The Texas Promise

The Texas Promise
Festival release poster
Directed byVanessa Roth
Produced by
Cinematography
  • Arthur Yee
  • Zachary Sprague
  • Scott Thurman
Edited byLivio Sanchez
Music byAsche & Spencer
Production
company
Lindige Films LLC
Release date
  • October 25, 2014 (2014-10-25) (Austin Film Festival)
Running time
99 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Texas Promise is a 2014 documentary film about public education in Texas. The film follows the 83rd Texas Legislature, as state lawmakers battle over school funding after making $5.4 billion in cuts to public education in the previous legislative session.[1] The film also covers the school finance court case, in which nearly two-thirds of Texas public school districts sued the state alleging that state funding of public education continues to be inadequate and inequitable.[2] The film also covers other major education issues that came up during the 2013 session, like high-stakes testing, school choice, and charter reform. The Texas Promise was produced and directed by Academy Award winning filmmaker Vanessa Roth.

The film premiered on October 25, 2014 at the Austin Film Festival.[3][4]

  1. ^ Smith, Morgan (September 27, 2012). "Report Examines How Budget Cuts Affected Texas Schools". The Texas Tribune.
  2. ^ Stutz, Terrence (January 21, 2014). "Texas school districts, state again battle in court over funding". The Dallas Morning News.
  3. ^ Whittaker, Richard (August 20, 2014). "Austin Film Festival Showcases Linklater, Cumberbatch: First round of films announced mixes world and Texas premieres". The Austin Chronicle.
  4. ^ "AFF Reveals First Slate of Films for 21st Annual Festival & Conference" (Press release). Austin, Texas: Austin Film Festival. June 19, 2014. Retrieved 2014-11-20.