The Mexican Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences (AMACC) announced on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, that En el camino, by Tijuana-born director David Pablos, will represent Mexico in the Oscar race for Best International Feature Film. The film, starring Víctor Prieto and Osvaldo Sánchez, leads the 2026 Ariel Award nominations with 13 nods.
The selection carries dual significance for the Latin community in North America: the story grows out of the border region, and the ceremony will be held in Los Angeles, one of the cities with the largest Mexican audiences in the United States. Pablos, a Tijuana native, shot En el camino on highways through Chihuahua and Ciudad Juárez. The film follows an unlikely romance between two men traveling cargo routes. According to El Universal, the director spent ten years bringing the project to the screen, drawing from interviews with truck drivers. Last year's Oscar for Best International Feature went to the Norwegian film Sentimental Value, and the AMACC also selected Moscas, by Fernando Eimbcke, to compete for the 2027 Goya Award in Spain.
Selection does not equal nomination. The path to the Oscar involves two cuts: on December 15, 2026, the Academy will reveal a shortlist of 15 films, and on January 21, 2027, it will announce the five finalists. Before reaching that stage, En el camino premiered at the Venice Film Festival, where it won Best Film in the Horizons section and the Queer Lion 2025. At the Morelia Film Festival, it added the award for best cinematography, for Ximena Amann, and best actor, for Víctor Prieto. The story follows Veneno, a young man who frequents roadside diners, and Muñeco, a solitary driver with whom he begins an unlikely romance. The film opened in Mexican theaters in June.
The 99th Oscar ceremony will be held on March 14, 2027, in Los Angeles. There, it will become clear whether the journey of En el camino, from Tijuana to the Dolby Theatre, ends in a nomination for Mexico.
This article was written with artificial intelligence assistance based on verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.