El Paso, TX

July 18 - July 28, 2024 • El Paso, TX

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PCFF announces first screenwriting competition


April 27

The El Paso Community Foundation’s Plaza Classic Film Festival will host its first screenwriting competition as part of the 15th annual Plaza Classic, which runs July 28-August 7 in and around the Plaza Theatre.

The first Plaza Classic Film Festival Screenwriting Competition, sponsored by the El Paso Film and Creative Industries Commission, will award a $500 first prize and a table read of the winning screenplay. It’s open to anyone 18 and older. Entries must be feature-length scripts of no more than 120 pages. There are no genre restrictions.

Screenplays may be submitted at plazaclassic.com/screenwriting. The cost to submit is $30 through May 20, $40 from May 21 through June 13, and $50 from June 14-27. For an additional $15, an entrant will receive coverage, or written feedback, of their screenplay.

Screenplays may be uploaded in the PDF format only and must include a cover sheet with only the screenplay’s title. The entrant’s name and contact information will be included on the submission form, along with a logline and payment. A point system will be used to grade the submissions, with a 50 point maximum. Scripts will be awarded up to 10 points each for premise, plot, characters, dialogue, and the script’s potential prospects.

The winning screenplay will be announced at the Plaza Classic Film Festival’s Local Flavor showcase (entry deadline for films is June 20), sponsored by the Texas Film Commission, and Local Flavor Awards, sponsored by TFCU, at 7 p.m. Thursday, August 4 in the Plaza Theatre. The winning entry will receive a table read at the free Filmmaker’s Brunch on Sunday, August 7 in the Foundation Room, 333 N. Oregon.

The 15th annual Plaza Classic Film Festival will feature more than 90 movies from July 28-August 7 in and around the Plaza Theatre. This year’s titles include a 70th anniversary showing of Singin’ in the Rain, 1983’s Scarface, Sleepless in Seattle, the 1950 version of Father of the Bride and our 14th annual free outdoor screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Passes are on sale now at plazaclassic.com/tickets. Tickets go on sale in early July.

Call 915-533-4020 or email local@plazaclassic.com for more information about the contest.


Local Flavor entries now being accepted


March 8

The Plaza Classic Film Festival is accepting entries for this year’s Local Flavor showcase, which moves this year to the Plaza Theatre.

The series features short and feature-length films that are made by, set in or in some way connect to the El Paso-Ciudad Juarez-Las Cruces area.

A total of $2,500 in cash prizes will be handed out on August 4 when the Local Flavor showcase and awards will be presented in the Plaza Theatre, the first time the shorts-heavy series will be presented in the historic 1930 movie palace. First prize is worth $1,000, with $750 for second prize, $500 for third prize and $250 for the audience favorite.

For the fifth straight year, the series will be curated by filmmakers Zach Passero and Lucky McKee, along with festival director Doug Pullen, program director for the El Paso Community Foundation, which produces the festival. They’ll choose the submissions that make it into the program, and the top three prize winning entrants.

To submit, go to plazaclassic.com/localflavor and fill out the submission form. More details are included on the Local Flavor page.

The deadline to submit is 11:59 p.m. Monday, June 20, 2022.

Selections will be announced in July.


Free Plaza Theatre tours return March 8


March 4

Free public tours of the historic Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre return at 12 noon, Tuesday, March 8. The tours, which are sponsored by El Paso Live and the El Paso Community Foundation, resume after being on hiatus since March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Tours will be available every Tuesday at noon, with exception on event days, and registration is recommended. Availability is first come, first served. Those interested may reserve a spot by calling 915-544-0600. Groups of 20 or more may make special arrangements by calling ahead.

Tours are conducted by El Paso Community Foundation staff and volunteers. Tours last about an hour and include stops in the lobbies, foyer, and the star-lit “courtyard” auditorium, where the theater’s original Wyler Mighty Wurlitzer Pipe Organ is often featured. The tours also include the Philanthropy Theatre and Alcantar Sky Garden in the adjoining Plaza Theatre Annex.

“We’re very excited to welcome patrons into our historic theatre, for free,” said José Garcia, President, and CEO of Destination El Paso, which manages the theater for the City of El Paso. “The El Paso Community Foundation staff provides a detailed and rich history during the tour – perfect for visitors and residents alike.”

“The Plaza Theatre is a crown jewel for downtown. The tours offer important historical insight into all our community: lessons in grit, perseverance, and especially philanthropy,” said Eric Pearson, president of the El Paso Community Foundation, which restored the Plaza in partnership with the City of El Paso in 2006. “The Plaza Theatre should inspire everyone about possibilities, and it underscores the importance of the arts in economic development as well.”

The Plaza Theatre opened on September 12, 1930, as a single screen atmospheric movie palace, designed by Dallas architect W. Scott Dunne. The interior design of the 2,050-seat theater emulates a hacienda from the 17th century Spanish Colonial revival period.

The theater was closed for more than 20 years before reopening on March 17, 2006, following a $42 million restoration by the El Paso Community Foundation and the City of El Paso. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with national significance.

The Plaza Theatre is operated by El Paso Live, a division of Destination El Paso. For information about the Plaza Theatre and its event schedule, go to elpasolive.com or call 915-534-0600.

The Plaza Theatre is the home of the El Paso Community Foundation’s Plaza Classic Film Festival, which celebrates its 15th year July 28-August 7. Watch for announcements about this year’s festival coming soon.


PCFF hosts 'Border Lords III' premiere Dec. 23 at Plaza Theatre


December 2

Get ready for more underworld intrigue as Shade Records, R-Unity Films, and the El Paso Community Foundation Plaza Classic Film Festival present the world premieres of the El Paso-made Border Lords III: Bloodlines and short film Macy Gray. Writer-director Billy Townes announced details at a news conference at City Coffee and Bar.

“Premiere Night at the Plaza” is at 7 p.m. Thursday, December 23 at the Plaza Theatre.

A private red carpet VIP event will precede the screenings.

Tickets for the Border Lords III/Macy Gray premieres are $10, on sale at the Plaza Theatre box office and Ticketmaster.com. Call 915-231-1100 for more information.

Writer-director Townes continues the saga of the Cortez crime family, whose leader, Gino Cortez, is behind bars. It’s the perfect time for the emerging Guzman syndicate to attempt to take over the El Paso-Juarez underworld. The noted El Paso pianist and filmmaker directed from his own script, based on a story by producer Mark Love and Townes. It was shot in El Paso, Las Cruces and Los Angeles.

Border Lords dates back 20 years. Townes and Love created the first installment as part of a test of video software. It was released in 2002. Border Lords II: Dark Secrets followed in 2010, and was screened at this year’s Plaza Classic Film Festival as part of the Local Flavor showcase. Border Lords III was four years in the making.

Macy Gray, by local filmmaker Rafael Prieto, focuses on a tough young female boxer who must battle her own demons before she can enter the ring for a very important fight. Prieto, who was Townes’ film student at El Paso Community College, filmed it in El Paso.

Watch the Border Lords III trailer here.


Give the gift of a Plaza Classic Film Festival Pass


November 26

Passes for the 2022 edition of the El Paso Community Foundation Plaza Classic Film Festival are now on sale!

For a limited time, we’re knocking off $25 from the price of a Festival Pass.

Normally, a Festival Pass sells for $200. But it is on sale for $175 — a $25 reduction — now through 11:59 p.m. Friday, December 31, 2021.

The 15th annual Plaza Classic Film Festival will be July 28 through August 7, 2022 in and around downtown El Paso’s jewel, the Plaza Theatre.

To buy a pass, click here. Or call us at 915-533-4020 during normal business hours.

Don’t forget that we are partnering with El Paso Live to show free holiday movies at the Plaza Theatre as part of the sixth annual WinterFest. Forthcoming titles include Home Alone, Elf, The Polar Express, It’s a Wonderful Life, Love Actually and Die Hard.

Click here to see the schedule. They’re free. No tickets are required. Seating is first-come, first-served.

Have a wonderful holiday season. We’ll see you at the movies!

Pictured: Richard Garven at the Wyler Mighty Wurlitzer Pipe Organ during PCFF 2021.