The Valenti School of Communication is proud to announce that alumna Abigail Hagan, who graduated in 2014 after studying media production, will be featured at the Bechdel Film Festival. Hagan is an accomplished videographer, editor and documentary filmmaker currently residing in Seattle, Washington.

This annual festival promotes and supports female filmmakers. Hagan’s film “Wall Of Complacency” will be screened at 14 Pews on Saturday, February 17 at 9:30 p.m. as part of the Northwest Shorts program.

This short film demonstrating Texas diversity and showing the lives of immigrant families and different refugee communities throughout Houston, Texas, is one of Hagan’s latest films. It is an effort to let immigrants share their stories with the world.

“I’m from Texas, and I started this project at the time when Governor Greg Abbott claimed that he was going to ban all Syrian refugees from Texas. Many of my non-Texan friends believed that Texas was extremely xenophobic,” says Hagan. She aimed to dispel this stereotype and demonstrate Houston’s welcoming nature.

She says this led her to interview city officials, lawyers, healthcare workers and immigrants for her film.

Her other films can be found at vimeo.com/abigailhagan or at abigailhagan.com.

Houston is considered to be one of the most diverse large cities in the United States, right behind New York city. Residents interested in seeing this diversity showcased on the big screen can watch Abigail’s new film at 14 Pews on Saturday, February 17.