Laurens Film Festival opens call for submissions ahead of Oct. 7 deadline
August 25, 2026
Filmmakers across the Upstate have a chance to see their work projected on a century-old screen this fall.
The City of Laurens is accepting entries for the inaugural Laurens Film Festival, set for Oct. 23, 2026, at the historic Capitol Theatre at 104 E. Main St. The festival is open to students, emerging filmmakers and community creators, and organizers said all experience levels are encouraged to enter.
Submissions are due Oct. 7, 2026. Finalists will be announced Oct. 14, with selected films screened during Film Festival Night at the Capitol.
Entries will compete in five categories: Student Film for middle school students in grades six through eight, Student Film for high school students in grades nine through 12, Emerging Filmmaker for college students and entrants under age 25, Community Film for all ages, and the Laurens Stories Award, which recognizes films highlighting local history, culture or landmarks.
Films must run 10 minutes or less, with student entries limited to five minutes. All entries must be original work and suitable for a general audience. Films that have previously been submitted to, selected by, screened at or honored by other festivals remain eligible.
The festival adds a new chapter to a building that marked its 100th anniversary in June. The Capitol Theatre opened in 1925 and later sat vacant before Presbyterian College purchased it in 2021 and transferred ownership to the city in 2023. The city now operates the 10,000-square-foot venue, which hosts free movie nights on the second and fourth Friday of each month, with doors opening at 6 p.m. and showtime at 6:30 p.m.
City officials have said the theater is intended to give residents, particularly young people, a dedicated space for film, music and performing arts, and the festival is designed to encourage that kind of creative work close to home. Smartphones and consumer editing software have put filmmaking within reach of students who would have needed a production budget a generation ago.
