At 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 11, the VFW at 8760 Ranch Rd 2243 in Leander hosts a Veterans Day Memorial & Community event. It opens the first Leander Film Festival. Two hours later, in the same building, the festival screens Sgt Stubby: An Unlikely Hero as its Veterans Day feature. City offices are closed that day for the holiday.
The Leander Film Festival runs Nov. 11 through 15 and promises more than 30 films. Over those five days, the program moves to an Austin theater on US 183, a Georgetown cinema on Wolf Ranch Parkway and a Cedar Park multiplex at Lakeline Mall before it closes. The festival is named for Leander, and the events held in Leander are mostly the community nights. If you live here, the screenings are a short drive away, and the receptions are close to home.
Five days, four cities
Organizers describe the festival as an independent film event "in the heart of Leander." It's put on by the Leander Arts & Film Alliance, whose mission is to promote arts, film and culture across Central Texas and connect filmmakers, students and neighbors. Latin Heat reported in October that Sasha Yelaun, Mike Herrera, Laura Davis and Diane Herrera co-founded the festival.
The festival's own event pages give an address for four venues. Lined up by day, they show how far the program reaches:
| Day | Headline event | Venue | Address on the festival page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed., Nov. 11 | Veterans Day event, 5 p.m.; Sgt Stubby, 7 p.m. | VFW | 8760 Ranch Rd 2243, Leander |
| Thu., Nov. 12 | Jimmy, opening-night premiere, 4:30 p.m. | Alamo Drafthouse | 14028 US-183 Bldg F, Austin 78717 |
| Fri., Nov. 13 | Student showcase, screenplay contest, Gimme My Money | Facilities Resource Inc. | Not listed |
| Sat., Nov. 14 | Shorts and three features, including You Can't Leave at 7 p.m. | Film Alley | 420 Wolf Ranch Parkway, Georgetown |
| Sun., Nov. 15 | Revolution's Daughter, closing night, 4:30 p.m. | AMC Lakeline 9 | 11200 Lakeline Mall Dr, Cedar Park |
The festival schedule lists seven feature-length films. Sgt Stubby is the only one at the VFW in Leander. Gimme My Money shows at Facilities Resource Inc. The other five play in Austin, Georgetown or Cedar Park: Jimmy on Thursday, then Bravado, Our House is On Fire and You Can't Leave back to back at Film Alley on Saturday, and Revolution's Daughter on Sunday.
Saturday is the longest day of screenings, and it takes place in Georgetown. Two shorts blocks start at 12:30 and 2 p.m., followed by features at 3, 5 and 7 p.m., all at Film Alley.
What's actually on screen
Opening night carries the same veterans theme as Wednesday. Jimmy follows James Stewart from his Academy Award for The Philadelphia Story through his wartime service as a combat pilot and back to Hollywood and It's a Wonderful Life. Screenwriter Justin Strawhand is listed for a Q&A after the screening. Latin Heat identifies Strawhand as Texas-based.
You Can't Leave fills Saturday's 7 p.m. slot under the festival's "Leander and Lone Star" label. It's a horror story: a search for a missing sister leads a group of friends into a remote Texas forest, where an abandoned cabin turns into a supernatural trap. Latin Heat reports that it was shot in Dallas and produced by Robert Paschall Jr.
The shorts are grouped by type:
- Animation and experimental, Thursday at Facilities Resource Inc. and the Alamo Drafthouse
- Texas Filmmaker Spotlight, Thursday at 3:30 p.m. at the Alamo, with Tough Enough, Missing Socks, Let Fall The Rain and Somewhere You Feel Free
- Student Showcase, Friday at noon at Facilities Resource Inc., including Aleppo Through My Eyes and The Talk
- Independent Showcase and Global Perspectives, Saturday afternoon at Film Alley
- Faith Based, Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at Generations Church
The nights that stay closer to home
The screenings travel, but the evening events gather at venues with Leander in their names, plus a few local rooms the festival doesn't give addresses for:
- Thursday, 7 p.m. The Law vs Law Community VR Boxing Competition, then a Festival Mixer at 8:30 p.m., both at Crossover.
- Friday, 6:30 p.m. A panel on hybrid AI movies and low-budget post-production at Facilities Resource Inc., followed at 7 p.m. by "The Industry" Night at Leanderthal Distilling Lounge.
- Saturday, 10 a.m. A panel on filming in Texas and SB22 at SpringHill Suites by Marriott. At 7 p.m., REEL Moves and Country Grooves at the Leander Activity Center, the same hour You Can't Leave starts in Georgetown.
- Sunday, 11 a.m. The Producers Network panel at SpringHill Suites, then a 3:30 p.m. panel on distributors, streaming and theatrical release at Generations Church.
- Sunday, 7 p.m. The Awards Banquet at Estancia Brazilian Steakhouse.
Saturday at 7 p.m. is the one real scheduling conflict. A Leander household that wants both the Leander-labeled feature and the dance at the Leander Activity Center has to pick one.
Pass prices include fees: VIP All Access is $475, the Festival Pass $195, the All Screenings Pass $130, the All Panels Pass $80 and a Day Pass $65. The Awards Banquet alone is $230. A Day Pass costs half of the All Screenings Pass, and the banquet ticket by itself costs more than the Festival Pass. Single tickets for individual events are sold through the festival's ticket page.
The Saturday before follows the same pattern
The theme of service and local causes starts four days before the festival. This Saturday, Nov. 7, has two benefit events.
The 6th Annual Heroes Choice Car Show runs 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Gupton Stadium, 200 Gupton Way in Cedar Park. Heroes Resource Center organizes it. Spectators get in free, and registering a car costs $20 in advance or $25 on-site. Proceeds go toward activities for veterans, active-duty service members, first responders and their families. The organizer lists a kids' petting zoo, balloon animals, a DJ, a silent auction and food trucks.
That afternoon, Texas Humane Heroes holds its 17th Annual Chili Cook-Off from 1 to 4 p.m. at its adoption center, 10930 E. Crystal Falls Pkwy in Leander. General admission is $35, kids under 12 are $5, and children 2 and under get in free. A chili team pays $30 to enter. Admission includes a tasting wristband, and each team's $30 covers two wristbands. The afternoon also has live music, beer and wine, kids' activities, a silent auction and local vendors. The shelter has set a $60,000 fundraising goal, and every ticket, taste and auction bid supports its work to end pet homelessness and keep pet ownership affordable.
The car show ends at 1 p.m., right when the cook-off starts, so you can do both in one day: the morning in Cedar Park, the afternoon on Crystal Falls Parkway.
After the credits
Two more dates stay inside Leander. The 21st Annual Leander High Craft Market runs Saturday, Nov. 21, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Leander High School, 3301 S. Bagdad Rd. Entry is $5, and kids under 12 and LISD employees get in free. The Leander High School Baseball Booster Club maintains the market's website.
On Saturday, Dec. 5, the Old Town Christmas Festival fills 100 N. Brushy St. from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. The schedule includes the Rudolph Run, a Christmas Marketplace, the Hometown Parade, Santa, performances, and food and craft vendors. The Leander Chamber of Commerce and City of Leander host it, and the parade starts at 1 p.m., one block from the festival grounds. For more about the town these events serve, see our Leander neighborhood page.
Leander's first film festival opens at the VFW on Veterans Day and reaches into Austin, Georgetown and Cedar Park before it ends. Following how the town grows, from the venues it fills to the events it adds, is part of the work I do for clients here. If you'd like to talk through what Leander's calendar and growth mean for your own plans, Jeff Joseph is glad to help. Let's Connect.
