Photos by Sophia Morales
The 2026 Heatwave Media and Film Festival kicked off Monday night with the event’s opening ceremony, hosted in the Lowman Student Center Orange Ballroom.
Photos by Brianna Courtney
Prior to the opening ceremony, a VIP event was held in the Dan Rather Communication Building to recognize the 2026 Howard Grant Award winners and other special guests.
Below is the full schedule for Heatwave, as listed on SHSU’s events website. We will publish additional images from the festival later this week.
April 27
Opening Event | LSC Orange Ballroom | 7:30 PM
- Doors 0pen at 7 p.m.
April 28
Screenings & Guest Speakers | Belvin Creative Community
- 9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. | Enrique Vasquez – Broadcast
- 10:45 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. | Michael Flores – PR & Advertising
- 2:00 PM – 3:15 p.m. | Narrative Film Screenings
- 3:30 – 5:00 p.m. | Belvin Block Screenings
- 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Display of other media finalists in DRCB 212
- 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. | Evening Media Trivia Games in Belvin-Buchanan Hall
April 29
Screenings & Guest Speakers | Dan Rather Communications Building 125
- 9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. | Ashley Seering – Former SHSU film faculty, Beyond Texas finalist. (Includes film screening and Q&A of A Lovely Uncontrollable Thing)
- 10:45 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. | Diamond Dickson – Journalism/Meteorology
- 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. | 2025 Vance and Karen Howard Film Production Award Screenings and Q&A
- 4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Independent Filmmaker Screenings and Q & A
April 30
Faculty Masterclass & Screenings | Dan Rather Communications Building 125
- 2:00 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. | Non-narrative finalist screeings
- 3:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Heatwave Narrative Film finalist screenings
- High School Day | Time & Locations Vary
Award Ceremony
- April 30 | 7:00 p.m. | LSC Orange Ballroom
