Not many highschoolers can say they’ve created a film recognized enough to make it to a state wide competition, but Lake Highlands junior Nathan Macy, can. Macy is the first student at LHHS to go to the UIL State film competition for his film, Redemption, where he ended up placing third.

 “I was excited to make it to the UIL State FIlm Festival.  It was cool to see the different films from around the state and experience them on the big screen at UT’s LBJ Auditorium,” said Macy.

The story told by Macy is definitely eye-catching as it dives into a 25-year decline in US mainline churches, spotlighting a Dallas Lutheran church. Interviews emphasize the crucial role of connection, community, and inclusion in the church’s mission.

“This is technically my first year in the film class; however, I have been involved for 3 years,” Macy included.

This, and many more factors caused challenges he had to overcome in order to create the film. Macy ended up collecting over two hours of film. In order to keep the film short and concise, he had to find and use the best interview footage for the competition in March.

“The film could only be 7 minutes…This made the film take more time in post-production but allowed me to use only the best parts of each interview,” Macy added.

Macy was able to reach a huge milestone and should be congratulated for making it as far as he did. And to Hague, it was a major milestone for her and her students. 

“This being the year of documentaries in my AV program, seeing one make it to state meant a lot to me,” Hague stated.