Where the Tracks End as told by its director Ernesto Contreras

My mother is an elementary school teacher, now retired after a lifetime of teaching public school. I was a close witness to her commitment, her passion, and above all, her devotion to thousands of children who were her beloved students: I remember our house full of exams to be graded, homeworks, last names, nicknames, and so many anecdotes of those who, every now and then, in the port city of Veracruz, will come up to us in the street to say hello to my mother and to say thank you. And it was precisely that which, from the beginning, created such a personal connection for me with Angeles Doñate’s novel “El Último Vagón”. Its story takes place in a lost time and place in Mexico, with tremendously human characters, speaking to us of friendship, inspiration, imagination, the discovery of our first love, and those encounters that are life’s gifts to us and are able to change our lives.

One of the things about my job as a filmmaker that I find most exciting is the possibility to be surprised with each project; each movie has meant taking a long journey of exploration and learning, and, with Where the Tracks End, this journey turned into an opportunity to take on a different genre, with young –very young– actors and actresses who I admire and respect deeply, and with whom it was a pleasure to build each and every character to delve into the world of teaching in highly precarious conditions and into the fascinating universe of the Mexican railway. It could not get any more cinematographic than that: the cars, the tracks, the landscapes, their inhabitants, their people, and the toughest life of hard work and little reward.

I am convinced that Where the Tracks End is a luminous and endearing film, the kind that will certainly remain in the viewer’s memory because of its emotion and aesthetics alike. It was a fantastic opportunity to make a beautiful movie in every sense of the word, hand in hand with a wonderful team of professionals who contributed to everything we see and hear on screen. As a director, this journey was challenging in its completion, working with the actors, the tone, the pace, but most importantly, the fantastic possibility that film provides to make a full connection with our audience. Ernesto Contreras, Director