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Hijo de monarcas by Alexis Gambis was presented at the 18th FICM

Gabriela Martínez @GabbMartivel

Hijo de monarcas (2020), by Alexis Gambis, was presented virtually as a part of the 18th Morelia International Film Festival (FICM). The film was shot largely in the state of Michoacán.

After the death of his grandmother, a Mexican biologist living in New York returns after many years to his hometown in Michoacán, a town surrounded by majestic forests where monarch butterflies inhabit. The journey forces him to face past trauma and reflect on his new hybrid identity, launching him into a personal and spiritual metamorphosis.

Tenoch Huerta, the protagonist of the film, described his character as "a monarch butterfly that begins to break all the pieces of itself, like caterpillars do in the cocoon, to end up rebuilding itself."

Alexis Gambis, director of the film, said it talks about the search for identity, "it is important to have stories that celebrate the hybrid identity, it was very important not to play with the stereotype of the immigrant. There are many migrants who are scientists, artists and many times we do not see them in movies."

In 2018, Gambis participated in the FICM with the short film Los mimos monarcas, which follows the last surviving monarch butterfly, who after the death of her partner, has a message for humanity.

Hijo de monarcas will be available for 24 hours at Cinépolis KLIC from October 31 at 7:00 p.m.