Oscar winner Alfonso Cuaron has revealed he "always dreamed" of making his new movie 'Roma'.

Alfonso Cuaron

Alfonso Cuaron

In his first movie since 2013's 'Gravity' - which earned him the Best Director Academy Award, as well as winning six other Oscars - the 55-year-old writer-and-director has just wrapped shooting on the drama, which is based on a year-in-the-life of a middle-class family living in Mexico City during the early 1970s.

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday (14.03.17) announcing the movie, Cuaron revealed many elements of the movie are based on his own childhood which is why it was so important for him to get the project off the ground.

He said: "Returning to my country with this specific project was something very personal, because we made a film set in the 1970s, with many elements and experiences of my childhood."

Using an anecdote that fellow Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro once told him, he continued: "Del Toro told me that certain movies are like a box of cereal with a prize included, because when you're a kid, you eat it all up to know what you got. 'Gravity' was for me that little toy, and I made the decision to use it to go back to Mexico and make the film I had always dreamed of."

Last September, Alfonso partnered with Participant Media to make the film, which is his first since 'Y Tu Mamá También' made him a star on the international film circuit.

Cuaron explained that the movie is called 'Roma' because of how he has seen Mexico City develop over the past four decades. He teased that he captures the changes in infrastructure and the arts in the film but kept tight-lipped on what the script was about.

However, it has been reported that the film will include a major historical event called the Corpus Christi Massacre, in which soldiers killed liberal student protesters in Mexico City on June 10, 1971.

And speaking about returning to his home city to shoot, Cuaron declared: "I can live abroad, but my head always thinks about Mexico and as a Mexican I am always aware of what is happening in my country ... returning to Mexico to make movies was a necessity."

The cast list hasn't yet been revealed either, though it is believed to be made up mostly of local actors.

Cuaron, Gabriela Rodriguez and Nicolas Celis have produced the film, while Linde, Jeff Skoll and Jonathan King from Participant Media will serve as executive producers.

'Roma' is expected to be released in 2018.

Tagged in