“If you love suspense and action, TEJANO is the film for you!” – Film Threat (9 out of 10 stars)

“The story itself slithers with twists and turns and unexpected betrayals…” – Austin Chronicle

“A clever calling card from the next generation of Texas filmmakers that is willing to show the Lone Star state in a slightly different, more multicultural light.”– Houston Chronicle

As many people debate the pros and cons of Trump’s border wall, the issues at play are starkly laid out in  TEJANO, an action thriller set on the U.S.-Mexico border will debut on itunes, Amazon, Vudu, Hulu and other digital platforms on March 26.  The feature film, which is distributed by Outsider Pictures, has won numerous awards including the Audience Award at the 2018 Dallas International Film Festival.  The film is recognized by the Texas State House of Representatives with a screening at the Texas State Capitol on March 22nd and plays at the San Diego Latino Film Festival on March 23.

“I set TEJANO in the Rio Grande Valley, along the Mexico-U.S. border where I was born,” says director/producer David Blue Garcia. “The film touches on many of the issues that affect South Texas, including the border wall, the drug trade, cartel violence, immigration laws and health care. TEJANO does not set out to take political sides but instead to show how these issues affect the day-to-day lives of its characters and influence their choices. The story is told in a style that has been called a Thriller/Western hybrid or Tex-Mex Noir. It is definitely meant to be entertaining and full of dark humor.”

TEJANO is the story of Javi (Patrick Mackie), a South Texas farmhand who lives and works with his grandfather, Arturo (Roland Hector Uribe). Javi dreams of leaving the border with his Mexican girlfriend but when his grandfather becomes ill, Javi, desperately turns to a Mexican cartel to make some quick cash. Javi embarks on a harrowing journey in which he first swims across the Rio Grande River, evades the border patrol and then faces the border wall, only to find that the cartel has different plans for him.

TEJANO was shot entirely on the border of South Texas and in Nuevo Progreso Mexico.  All of the actors are bilingual Texas natives and most are native to South Texas.

David Blue Garcia is an Emmy Award-winning director and cinematographer based in Austin, Texas. He has lensed six independent feature films including his directorial debut, TEJANO.

CREDITS

Title:                            TEJANO

Genre:                         Drama/Thriller

Running Time:            1 hr. 29 mins.

Languages:                  English/Spanish

Director/Producer:      David Blue Garcia

Writers:                       Kyle Bogart (Screenplay); David Blue Garcia (Story by)

PRINCIPAL CAST:

Patrick Mackie            Javi

Roland Uribe               Arturo

Adrian Gonzalez         Adelo

Mayra Lean                 Lorena

Emma Perez-Trevino  Gloria

Brian Bogart               Duke

PREMIERE:

Dallas International Film Festival 2018, Winner Audience Award

AWARDS:

Audience Award, Dallas International Film Festival 2018 Best Regional Feature, South Texas International Film Festival 2018 Best Regional Actor, Patrick Mackie, South Texas International Film Festival 2018 Best Narrative Feature, El Paso Film Festival 2018 Best Thriller, Queen Palm International Film Festival 2018 Best Supporting Actor, Hector Uribe, Queen Palm International Film Festival 2018 Best Latino Feature Film, Latino Film Market 2018 Best Cinematography, Latino Film Market 2018 Top 10 Films of 2018, London Film Week 2018 Best Narrative Feature, CineSol Film Festival 2018 Best of Fests, Dallas International Film Festival Selection, 2019 Nominated * Best Texas Feature, Houston Film Critics Society, 2019 Best Narrative Feature, El Paso Media Fest 2019 Most Chingon, South Texas Underground Film Festival, 2019