Saturday night at El Paso’s Classic Film Festival a large group of Rocky Horror Picture Show fans settled into a cozy spot for the annual screening of the film. Well, as cozy as one can get at an outside screening, not that these fans mind. Just as the iconic red lips engulfed the screen, it started to pour. Did they budge? Not one bit. Screams of excitement filled the air and the movie played on.

Its moments like these that make going to a film festival the special experience that it is. It’s truly a magical time for movie lovers to come together and share in an experience unlike anywhere else. Something like what happened on saturday would never happen in a conventional cinema. Not to say that one is better than the other, personally I love going to the cinema festival or not, but a film fest is remarkable. CInemarks will screen the latest and greatest, but a film fest will show films that stand out in history. FIlms that have inspired the latest and greatest are celebrated during these fests, and more so, encourage the support of the community to do so.

As mentioned before, El Paso holds a yearly classic film fest. Our festivities include outside shows with local bands, food vendors and feature short films by local artists known as the Local Flavor. It runs for one week only, this year from August 3rd until August 13th. For me this week means planning out what I am going to be able to watch, or if work really is more important than catching the afternoon showing of The Day the Earth Stood Still next Friday. About three years ago I decided to hell with work, and called in specifically to be able to spend majority of the day at the Plaza. It was wonderful, it is a day I will never forget. Myself and a friend grabbed pizza and drinks, then roamed around downtown until our movies started. The last showing we saw that day was of Nosferatu. This was my first time having seen the film, so having watched it for the first time at the Plaza made it exceptional. The ambiance and excitement whirling about makes for a wonderful watching experience. Movie connoisseur or not, the allure of the Plaza marquee lit up at night can not be ignored.

So you see, it isn’t just going to the movies, it's sharing in an experience with others that love something you love. I highly encourage everyone who also lives in El Paso to make it out to to the PCFF before it ends this week. A complete lineup of films being shown can be viewed here. If you do not live in EP, I highly encourage you to look into your all film fest's, and then report back to me so that I can start planning my way to there.

