And the winners are… TXU Energy and the Dallas Film Society have awarded the grand prizes in the third annual 2012 TXU Energy Light Up the Red Carpet Student Film Contest to two Texas student filmmakers. They received their accolades at the Dallas Film Society Honors and Awards Presentation April 20.

This year, nearly 70 high school and university filmmakers from schools across the state submitted three- to five-minute films on the future of energy and energy efficiency as they competed for more than $30,000 in cash prizes, video editing software and a walk down the red carpet. 

After making it to the top 12 (semifinals) by earning the most online votes, the contest’s six finalists (three university and three high school filmmakers) were selected by a panel of judges representing both the Dallas Film Society and TXU Energy. This year’s winners include:

HIGH SCHOOL FILMS

Grand-Prize Winner
Abelardo Gonzalez, “No Blackout” Vidal M. Treviño Magnet - Laredo

First Place
Christian Vasquez, “A Spark” Booker T. Washington High School - Dallas

Second Place
Carolina Treviño, “The Energy Police” High School for the Performing and Visual Arts - Houston

UNIVERSITY FILMS 

Grand-Prize Winner
Dillon White, “Zap!” Northlake College - Irving

First Place
Edgar Cortes, “Domi Cile” The Art Institute of Dallas – Dallas

Second Place
Wojciech Stypko, “Man Power” University of North Texas – Denton

The finalists’ films can be seen at txu.com/studentfilmcontest. 

The winning high school and university entries will each receive grand prizes of $7,500. The other prizes include $5,000 for first prize and $2,500 for second prize in both the high school and university categories. The high school finalists’ audiovisual departments will receive 100 percent of the prize money, while the university students will split the cash winnings with their schools’ AV departments. All finalists and semifinalists will also receive video editing software valued at about $400. 

About TXU Energy
TXU Energy is a market-leading competitive retail electricity provider, powering the lives of more Texans than any other retailer. TXU Energy offers a variety of innovative products and solutions, allowing both its residential and business customers to choose options that best meet their needs, including exceptional customer service, competitively priced electricity service plans, innovative energy efficiency options, renewable energy programs and other electricity-related products and services. Visit txu.com for more information about TXU Energy. REP #10004.