On the morning of April 5, 2003, news broke of a violent clash between members of the Mara 18 gang and common prisoners at the El Porvenir penal farm in La Ceiba, Honduras. When the fighting was over, 69 people, mainly gang members, were dead—most of them shot, stabbed, beaten or burned.

Although prison officials initially claimed that the Mara 18 had initiated the violence and set the deadly fire in their cellblock, subsequent evidence revealed that the conflict was a premeditated massacre in which prison authorities were actively involved in the execution of unarmed gang members.

In "El Porvenir," survivors and families of the victims tell the story of what happened that day and of their subsequent struggles for truth and justice. Using the tragedy as a springboard, the film also explores the broader issue of gangs in Honduras. While members of Honduran society agree it is a problem in need of a solution, the roots of the problem and the means to solve it aren't easy questions to answer.