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Logline

Jonah’s mother finds salvation in religion. He finds it at the movies. In 1990s South Texas, a grieving teen skips church each Sunday to chase his own piece of cinema heaven.

Synopsis

Set in 1990s South Texas, Popcorn Prophets follows Jonah, a quiet Mexican American teenager who begins secretly skipping church each Sunday to watch movies at the local theater. After the death of his father, Jonah drifts between silence and sorrow. While his mother, Rachel, leans into her evangelical faith for comfort, Jonah discovers his own form of salvation in the glow of the big screen. His Sunday ritual becomes a secret escape, a personal and private way to grieve. But when his aunt and young cousin move into their already crowded home, the pressure builds. With less space and more responsibility, Jonah struggles to hold on to the small part of himself that still feels free. A growing connection with Eve, a girl who works at the concession stand, offers a flicker of light in an otherwise heavy world. When Jonah is caught in a lie about joining a church youth group, the fragile balance he has built begins to collapse. Rachel must choose what to believe. Jonah must decide who he wants to become. Popcorn Prophets is a coming-of-age story rooted in the emotional texture of South Texas life. Told with quiet intensity and cinematic reverence, the film explores themes of loss, memory, faith, and the hidden power of art to shape identity. It is a regional story with a universal heart, one that speaks to anyone who has carried grief, searched for meaning, or found comfort in a story when nothing else made sense.
 

Meet the Filmmakers

Reynaldo Leal — Writer/Producer
Reynaldo Leal is a South Texas-based writer and Marine Corps veteran. He served with the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines during Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah and was awarded the Bronze Star with “V” device for valor. After his military service, he earned degrees in Environmental Science and Mass Communications from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. His screenwriting has received national recognition. His script A Band of Wolves was featured on the annual 2024 Black List. He is also a 2023 Slamdance Screenwriting Competition finalist and a 2024 WGA Veterans Writing Project mentee. Popcorn Prophets is his first feature film and is personal, inspired by his own experiences growing up in the Rio Grande Valley after the loss of his father. Through this story, he honors the quiet resilience of working-class families and the healing power of cinema.

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Contact

For inquiries, please contact fiscalsponsorship@filmindependent.org.