Director Carlos López Estrada (BLINDSPOTTING) is back with SUMMERTIME, an ensemble piece  following the intersecting stories of 27 youth spoken word poets over a single day in Los Angeles. The director’s ground-breaking vision began at a poetry showcase where performers from across the City of Angels recited fearlessly personal texts about themselves, their communities, and their relationship to their city.

The project was then developed around their individual poems and interwoven into a larger, unified, and gloriously moving narrative experiment — part contemporary musical and part sociological art. SUMMERTIME explores themes of identity, community, and intersectionality through the unique perspectives of this diverse ensemble.

“The most inspirational movie this year.” (Variety)

“It feels like SLACKER for a new generation… This feels like one of the most L.A. films I’ve ever seen.” (Filmweek)

“On paper, it sounds iffy; in execution, however, it’s absolutely glorious, a gleeful glide through adolescence.” (RogerEbert.com)

Tuesday, September 28
Doors 6:00 pm | Movie 6:30 pm *Start time subject to change. Please arrive on time.
Advance tickets $15 HERE | $15 at the door

Due to reduced capacity, advance tickets are recommended for all shows to ensure seating. Online sales for every screening automatically end 1 hour before any given showtime.

*Minors permitted in the balcony. Must be 19+ w/ID for bar service and main floor seating.
*Rio Theatre Groupons and passes OK for any single film screening only. Please redeem at the box office.
*If you are looking to redeem your tickets to either a canceled Rio Theatre screening or a Rio Theatre gift certificate, please email <[email protected]> with info including your name, canceled receipt number, gift certificate info, what you are wanting to see and when, and we can make the switch for you in advance. Alternately, you can bring this information with you to the venue, and we will do our best to help you at the box office.

SUMMERTIME (Carlos López Estrada, 2020 / 95 mins / 14A) Over the course of a hot summer day in Los Angeles, the lives of 25 young Angelenos intersect. A skating guitarist, a tagger, two wannabe rappers, an exasperated fast-food worker, a limo driver-they all weave in and out of each other’s stories. Through poetry they express life, love, heartache, family, home, and fear. One of them just wants to find someplace that still serves good cheeseburgers.