Communication alum takes ‘Journey’ from script to screen

For San Jacinto College communication alumnus Cristopher Rodriguez, filmmaking started with a small camcorder and a lot of curiosity. 

Growing up in Houston, Rodriguez wasn't only interested in watching movies. He wanted to understand how they were made. When his mother took classes at a public library near their home, he discovered there were movies he could rent. 

“They had these little documentaries and featurettes from behind the scenes, and then I would mimic what they were doing,” Rodriguez said. “Because I didn't know how to edit with software, I would edit in-camera.” 

He recruited his nieces and nephews as actors and began making his own films. 

That early experimentation became a career. 

Today, Rodriguez is a director, producer, writer, and cinematographer who has worked in film and television for more than 15 years. He has served as director of photography on the Discovery Channel series “Contraband: Seized at the Border” since its first season, along with its two subsequent spinoffs. 

Finding a creative path 

At Chavez High School, Rodriguez built on his early interest in filmmaking when a new film program gave him access to equipment and room to experiment. 

“My teacher literally gave me the key to the class,” Rodriguez said. “I would just sit there editing until midnight sometimes, and it would just be me and the cleaning crew.” 

His art teacher also introduced him to a free photography program at the Glassell School of Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, where Rodriguez's work was selected for exhibitions at the MFAH and Contemporary Arts Museum Houston. 

“I think taking advantage of those opportunities really led me on the right path,” he said. 

That path led Rodriguez to San Jacinto College, where he studied communications and earned an associate degree in January 2011. 

“I had applied to major universities, but I had to work and pay for my own stuff,” Rodriguez said. “San Jac was affordable, and I knew it had great classes and great teachers, so it really helped me make that decision.” 

One of his communications instructors, the late Fred Faour, became an important mentor. Faour was a notable Houston sports radio host, and he helped Rodriguez find professional opportunities, including an internship at 104.1 KRBE. 

Building a career behind the camera 

Around the same time, Rodriguez was also gaining experience in television news. At 18, he began shooting from helicopters for Fox 26 and occasionally ABC 13, covering traffic, car chases, and hostage situations that were picked up nationally. 

After several years in radio and news, Rodriguez began shooting commercials and music videos. He partnered with Orlando Briones to purchase one of Houston's early RED digital cinema cameras, and the pair launched OC Films in the Heights. 

His work eventually led him to “Journey,” his feature-film directorial debut.  Rodriguez co-wrote the film with brothers Orlando and Christian Briones. The story follows Roberto, a young man who grows up in Laredo, Texas, but is deported to Mexico after an immigration raid. Having spent his life in the United States, Roberto must find his way back to his family in a country he barely knows. 

The filmmakers wanted audiences to see the person behind the headline. 

“When somebody gets deported, that's just the beginning of their story,” Rodriguez said. “This story was inspired by real-life situations and is just one of a million stories like it happening every day.” 

Getting the film to theaters was a journey itself. Its original release was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and a later distribution deal fell through. 

“Every time the movie was paused for a reason. There was a new blessing that would come, a bigger opportunity,” Rodriguez said. 

The film opened Oct. 2 in 57 theaters across the U.S., with a premiere in Laredo, Texas and a second opening at AMC 30 Gulf Pointe next week, starting on Friday, Oct. 23.  

Rodriguez is already pitching more scripts and developing additional stories he hopes to tell. With “Journey,” he has expanded his work behind the camera, while continuing to build a career rooted in the same curiosity that started with a camcorder. 

“It's been a long road,” Rodriguez said. “But I would do it again in a second.” 

For more information about “Journey” and current theater listings, visit Journey the Movie. 

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About San Jacinto College

Surrounded by monuments of history, evolving industries, maritime enterprises of today, and the space age of tomorrow, San Jacinto College has served the people of East Harris County, Texas, since 1961. The College is ranked second in the nation among more than 1,100 community colleges, as designated by the Aspen Institute and was named an Achieving the Dream Leader College of Distinction in 2020 and 2026. As a Hispanic-Serving Institution that spans five campuses, plus an online college, San Jacinto College serves approximately 45,000 credit and non-credit students annually. It offers more than 200 degrees and certificates across eight major areas of study that put students on a path to transfer to four-year institutions or enter the workforce. The College is fiscally sound, holding bond ratings of AA+ by Standard & Poor’s and Aa2 by Moody’s. San Jacinto College is accredited by the The Commission on Colleges and Universities.