RGV Short Film, 9 minutes, Rio Grande Valley Premiere

Nominee: Best South Texas Actor, South Texas Sound

Synopsis:

Eleven-year-old Mckella, refuses to let racism define her. Instead, she turns to her passion for painting as a sanctuary, a place where she can pour her emotions onto the canvas. In her artwork, she paints the beauty of diversity, the strength of unity, and the resilience of the human spirit.

Luis Antonio Rodriguez

Bio:

Luis Antonio Rodriguez is a California‑born, Texas‑based filmmaker whose border upbringing shapes stories steeped in immigration, identity, and resilience. Fresh off winning the Silver Remi Award for Best Original Dramatic short at WorldFest–Houston and sweeping nominations Best Director/Best Short/ winner Best Performance, at the Los Angeles Web Festival with his film, White and Black Canvas. Rodriguez continues to fuse technical precision with emotional depth. Fluent in Spanish and English, he writes, directs, and edits projects that challenge prejudice while celebrating cultural hybridity. As a writer, director, and editor, he is drawn to stories grounded in human realism and social activism. His style blends technical precision with emotional depth, using film as a tool for change, connection, and truth-telling.