Anya Graciela says that during the two years of the pandemic she was unable to do what she had always dreamed of: acting.
But from that test he learned something and wrote his first short film about the difficulties that young people go through in times of COVID.
“I felt more independent and the pandemic changed my way of thinking,” said Anya Graciela Jiménez.
In January, Anya won first place in a writing competition in her senior year of high school.
That first place qualified her to participate in the “US Presidential Scholar” or “the President’s Scholars,” a national Department of Education program established by order of the president.
It is one of the highest awards for high school students. To Anya’s surprise, she was selected as one of the few.
“I was so excited and grateful, I couldn’t believe it.”
Only 161 students were chosen this year in the entire country. Only seven are from New York state.
Anya and her dad Robert.
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Anya is an only child who lives in Brooklyn with her mom and her dad, who is a stage actor.
“Full of love, laughter and happiness, lots of happiness,” Robert Jimenez said.
It is a success that Anya thought she would not achieve when she had to stop her rehearsals due to the pandemic.
“I was scared for the future and my life completely.”
“It was very difficult to maintain our lives, our standard of living and at the same time my mother was sick, I had limited time to see her,” added the father.
Anya’s grandmother, Graciela, died last year.
She admired her. Her grandmother only passed primary school but she, together with her husband, supported her children.
“We owe and thank our parents,” Robert said.
Thanks to her performance and good grades, Anya has received thousands of dollars in scholarships and was accepted to the University of Southern California which has one of the best acting programs in the country.
“I know (that) it’s difficult, but I’m going to grow a lot,” said Anya.
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