On May 5th, The Digicom Film Festival was held at the Palm Springs Convention center, showcasing Digital Storytelling work from students all over the Palm Springs Unified School District. In total, the Digital Arts Technology Academy took home $20,500 in grants, scholarships, and stipends. Thank you to Digicom, NBC Universal, and community sponsors for continued support!

The following DATA DS student films were featured as part of the festival:

Food is the Answer
Jadin Wash

Created by Jadin Wash

Giddy Up!
Daniela Gonzalez, Paola Granillo, Itzel Tolama

In this mini documentary, 9th grade DATA students explore the efforts required to care for, train, and handle horses. Created by Daniela Gonzalez, Paola Granillo, and Itzel Tolama

Visiting Sideshow
Adrian Fernandez, Monico Castaneda, Donielle Gerrell

Created by Donielle Gerrell, Adrian Fernandez, and Monico Castaneda

Chalk Art (part of larger piece)
Adrian Fernandez, Monico Castaneda, Donielle Gerrell

Created by Monico Castaneda and Adrian Fernandez

Bernard
David Vo, Salvador Camino, Matt Donez, Alan Cabrera, Ryan Alvarez, Jose Bermudez

Short film created by David Vo, Matt Donez, Salvador Camino, Ryan Alvarez, Jose Bermudez, and Alan Cabrera

62 Pegger Street
Jadin Wash, Sebastian Gomez, Antonio Arce

Directed by Jadin Wash Starring Antonio Arce and Sebastian Gomez

Sharing Success: On Our Way to Giving Back (White House Project)
Donielle Gerrell, Jebari Wooten

Revised version of White House Student Film Festival Honorable Mention Created by Donielle Gerrell and Jebari Wooten

Mask
Adrian Fernandez, Monico Castaneda

DATA Digital Storytelling short film created by Monico Castaneda and Adrian Fernandez

This year's festival also featured several projects created by DATA students outside of their elective courses:

They’re Watching
Created by Matt Donez, Salvador Camino, Ryan Alvarez, and Alan Cabrera for Nancy Blair's DATA English class.

Solus
Created by Jason Bullen for Nancy Blair's DATA English class.

Disconnect
Created by Betsy Villeda, Kimberly Martinez, and Sierra Foster for Nancy blair's English class.

Lego Paranormal Activity
Created by Jessie Villareal, Derrick Serrano, Desiree Guerrero, Osvaldo Lopez for Cary Lew's AP English class.

In addition to having their work shown on the big screen, 16 DATA seniors were awarded Digicom scholarships and stipends:

Donielle Gerrell, $3000
CSU San Bernardino

Adrian Fernandez, $1000
College of the Desert

Monico Castaneda, $1000
College of the Desert

Jason Bullen, $1,000
College of the Desert

David Vo, $1000
CSU Los Angeles

Salvador Camino, $1000
UC San Diego

Alan Cabrera, $1000
CSU Dominguez Hills

Jose Bermudez, $1000
CSU Los Angeles

Betsy Villeda, $1000
College of the Desert Nursing

Jessie Villareal, $1000
UC Irvine

Derrick Serrano, $1000
UC Irvine

Ariana Davis, $1000
Riverside Community College

Araly Lopez, $1000
Entering Work Force

Matt Donez, $1000
College of the Desert

Ryan Alvarez, $1000
Riverside Community College

Cruz Moreno, $1000
Photographer

Congratulations to everyone and thank you again to David Vogel, Larry Fulton, Lee Grafton, Frank Guttler, Max Finneran, and the entire Digicom family!