When Esperanza Academy 7th grader Arianna Carias completed a short film project in film class this past fall, she never would have guessed that within the next few months, she would be winning an award, personally meeting the subject of her film, and visiting the Hispanic Information Telecommunications Network (HITN) studio in New York City.
Arianna’s short film honored the work of Billy Ocasio, a former Chicago politician and current President and CEO of the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture. The heart and skill displayed in her film earned her the Hi-Five Award from HITN’s “Cortitos” National Film Short Contest for middle school students, and the experience has opened doors of opportunity for her.
The “Cortitos” film contest is part of HITN’s celebration of Puerto Rican Heritage Month, where students are invited to submit a short film featuring one of the year’s five Puerto Rican Heritage Month honorees. HITN congratulated Arianna on her achievement: “We are proud of her participation in ‘Cortitos,’ and even prouder of her creativity and talent. Her work and writing are truly inspiring, and we hope that she will continue to create and share it with the world. Thank you, Arianna, for being a part of our community!” Arianna received an award certificate, a $100 gift card, and a beautiful bouquet of flowers.
When asked what inspired Arianna most about Billy Ocasio, she replied, “I was inspired by the reason he made the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture: because he wanted to make Latinos feel at home, no matter where they are. It’s just so caring to make sure people feel like they can be themselves and celebrate their culture.” She was thrilled to have the opportunity to meet Billy Ocasio and his wife, Vanessa, via video call. As she spoke with them, she was able to see what her video meant to them and felt inspired to make more great films. She also received an invitation to visit the HITN studios over holiday break, where she met Mike Nieves, President and CEO of HITN, and Luis Alejandro Molina, Executive Assistant and Co-director of the Tú Cuentas Cine Youth Fest. She enjoyed meeting the staff and getting a glimpse of how things work behind the scenes.
Arianna learned a great deal through the process of creating the film. She realized that “film-making is a lot harder than most people think it is”, which taught her to always remember those who are working behind the camera. The project was also a great outlet for her growing writing skills. She shared, “I love writing because it lets me forget about what I’m dealing with currently, and just relax and go into somebody else’s world and see through their eyes. My film about Billy Ocasio gave me the chance to learn more about him and learn about what he wanted to do – to see through his eyes, goals, and accomplishments.”
«I believe that Mr. Ocasio’s greatest achievement was serving his community. I want to be able to serve my community just like he did,» Arianna states in her film. Whether she is making films, writing, or serving her community, we know that Arianna has a bright future ahead of her!
You can view Arianna’s film on HITN’s website here.
