La Vida Robot

‘La Vida Robot’ To Show True Story Of How Undocumented Students Beat The Odds

Editor’s note:

Ten years ago, WIRED contributing editor Joshua Davis wrote a story about four high school students in Phoenix, Arizona—three of them undocumented immigrants from Mexico—beating MIT in an underwater robot competition. That story, La Vida Robot, has a new chapter: Spare Parts, starring George Lopez and Carlos PenaVega, opens in January, and Davis is publishing a book by the same title updating the kids’ story. To mark that occasion, WIRED is republishing his original story.

In 2004, a team of four undocumented high school students from Phoenix did something no one thought was possible. They won first place in a national underwater robotics competition, beating students from some of the nation’s top universities.

Now, their incredible journey is being made into a movie titled “La Vida Robot.” The film, produced by Pantelion Films, will be released in theaters this fall. It stars George Lopez, Jamie Lee Curtis, Marisa Tomei and Carlos Pena.

The film shows how students Lorenzo Santillan, Oscar Vazquez, Cristian Arcega and Luis Aranda from Carl Hayden Community High School beat a group of MIT students and went on to win first place in a national robotics competition held at Santa Barbara, Calif., in 2004.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Vazquez told VOXXI, recalling how he felt when they won. “I just remember being so happy.”

Vazquez, who is currently serving in the Army, was considered the leader of the group dubbed the Falcon Robotics Team. He and the three other students used the $800 they fundraised to build their underwater robot, which they named “Stinky.” Meanwhile, their opponents fundraised thousands to build their robots.

And while other teams used top-notch tools and materials to build their underwater robots, the Falcon Robotics Team used everyday materials to build theirs. For example, they used PVC pipes that they bought at Home Depot and assembled them using rubber glue.