I recently had a moment to catch up with Alejandro Montoya Marin, a director and writer with roots in Laredo. He has been on a whirlwind tour with his third feature film, The Unexpecteds, which won best comedy at Smodcastle Film Festival.
The Unexpecteds — recognized by The LA Times as one of the Best 25 Latino Films of 2025 — has also received numerous other recognitions on the indie film festival circuit. While visiting at universities in Mexico, Alejandro took a break to chat while in Monterrey where he was talking about filmmaking to aspiring students wanting to break into the film industry.
Cliffe Killam (CK): How has growing up in Laredo and in Merida and the other places that you’ve been in your life shaped you? Your view of the world and how they shaped your filmmaking?
Alejandro Montoya Marin (AMM): That’s a great question. I think every time we live somewhere or somewhere else, we allow the atmospheres of the people, the architecture, the customs, the food to all shape us in different ways. I try to put my essence into these movies through the music and customs that I grew up with, but in a way that doesn’t feel forced. I want it to feel natural as part of the story.
CK: When did you kind of fall in love with movies? What was the first movie you fell in love with?
AMM: The first movie I fell in love with? I mean, with the movie or the experience? The experience was when I saw Katy La Oruga and it was in Laredo. I think it was seeing an animation from Spain about a worm that becomes a butterfly. That’s kind of like the plot, but I remember being in the city sitting down and the big ass curtain opening, and you’re like, whoa! And yeah, I fell in love with the whole going to the movies. I looked forward to the weekend. Every time there was a possibility of going to the movies, I would go. I love it! With a specific film. I mean all the classics, right? Like Alien, Predator, Back to the Future, then later in my life, like Seven and Do the Right Thing and Pulp Fiction, Silence of the Lambs, all those. At every stage in life there is a different kind of falling in love with films because every decade or every so often, your mind and how you see things in the world changes because of where you are in life. So the way you perceive art is different or how you identify with certain pieces of art is experienced differently. So, yeah, still falling in love with movies all the time.
CK: Your most recent feature film. What’s it about, who are some of the actors?
AMM: Yeah, man. My third feature film, The Unexpecteds, is an action comedy about a group of friends, suburban parents who lose their life savings to a YouTuber that scams them. And now these suburban schlubs must muster the courage to get the money back. I was lucky enough to meet and actually seek out these actors that were part of the cast I was able to work with. One of the cast members is Matt Walsh from Veep and The Hangover. I have been a big fan of his for years. There’s also Alejandro de Hoyos from Man of Toronto, Chelsea Rendon from Vida Shameless, and Francisco Ramos, John Kaler, Jason Konopisos-Alvarez, Natasha Leggero, and Sonia Smith.
CK: What’s your message to young artists and filmmakers trying to break in?
AMM: Don’t wait! Don’t wait for permission, just do it! Don’t wait for Netflix to give you an opportunity. You have the power and the opportunity to go and get a camera to do it. And I think that that’s why I chose Robert Rodriguez and Kevin Smith, as my biggest influences that I got to work with professionally and who became my mentors. They represent this rebelliousness. The rebellion of getting to do what you love. Don’t wait for what is in the hands of other people. It’s in your hands. Make it happen.
(Cliffe Killam, an active community civic and business leader, is passionate about giving back to Laredo and South Texas through leadership that generates positive, high impact outcomes. He believes the arts can develop creative and critical thinking for future artists and leaders. He has a deep commitment to improving Laredo and Webb County through education, healthcare, economic development, and downtown Laredo.)
