The Mexican film I’m No Longer Here / Ya no estoy aquí, the second feature film by director Fernando Frías, has won the Best Narrative Feature Award at the 19th edition of the Ashland Independent Film Festival, which was held online between May 22 and June 14.
The film, partly set in the surrounding mountains of Monterrey, Mexico, follows a small street gang named “Los Terkos” that spend their days listening to slowed down cumbia music and attending dance parties, showing off their outfits, hairstyles and gang alliances. These different bands of disaffected youth refer to themselves as Kolombianos, combining the Cholo culture with Colombian music. Ulises Samperio (17), the leader of Los Terkos, tries to protect his friends from the nefarious elements of a quickly evolving drug/political war, but after a misunderstanding with a local cartel, he is forced to leave for Jackson Heights, Queens, a diverse immigrant community in New York City. Ulises tries to assimilate, but when he learns that his gang and the whole Kolombia culture is under threat, he questions his place in America and longs to return home.
I’m No Longer Here, which has also taken top honors for Best Film at the Morelia and Cairo film festivals, is currently streaming on Netflix.
