Life and Nothing More is the next feature film by Spanish filmmaker and teacher Antonio Méndez Esparza, following his debut film “Aquí y Allá,” which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2012 where it won the Critic’s Week Award. Life and Nothing More will premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival this weekend. It is led by first-time stars Andrew Bleechington and Regina Williams.

Antonio’s new feature film follows some of Aquí y Alla’s premises and goes even further, shooting this time on film instead of digital. At the center of the story are everyday people, played by nonprofessional actors, focusing on the main character: a 30-year-old African American single mother who lives in North Florida with her three sons, with a haunted and unforgiving past, who tries and struggles to make ends meet, while battling the monotony and difficulties of everyday life in an atmosphere festering with social inequality and racism.

Produced by the filmmaker’s Aquí y Allí Films, Life and Nothing More is being branded a “docu-fiction” that is mostly scripted, supplemented by real-life situations, and unfolds during the US presidential elections, “because it was important to capture that air of uncertainty”, according to the filmmakers.

This exclusive clip is on the character of Andrew. Synopsis: Standing on the edge of adulthood, Andrew yearns to find his purpose as a young African-American in today’s America. With his mother longing to find more to her life than parenting, Andrew is forced to take on the mounting pressure of family responsibility. His search for connection with an absent father, leads him to a dangerous crossroads.

Watch below: