Created in 2018, the El Paso film festival has been the preeminent film festival in West Texas. This September, the social event spawned by the love of movies, made its grand return.
There, local directors and actors held the opportunity to showcase their passion projects for engagement, awards, and even national recognition.
For the average El Paso movie fanatic, the film festival gives theonce in a year opportunity to stay away from a high budget, blockbuster filled, Hollywood, and instead put their attention on a creation made purely from the heart.
During the weekend, over 80 films were showcased at the festival. One of which was created by students at UTEP, “Stalks at Night.”
“I wrote it in December, it was a very simple script at the time,” said writer and director of the short film Ramsey Perez. “I’m kind of a try hard. Once I knew that I wanted to make this, I started talking to my partners involved.”
Throughout history, El Paso hasn’t received much acknowledgment as it should from Hollywood, but as time passes, the tides have changed.
“We have the eyes of some Hollywood people, very prominent ones like Paul Thomas Anderson,” said Perez. “We want to capitalize on that and continue to grow.”
A large part of El Paso’s rise to the altitude of Hollywood attention has been credited to the bi-national festival.
“I thought for a city of our size it was important to create it,” Carlos Fernando Corral, artistic director of the El Paso Film Festival said. “We really try to create an intimate space where filmmakers can come together, network and talk to each other.”
The social aspect promoted by the founding father is one which doesn’t push exclusivity. Quite the opposite, it promotes inclusion through its “Creating Ways” panels.
“It’s been important to me for our creating ways conference to include not only industry professionals but local film individuals who are working here,” Drew Mayer-Oakes, film & creative industry commissioner for El Paso said. “So that their combined voices can speak to young people, or even people looking to change their career.”
In total, 11 panels, ranging from camera operations, music in the indie genre and commercial filmmaking were held. While contrasting in specific areas of storytelling, they all took on the dreaded variable which holds many indie filmmakers back, the budget.
“Both worlds offer a different set of challenges,” said Composer Enrique Ponce when asked by panel host Sarah Neely about the differences between professional and indie music composition. “In the indie world I feel like I’ve had to be more creative because of the budgetary restraints.”
Whilst economic restrictions serve as an evident obstacle, just like any transcendent artist, those in the film industry have used the disadvantage as fuel for their craft.
“Whatever job you get, irrespective of the budget. Imagine it’s the best job you’ve ever had,” Composer Joseph Metcalfe said. “As a filmmaker, you only get x number of movies that you can put your name to. In saying Why am I going to create this one? Why am I choosing to do this? And if you’re going to do it, you put all of yourself into it.”
The quality impact from a 915 originated event isn’t surprising. After all, El Paso is a city defined by hard work. A principle which more people are finally starting to learn about.
“We’re getting a lot of people who are discovering El Paso for the very first time,” said Corral. “We bring so many filmmakers from New York, Austin, and Atlanta. Even some from Canada and Mexico City. We feel that’s how the industry can really enhance itself. We create relationships at a film festival, that’s how new ideas, new creativity is born.”
If thinking about taking the next step for a passion project, then just like any experienced filmmaker, all that has to be done is to take a shot, literally.
Sebastian Perez-Navarro is a staff reporter for The Prospector and can be reached at [email protected]
