Mexican director Gabriel Gutiérrez Morales has created a film that emerged from severe creative constraints. Working with a modest budget of €200,000 and a compressed timeline of just ten months provided by the Biennale College – Cinema program, Gutiérrez Morales completed “Tijuana, Todavía,” which now competes for the Queer Lion at the 83rd Venice Film Festival. Producer Humberto Busto noted that despite the financial limitations, the restrictions fostered an unexpectedly fulfilling creative process.
The film explores the complicated relationship between Maksim, a young Russian man who fled his country to escape military conscription and persecution, and Chava, a middle-aged Mexican gay man navigating Northern Mexico’s rigid cultural norms. Set in the border town of Tijuana, the narrative examines themes of displacement, queer identity, and refugee experiences. Busto emphasized that the project addresses urgent contemporary issues affecting LGBTQ+ communities globally, particularly in light of recent political developments threatening queer rights worldwide.
The casting proved remarkably serendipitous. Actor Petr Filimonov, who portrays Maksim, is himself a Russian refugee who fled after opposing the Ukraine war and facing persecution for his sexual orientation. Filimonov had recently begun studying acting before being cast, bringing authentic lived experience to the fictional character. Gutiérrez Morales drew inspiration from his own youth in Tijuana and a decades-long friendship with a gay Russian, grounding the narrative in genuine personal connection and real-world circumstances.
Originally reported by Variety →
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