Corpus Christi Filmmaker Debuts Texas Revolution Film at VPL Talks
Published 3:30 pm Sunday, March 8, 2026
Corpus Christi native and filmmaker Eric Rodriguez debuted his short film, “Visions of March,” during the March VPL Talks event Saturday at the Victoria Public Library.
The 11-minute film focuses on the Battle of Coleto Creek, a pivotal conflict in the Texas Revolution, which marks its 190th anniversary this month. The story follows a young boy who survives the battle after being saved by the Angel of Goliad.
During a question-and-answer session following the screening, Rodriguez discussed the challenges of producing the film, including having only eight hours to complete filming.
After a lengthy permitting process, Rodriguez said he was able to shoot the entire project on location at Presidio La Bahía, the historic site associated with the battle and the Goliad campaign.
“This was a great learning experience for me in general, as a filmmaker,” Rodriguez said. “We were out there in 40 degree weather. The wind was brutal. We only had eight hours to shoot this whole thing, so we were just on a strict schedule.”
As a first-time filmmaker who did not attend film school, Rodriguez said he also encountered technical challenges during production, including limited equipment to manage wind noise while recording audio.
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Despite those obstacles, the film has gained attention on the festival circuit. Rodriguez has screened “Visions of March” at several festivals, including the San Antonio Film Festival, and earned the Best Proof of Concept award at the Texas Short Film Festival.
Rodriguez said attending festivals has been valuable for receiving feedback and connecting with other filmmakers from local, national and international communities. He has already applied that feedback to new work, recently debuting his second film, “The Pop,” an action film centered on professional wrestling.
“[The best piece of advice I’ve received] is to just keep putting your work out,” Rodriguez said. “Don’t be too judgmental of yourself. In the ways of perfection, perfection doesn’t really exist. As a filmmaker, seeking myself, I’m very critical of my art. If I keep putting my work out there, somebody, somebody will align with it.”
Rodriguez said that he always dreamed of being a filmmaker, but life got in the way of that dream. Once he realized that his daughter would soon be going off to college and living her dreams, he decided that he should live his too.
When he decided to make his first film, he had known the topic all along.
“This story is very important to me, being from Corpus Christi, Goliad has been important to me and I grew up around it my whole life,” Rodriguez said. “From kindergarten to pretty much as a freshman, I always had field trips every year. Every time I was there, I always felt like I was immersed inside the history that was there. I just knew that one day, if I ever made a film, that it was going to be on Goliad. The human aspect of it, the idea that I was trying to push was about Goliad that was coming in, protecting Texian soldiers. And the same thing with the Texian soldiers and everybody uniting. It was a huge, huge inspiration for me just being a Texan myself.”
Now, with the experience of taking one film on the road, Rodriguez will continue that streak, and go international for the first time, taking his next film “The Pop” to a film festival in London, England.
Lindsey Plotkin is a multimedia reporter for the Victoria Advocate. Contact her at lindsey.plotkin@vicad.com.