Rene Rhi grew up in the sister cities of Matamoros, Tamaulipas and Brownsville, Texas. After graduating from The University of Texas at Austin with degrees in Journalism and Spanish, he joined the Cross Border Institute for Regional Development (CBIRD) where he was involved in economic policy and sustainable business development along the US-Mexico border.In 2007, he became the youngest ever director of CineFestival San Antonio, the oldest Latin film festival in the US. Through partnerships he forged within the Texas film community, Rene was awarded the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts Scholarship and enrolled in the MFA film program at the University of Southern California. While at USC, he founded the Latino Film Association and concentrated in Motion Picture Production, Finance, Sales & Distribution.After graduating from USC, Rhi worked for the American Film Market and Celsius Entertainment; a London based content sales agency, where he was involved in the International distribution, acquisition and financing of independent films.