Netflix
Fernando Frías de la Parra, the writer-director behind Mexico's entry in the best international feature Oscar race, talks casting non-actors and fielding praise from Guillermo Del Toro and Alfonso Cuarón for his feature debut.
Following in the footsteps of acclaimed Mexican directors Guillermo del Toro, Alfonso Cuarón and Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Fernando Frías de la Parra has entered the awards conversation this year with his feature
I'm No Longer Here, Mexico's official submission for the best international feature Oscar.
The Netflix film,
Ya No Estoy Aqui in Spanish, follows a group of teens in Monterrey, Mexico who spend their days dancing to cumbia music from Colombia as part of the"Kolombia" subculture. The leader of the crew, Ulises, is later threatened by a rival gang and escapes to New York City, stranded far from his way of life. The cast, including star Juan Daniel Garcia Treviño, almost exclusively comprises first-time actors whom Frías found and rehearsed with for three months in Monterrey.