Texas Border Business
EDINBURG, Texas – Three PSJA Southwest Early College High School (ECHS) students recently showcased their skills at the prestigious South Texas International Film Festival (STXIFF), held in Edinburg. The students, all finalists in the Young Filmmakers Pitch Competition, earned finalist spots out of submissions across the state of Texas, a remarkable achievement that highlights the strength of the district’s Fine Arts program.
The STXIFF is a competitive film festival that showcases the work of visionary filmmakers from all over the world. Based in Edinburg, Texas, STXIFF showcases local, regional, national, and international films and prides itself as a welcoming hub for thriving and aspiring storytellers. This multi-day festival is open to the public and features film screenings, workshops, and a screenplay pitch competition.
PSJA Southwest ECHS students won six of the 10 semi-finalist nominations, and three of the five finalist slots, in the Young Filmmakers Pitch category. All the students were members of PSJA Southwest ECHS teacher Barry Glasser’s audio-video screenwriting class, who wrote the screenplays as a class project.
The students Lourdes Elizondo, Cristo Petrides, and Jaclyn Moreno each presented their unique film ideas to a panel of industry professionals, receiving high praise for their creativity, vision, and storytelling skills. Their pitches showcased the student’s ability to tackle complex subjects with originality and depth.
“This is a remarkable achievement for our students,” said Mr. Glasser. “A single school – Southwest – won a majority of the nominations in the student pitch category in a competition with students throughout the state.”
Mr. Glasser is a professional screenwriter and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Working with his PSJA Southwest colleagues Exequiel Navarro, Sergio Sauceda, Carlos Palacios, and Maegan De La Rosa of the school’s multi-award-winning theatre department, Glasser noted that Southwest intends to submit their students’ screenplays for professional production and that a Hollywood streaming service has already expressed active interest.
PSJA ISD congratulates the young screenwriters for their incredible achievements as finalists in the Young Filmmakers Pitch Competition.
