Antonio Méndez Esparza

Antonio Méndez Esparza's sophomore film, Life and Nothing More, was shot in Tallahassee, FL, during the elections of 2016. Shot with a small crew, and with a cast of all non-professional actors, the film was awarded the John Cassavetes Award in the Independent Spirit Awards in 2018. It has been named in several top ten films of the year.

His previous film Aquí y Allá premiered at Critics Week at the Cannes Film Festival in 2012, where it was awarded the Grand Prix. The film traveled around the world, including the New York Festival, Karlovy Vary, Moscow, Thessaloniki, San Sebastian, Tokyo, AFI Film Festival, Busan and Mumbai gathering a number of accolades.

Antonio is the co-founder of Aquí y Allí Films, a feature film production company with a special interest in fostering the work of relevant and personal storytelling.

Born in Madrid, Antonio earned a law degree before moving to the U.S. to develop his filmmaking career, where he earned an MFA from Columbia University. Antonio teaches film at Florida State University.

Recommended Resources:

• Zavattini's Some Ideas on Cinema
• Directors: Robert Bresson, Bruno Dumont. Hou Hsiao Hsien and Jia Zhangke
• Books: André Bazin's What Is Cinema?

Artist's Work: 

• Aquí y Allá (2012) Password: gibbon39boswell42
• Life & Nothing More (2017) Password: LANM%filmconstelation%

Artist's Chosen Interview: 

• Antonio Méndez Esparza on Race, Class and Understanding in Life and Nothing More
• Life and Nothing More Q&A | Antonio Mendez Esparza | Film Comment Selects 2018