am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

After new Anti-Hate Speech laws are implemented, England’s greatest threat is an American internet troll with an anonymous X account. In this short comedy, James Bond’s mission is to take him down before this anxiety terrorist’s tweets start a chain reaction of free speech online. Q&A with Matt Kibbe, Terry Kibbe, Lou Perez

Speakers

Matt Kibbe

Raising Hell for Liberty

A fearless champion of individual freedom, Matt Kibbe has spent his career challenging the establishment, empowering grassroots movements, and turning the next generation on to the values of liberty. As President of Free the People, he uses storytelling and video to bring libertarian... Read More →

Lou Perez

Comedy’s Free-Speech Firestarter

Lou Perez is on a mission to revive comedy in an age of censorship—and he’s doing it with sharp wit, fearless satire, and an unapologetic love for free expression. As a comedian, producer, and author of That Joke Isn’t Funny Anymore: On the Death and Rebirth of Comedy, Lou has been at the frontlines of the free speech battle, proving that comedy should challenge, not conform.A Webby Award-winning writer and producer, Lou made waves as the creative force behind We the Internet TV, where his comedy took on politics, culture, and everything in bet... Read More →

Terry Kibbe

Crafting Compelling Narratives About Liberty

Terry Kibbe is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Free the People, an educational foundation dedicated to reaching young audiences with compelling narratives about liberty. Utilizing pop culture, video, comedy, and art, Free the People crafts multimedia stories that highlight... Read More →

Thursday June 12, 2025 10:30am - 10:40am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

10:45am PDT

The Bird and the Bee: Satire, Social Media, and Censorship (Dir Matthew Pirrall 17 min)

Thursday June 12, 2025 10:45am - 11:05am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

How does a satire comedy website find itself on the front lines of the debate over free speech online? Seth Dillon and his team at the Babylon Bee tell the story of how they unwittingly found themselves at war with Twitter over a joke, eventually garnering the attention of Elon Musk and ushering in a new era for the social media company. The future of comedy and free speech on the internet are all at stake and in the hands of a couple of jokesters and satirists. Joel Berry, Babylon Bee, joins the Q&A.

Speakers

Thomas Pack

Filmmaker

Thomas Pack is an Associate Producer and the Director of the Film Incubator Program at Palladium Pictures, his family independent documentary film business. As an Associate Producer, Thomas’ most recent credits are for Get the Jew: The Crown Heights Riot Revisited, and The Prime... Read More →

Thursday June 12, 2025 10:45am - 11:05am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

11:05am PDT

Panel: Satire, Social Media, and Censorship

Thursday June 12, 2025 11:05am - 11:35am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Thursday June 12, 2025 11:05am - 11:35am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

11:40am PDT

The True Cost Of Defense (Free to Choose 60 min)

Thursday June 12, 2025 11:40am - 12:40pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

America’s defense budget exceeds $800 billion, but the real cost goes deeper. The True Cost of Defense follows quadruple-amputee veteran Travis Mills, military recruiters, families on overseas bases, and communities shaped by global military commitments. It reveals defense’s most profound price: the human one—lives forever changed by service and America’s role in world affairs.

Thursday June 12, 2025 11:40am - 12:40pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

12:50pm PDT

Power Moves (Dir Emma Rimsa, Nathaniel Hamilton 55 min)

Thursday June 12, 2025 12:50pm - 1:50pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

For five years, Thomas Quiter was trapped in his house because insurance denied the wheelchair he needed to get outside. After a multi-year journey, Thomas, along with a team of engineers and disability community advocates are unveiling open-source wheelchair technology. This will give wheelchair users access to the equipment and repairs they need without bureaucratic delays and denials. Thomas is jump-starting an overdue movement: removing the barriers that prevent the disabled community from living truly independent lives.

Speakers

Thomas Quiter

Advocating for Mobility Independence

Thomas Quiter is the founder of the Mobility Independence Foundation, a groundbreaking organization dedicated to revolutionizing the mobility space. Born with Osteogenesis Imperfecta, Thomas experienced firsthand the limitations of subpar mobility equipment and the bureaucratic hurdles... Read More →

Thursday June 12, 2025 12:50pm - 1:50pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

2:00pm PDT

Creativity on Trial: The Music Copyright Dilemma (Alexa Seacrest, Dugan Bridges 25 min)

Thursday June 12, 2025 2:00pm - 2:30pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

From Dua Lipa to Ed Sheeran, today’s top artists are regularly hit with claims of music copyright infringement. How do courts determine which musical elements warrant copyright protection, and which qualify as commonplace building blocks? This short film unpacks the legal tests behind these high profile cases, exploring whether our system strikes the right balance between protecting intellectual property and encouraging creativity.

Thursday June 12, 2025 2:00pm - 2:30pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

3:00pm PDT

"Protest" (Dir. Vaclav Havel 45 min) - A Live Production

Thursday June 12, 2025 3:00pm - 3:45pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

A Staged Reading of a Play by Vaclav Havel
Václav Havel’s Protest (1978) is a searing, one-act confrontation set in Communist Czechoslovakia, where fear and betrayal are everyday currency. Staněk, a privileged, regime-friendly playwright, summons Vaněk, a blacklisted dissident, to plead for help — but hesitates when his own safety is threatened. Their tense conversation becomes a battle for the soul, exposing the corrosive power of fear and the high cost of integrity. Written as Havel himself faced brutal persecution, Protest was performed secretly, in living rooms and underground venues, defying the totalitarian state’s attempt to crush all dissent. The play remains a stark act of rebellion and an enduring cry for freedom.Starring Steven Schub (from 24, CBGB, The Chicago 8, The Thirteenth Floor, and Caught) as Staněk, and Robert Anthony Peters (from Steve Jobs and The Pursuit of Happyness, creator of Tank Man, Anthem Film Festival’s “Audience Choice”) as Vaněk. Directed by Jeffrey Carpenter, Artistic Director of Bricolage Theater.

Thursday June 12, 2025 3:00pm - 3:45pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

6:15pm PDT

Filmmakers Reception and Master Class

Thursday June 12, 2025 6:15pm - 7:45pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

(Special event — tickets required.)

Meet the directors, talk about films, eat drink and be merry, and listen to producer Mark Joseph talk about the challenges and success of making the movie “Reagan,” starring Dennis Quaid, Penelope Ann Miller, and Jon Voight. Learn practical advice on the crucial role of editing, where storytelling really takes shape.

Speakers

Jo Ann Skousen

Champion of the Culture of Liberty

Jo Ann Skousen is the cultural compass of the liberty movement. As the co-founder of FreedomFest and director of the Anthem Film Festival, she has carved out a unique space where the arts meet ideas, and where storytelling becomes a powerful vehicle for freedom.With a background as... Read More →

Thursday June 12, 2025 6:15pm - 7:45pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

8:00pm PDT

Motherland (Dir. Evan Matthews 99 min)

Thursday June 12, 2025 8:00pm - 9:40pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

In a dystopian near future where the state has freed parents from the "burden" of raising children, a rule enforcer learns a shocking truth that sparks her rebellion. More than a dystopian thriller, "Motherland" is a deeply human story about love, loss, and resistance. At its core, it asks: What are we willing to sacrifice to protect those we love? Co-starring Holland Taylor and Nestor Carbonell.

Thursday June 12, 2025 8:00pm - 9:40pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

8:30am PDT

Beneath Sheep's Clothing (Dir Steve Rey Sorensen & Julie Behling 90 min)

Friday June 13, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

“Beneath Sheep’s Clothing” is a riveting journey through Soviet history and modern America to understand the pattern of a communist takeover of culture. Witness firsthand accounts of historical Soviet tactics to overtake education and religion, and observe the compelling evidence that similar tactics are at play in our schools and churches here in America in the “sheep’s clothing” of liberating the underprivileged and creating sustainable development. James Lindsay and Corey DeAngelis join the post-screening discussion.

Speakers

James Lindsay

Exposing the Ideologies Undermining Liberty

Dr. James Lindsay is a political and cultural critic, author, and founder of New Discourses, a platform dedicated to advancing reason, free speech, and classical liberal values in a time of growing ideological conformity. With a background in mathematics and a sharp analytical mind... Read More →

Corey A. DeAngelis

Leading the Parent Revolution

Dubbed the “school choice evangelist”, Corey DeAngelis is at the forefront of the fight to put parents—not bureaucrats—in charge of their children’s education. A national leader in education reform, he has been called "the most effective school choice advocate since Milton... Read More →

Friday June 13, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

10:30am PDT

Vietnam: Beating Poverty with Market Economy (Tomasz Agencki 30 min)

Friday June 13, 2025 10:30am - 11:00am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

From the poorest country in 1990 to an economic giant. From 80% of people living in poverty then to 3% now. Rainer Zitelmann explores the recent history of Vietnam, an officially socialist country that has turned into an investment paradise thanks to its free market reforms. Vietnam is a clear example that poverty is curable. Cultural differences, historical preconditions, and the number of people living in poverty are not the circumstances to determine your ability to move up. But Vietnam still has its challenges. In a country with such a high level of censorship, to go there and produce a documentary that discusses the current affairs is not easy. “Vietnam: Beating poverty with the market economy” shows what made the miracle possible and what is still left to be done. Post-screening discussion with Steve Forbes, Rainer Zitelmann and Tomasz Agencki.

Speakers

Rainer Zitelmann

A Bold Champion for Capitalism and Prosperity

Dr. Rainer Zitelmann is a historian, sociologist,, and bestselling author, whose work has reshaped the conversation on capitalism, economic freedom, and historical analysis. With 30 books translated into 30 languages, including, The Origins of Poverty and Wealth, Hitler's National... Read More →

Friday June 13, 2025 10:30am - 11:00am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

11:00am PDT

Tariffs, Sanctions, or Open Markets? A New Approach to Ending Communism

Friday June 13, 2025 11:00am - 11:30am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Speakers

Tomasz Agencki

Filmmaker

A filmmaker and a producer of documentary movies that revolve around the theme of liberty and progress. Polish Film School graduate, 20 years of video production experience with the last 10 years focused on directing documentary materials. His filmography contains among others the... Read More →

Steve Forbes

The Capitalist’s Capitalist

Few voices in business and economics carry the weight of Steve Forbes. As Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Media, he has spent decades shaping the conversation around entrepreneurship, capitalism, and the forces driving global markets.A tireless advocate for free markets, sound... Read More →

Rainer Zitelmann

A Bold Champion for Capitalism and Prosperity

Dr. Rainer Zitelmann is a historian, sociologist,, and bestselling author, whose work has reshaped the conversation on capitalism, economic freedom, and historical analysis. With 30 books translated into 30 languages, including, The Origins of Poverty and Wealth, Hitler's National... Read More →

Friday June 13, 2025 11:00am - 11:30am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

11:35am PDT

Sting of War (Dir. Arah Mousavi 15 min)

Friday June 13, 2025 11:35am - 11:50am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

In the middle of a devastating war, a mother and her unborn child face danger when medical staff are unavailable to care for civilians. As her desperate father rushes to find help, “Sting of War” explores the devastating ripple effects of war on families and communities, highlighting the irreparable loss of potential achievements and potential futures.

Friday June 13, 2025 11:35am - 11:50am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

11:55am PDT

Alone Together (Dir Omid Mirzaei 15 min)

Friday June 13, 2025 11:55am - 12:10pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

It’s late at night, and bus passengers are both weary and wary when police remove a young boy from the bus. Is he alone? What is he hiding? Will he implicate one of them? This haunting film asks if we are ever truly alone — or ever truly together.

Friday June 13, 2025 11:55am - 12:10pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

12:15pm PDT

High Country Murder (Dir. Keely Brazil Covello & Michaela Brazil Gillies 20 min)

Friday June 13, 2025 12:15pm - 12:35pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

The infamous Emerald Triangle of Northern California is known for unsolved murders and a culture of silence. When two sisters return home to the ranch to try to solve a murder, they face the criminal underbelly of their once peaceful hometown.

Friday June 13, 2025 12:15pm - 12:35pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

1:00pm PDT

Master Class: Low Budget, High Concept: Utopia & Dystopia in Indie Filmmaking

Friday June 13, 2025 1:00pm - 1:45pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Join the writer, director, and producer of the MPI Original film Motherland—screening Thursday, June 12 at the Anthem Film Festival—for an exclusive panel discussion. Featuring behind-the-scenes stories, on-set lessons, and select clips from the film, this session offers a firsthand look at the making of this bold sci-fi dystopian feature. Gain insight into the creative development and screenwriting process, learn what it takes to write and produce genre films on an indie budget, and hear what it’s really like to bring a debut feature to life. Perfect for aspiring filmmakers, sci-fi fans, and anyone curious about independent pro-freedom storytelling done right.

Friday June 13, 2025 1:00pm - 1:45pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

2:00pm PDT

The Fall of 2008 (Dir Jimmy Morrison 57 min)

Friday June 13, 2025 2:00pm - 3:00pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Jimmy Morrison co-wrote and directed the award-winning documentary “The Housing Bubble” (2018) and “The Fall of 2008” with NY Times bestselling author Tom Woods. The first film in the trilogy set an SRO record and won an Audience Award at the Anthem Film Festival, after over 300 people filled the room and spilled into the hallway at the premiere. Part 2 continues the examination of what led to the meltdown of 2008 and, more importantly, what lessons to learn from it. Jimmy drove over 35,000 miles shooting interviews with people who predicted the crash, including Ron Paul, Jim Rogers, Marc Faber, Peter Schiff, Doug Casey, Jim Grant, Gene Epstein, Robert Murphy, and David Stockman. His discoveries are even more timely in today’s unsettled financial climate.

Friday June 13, 2025 2:00pm - 3:00pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

3:00pm PDT

How to Avoid the Next Financial Crisis

Friday June 13, 2025 3:00pm - 3:45pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Speakers

Steve Forbes

The Capitalist’s Capitalist

Few voices in business and economics carry the weight of Steve Forbes. As Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Media, he has spent decades shaping the conversation around entrepreneurship, capitalism, and the forces driving global markets.A tireless advocate for free markets, sound... Read More →

John Fund

Political Expert

John Fund is the National Affairs Columnist for National Review and an on-air analyst for the Fox News Channel, widely regarded as an expert on American politics and the intersection of politics and economics. With a career spanning decades, he has previously served as a columnist... Read More →

Grover Norquist

The G.O.A.T. of Tax Reform

Grover Norquist is the founder and president of Americans for Tax Reform, best known for the Taxpayer Protection Pledge and his relentless work to limit the size and cost of government. As the G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All Tax-cutters), Norquist has spent decades leading the charge for... Read More →

Peter Schiff

The Sound Money Rebel of Wall Street

Peter Schiff is one of the most provocative and unwavering economic commentators of our time. As CEO and chief global strategist of Euro Pacific Capital, he has been a relentless critic of unsound monetary policy, runaway debt, and fiat currency manipulation—predicting the 2008... Read More →

Friday June 13, 2025 3:00pm - 3:45pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

8:00pm PDT

Sight (Dir Andrew Hyatt 100 min)

Friday June 13, 2025 8:00pm - 9:45pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

“Sight,” starring Greg Kinnear and Terry Chen, follows the inspiring true story of Ming Wang, an impoverished Chinese prodigy who flees Communist China to become a pioneering eye surgeon in America. When tasked with restoring the sight of an orphan who was blinded by her step mother, he must confront the trauma of living through the violent uprising in his youth, the Cultural Revolution. Dr. Ming Wang, on whom the movie is based, will attend the screening.

Speakers

Dr. Ming Wang

Visionary Eye Surgeon and Champion of Medical Innovation

Dr. Ming Wang is a world-renowned eye surgeon and entrepreneur, recognized for his groundbreaking work in laser eye surgery and his contributions to advancing medical technology. With a focus on developing innovative treatments, Dr. Wang has helped restore sight to thousands of patients... Read More →

Friday June 13, 2025 8:00pm - 9:45pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

8:30am PDT

When Cops Become Robbers (Patrick Reasonover 86 min)

Saturday June 14, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Civil Asset Forfeiture allows law enforcement agents at all levels of government to seize property they suspect was used in or resulted from a crime without proof or due process of law. Victims of CAF must prove the innocence of their property at their own expense, flipping the American legal principle of innocent until proven guilty on its head. This feature documentary brings this corruption into the sunlight of public discourse through the stories of the heroes trying to end it.

Saturday June 14, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

10:20am PDT

She Rises Up (Dir Maurine Tusty 90 min)

Saturday June 14, 2025 10:20am - 11:50am PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Nearly one third of all countries have some form of laws that stifle a woman’s access to work. They limit access to bank accounts, property inheritance, and many types of jobs. These countries have some of the highest poverty rates in the world. “She Rises Up” chronicles the remarkable journeys of three women who are helping to lift their communities out of poverty by fighting the odds to maintain their local businesses. Gladys Yupanqui of Peru founded a mini-market. Magatte Wade of Senegal is building a cosmetics manufacturing company. Selyna Peiris of Sri Lanka is expanding the textile company founded by her mother. “She Rises Up” reveals the role entrepreneurs and small businesses can play in women gaining financial independence, and ultimately reducing poverty for all.

Saturday June 14, 2025 10:20am - 11:50am PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

12:15pm PDT

Calico Rebellion (Dir Victoria Kupchinetsky 75 min)

Saturday June 14, 2025 12:15pm - 1:30pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

In the lush woods of New York State’s Catskill Mountains, an almost mythical memory lives on. Of a time when men — armed with rifles and pitchforks, disguised in spooky masks and gowns — descended from bucolic hills to stage the Anti-Rent War, or “Second American Revolution,” as they called it, to challenge the unbridled power of the patroons. That farmers’ uprising almost 200 years ago changed the course of American history, ushering in land reform, reaffirming property rights and paving the way to the creation of Abraham Lincoln’s Republican Party. Today, although largely forgotten, the historic uprising lives on through direct descendants of those rebellious farmers, through their stories, songs, and eerie costumes preserved since the 1840s. CALICO REBELLION is a cinematic journey into small town America, its idealism and the violence that percolates just beneath the surface. The film explores themes of land, belonging, and historical identity of the people who continue to shape the political landscape of the country. Q&A with Nick Gillespie.

Speakers

Nick Gillespie

The Libertarian Iconoclast

Few voices in libertarian media have been as sharp, provocative, and culturally attuned as Nick Gillespie. As Editor-at-Large at Reason and host of The Reason Interview, he has spent decades dissecting politics, culture, and free markets with his signature mix of intellectual depth... Read More →

Brian Doherty

Chronicler of the Libertarian Movement

Brian Doherty is a senior editor at Reason magazine and one of the foremost historians of the modern libertarian movement. With a sharp pen and a deep understanding of American political thought, he has spent decades documenting the ideas, icons, and inflection points that have shaped... Read More →

Saturday June 14, 2025 12:15pm - 1:30pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

2:00pm PDT

Dirty Coin (Alana Mediavilla 69 min)

Saturday June 14, 2025 2:00pm - 3:10pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

“Dirty Coin” explores the complex world of Bitcoin mining, challenging widespread beliefs about its environmental impact. The documentary delves into how Bitcoin mining can be part of a free-market solution to global energy issues, reshaping our understanding of sustainable energy. Through a mix of in-depth interviews, on-site footage, and expert perspectives, Dirty Coin reveals the innovations and unexpected opportunities that Bitcoin mining offers in the push for energy resilience. It’s a story that goes beyond the headlines, questioning assumptions and highlighting Bitcoin’s potential role in a sustainable future.

Saturday June 14, 2025 2:00pm - 3:10pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

3:15pm PDT

Anthem Panel: Bitcoin, Energy, and Environmentalism: Unexpected Symbiosis

Saturday June 14, 2025 3:15pm - 3:55pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Speakers

Dominic Frisby

Where Money, Comedy, and History Collide

Author, comedian, and financial commentator Dominic Frisby is a rare blend of wit and wisdom. Whether he's breaking down the mysteries of money in Bitcoin: The Future of Money? or uncovering the rebellious roots of taxation in Daylight Robbery, Frisby makes economics as entertaining... Read More →

Efrat Fenigson

Reclaiming Freedom in a Digitally Controlled World

Efrat Fenigson is an independent journalist, podcast host, public speaker, and a marketing expert. Her path to sovereignty unfolded with the outbreak of Covid, sending her to a journey of exploration, through her podcast, “You’re The Voice”.  As a dissident discerning voice, she writes on her blog & international magazines, covering freedom and sovereignty, growing global control regime, monetary changes, CBDC & Bitcoin, politics and propaganda.Efrat is a former Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of global companies... Read More →

Saturday June 14, 2025 3:15pm - 3:55pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

4:00pm PDT

Jonny McCoy (Dir Sean Malone 29 min)

Saturday June 14, 2025 4:00pm - 4:30pm PDT

Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

This powerful testimonial shares Jonny McCoy’s life-changing experience with injustice. Once a successful insurance lawyer who trusted the legal system, Jonny’s worldview shattered when he was wrongfully arrested for simply asking police officers a question. His brief, but uniquely traumatic experience in jail continues to haunt him to this day. Despite eventual exoneration, Jonny received no apology, and those responsible faced no consequences. His story illustrates how government authority can violate the principle of “Human Respect.” Jonny has since dedicated his life to helping others who suffer from similar trauma and those who struggle with addiction through his mental health app White Flag, Jonny advocates for applying Human Respect in all areas of life, including law enforcement and governance.

Saturday June 14, 2025 4:00pm - 4:30pm PDT
Anthem Film Festival - Smoketree C/D/E

Anthem Film Festival

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