This screening is part of the Houston Cinema Arts Festival. Single tickets for sale or included with an All Access Pass. See the Full Festival Lineup at HCAF2026.eventive.org.
Ben Garza has spent the last decade on the road playing nearly two hundred shows a year with his alt-rock band, The Heights. When the band suddenly falls apart, Ben finds himself a drift and, after a year, contemplating the first tour of his life alone. With a newborn daughter at home and a shrinking audience waiting for him on the road, Ben assembles a small tour through bars and house shows across the American South, hoping he can piece together a new version of his life in music. Joining him is Jessie Ramos, a songwriter starting over after leaving the duo that defined her career. As the two musicians navigate the road together, their creative partnership begins to ignite — forcing each of them to confront what they truly want from the life they’ve chosen. But Stages is not a story about fame or overnight success. It’s a film about the quiet moment when an artist realizes the audience might never come — and deciding whether the work is still worth doing anyway.
Join us for a post-screening discussion and Q&A with Director Ryan Booth, Writer Bradley Jackson, and Actor David Ramirez, moderated by Ernie Manouse from Houston Public Media.
