Home Is Somewhere Else is a 2022 Mexican-American adult animated documentary film written and directed by Carlos Hagerman & Jorge Villalobos (in his directorial debut). It tells three stories of migrant families who share their fears, hopes, and emotions about what it means to live undocumented in the United States.
Synopsis It tells 3 independent stories about undocumented immigrants in the United States. The first story is about Jasmine, who lives in fear that her parents will be deported; the second is about the sisters Evelyn (US citizen) and Elizabeth (undocumented immigrant) who live apart due to their different immigration statuses; and the last one tells the story of José Eduardo Aguilar "El Deportee" who was deported to Mexico at the age of 23 and since then became an activist and defender of the Mexican deportees.
Release Home Is Somewhere Else had its international premiere on June 15, 2022, at the 41st Annecy International Animated Film Festival. It had its premiere in Mexican territory on June 17, 2022, at the 37th Guadalajara International Film Festival. Then, it premiered on September 26, 2022, at the AFI Latin American Film Festival and 4 days later at the GuadaLAjara Film Festival, Los Angeles. It was commercially released on May 4, 2023 in Mexican theaters.
Reception
Critical reception Carlos Aguilar from Cartoon Brew wrote: "Hagerman and Villalobos succeed at portraying each person beyond their status, or lack thereof. The film finds moments of joy to highlight and endearing passages of everyday victories that enrich our perception of its characters. These are not extraordinarily talented individuals or those who have survived the most harrowing experiences, but average people who, as much as anybody else, deserve peace of mind and opportunities to live freely." Alejandro Alemán from El Universal wrote: "What makes this documentary new is its way of narrating, with animations in three different styles, the first story stands out... The result is absolutely beautiful, not only because of the inevitable emotion of each story but also because of the animations. and the empathy that this beautiful documentary spreads."
Accolades YearAward / FestivalCategoryRecipientResultRef.2022Annecy International Animated Film FestivalContrechamp AwardCarlos Hagerman & Jorge VillalobosGuadalajara International Film FestivalBest International Animated FilmDocsDF, International Documentary Film Festival of Mexico City"Made in Mexico" AwardHavana Film FestivalAnimation Jury Special AwardMorelia International Film FestivalBest Documentary Feature FilmInternational Documentary Film Festival AmsterdamBest Youth Film +14Zanate Mexican Documentary Film FestivalGrand Prix Zanate - Honorable MentionMontclair Film FestivalNew Jersey Films Competition2023San Diego Latino Film FestivalDocumentary Audience AwardCarlos Hagerman, Jorge Villalobos & Mariana MarínCleveland International Film FestivalGreg Gund Memorial Standing Up AwardCarlos Hagerman & Jorge VillalobosAriel AwardsBest Documentary FeatureBest Animated Feature Film2024Platino AwardsBest Animated FilmSpain’s ‘Society of the Snow,’ ‘20,000 Species of Bees’ Sweep the Platino Awards
References
External links
Official Page