Mexican Animators Roy, Arturo Ambriz Prep ‘Ballad of the Phoenix’

Mexican animators Roy and Arturo Ambriz, the groundbreaking duo behind their country’s first-ever stop-motion animated feature, are hoping to hit a high note with “Ballad of the Phoenix,” which the brothers are taking to the Venice Gap-Financing Market running Sept. 4 – 6.

A stop-motion fantasy inspired by the epic sagas of Mexican lore, it marks the anticipated follow-up to gothic musical “I Am Frankelda,” a box-office sensation upon its release last year and a watershed moment for Mexican animation. 

“Ballad of the Phoenix” tells the story of Virian, a fire-wielding princess who flees home after learning that her father steals souls enabling him to live forever. With the king desperate to preserve power and in hot pursuit, she sets out with her spirit guide Phoenix, seeking truth through alchemy while learning to master her inner world.

Written and directed by the Ambriz brothers, the film is produced by them for Cinema Fantasma, the Mexico City-based animation studio they founded in 2011; Andrea Toca, Rafael Ley and Mario Savino for Woo Films; and Marta Hernaiz Pidal for Cine Vendaval.

In a director’s statement provided to Variety, the brothers described “Phoenix” as a film that’s “about transformation as a path to purpose,” and part of a broader effort “to create a distinctly Mexican cinematic universe that speaks primarily to children, while resonating with wider audiences through its emotional and philosophical depth.”

“Through Virian, we explore responsibility, grief, the passage of time and the emotional complexity of family bonds. She is not a traditional epic hero, but a reflection of the quiet strength required to transform oneself,” the statement read. “This film explores the need to transcend fear and ego, proposing that true purpose lies in empathy, service and inner peace, an idea we hope resonates long after the story ends.”

“Ballad of the Phoenix” marks the latest chapter in the incredible story of the Ambriz brothers, whose Kickstarter campaign to crowdfund their first animated short attracted the attention of Guillermo del Toro and who later mortgaged their house to make “I Am Frankelda.” 

Speaking to Variety from Mexico City, Roy Ambriz recounted the duo’s against-all-odds journey, insisting: “Nobody thought we could do it.” 

The brothers began developing “Ballad of the Phoenix” more than 10 years ago, but the film was temporarily shelved when they were commissioned to produce the stop-motion animated series “Frankelda’s Book of Spooks,” which aired on Cartoon Network Latin America and HBO Max. That, in turn, led to “I Am Frankelda” — a feature-length prequel to the TV series — which was the third highest-grossing film of 2025 in Mexico and was released worldwide on Netflix earlier this year. 

With their sophomore feature, the brothers look to not only build on their previous success but continue to “push the limits of what can be done in animation with different aesthetics,” according to Ambriz.

“There has not been a lot of exploration of what a Mexican aesthetic could be in animation,” he said. “What we try to do in each of our films is to create a whole new world, and to add to these worlds some elements that feel really Mexican — in the relationships between the characters, in some of the aesthetics, how they cook, how they speak, how they dance. That’s what we are trying to achieve — to expand what the Mexican aesthetic for animation can be.”

To do that, they naturally sought advice from another Mexican pioneer.

Del Toro has lent both inspiration and support since Roy reached out as a starstruck film student nearly two decades ago. The relationship deepened when the brothers sent del Toro a rough cut of “Frankelda” — and admitted they were desperate for help.

“We had a lot of debt, we had no idea how to do the distribution of a film. We had no contacts, no idea how it works,” said Ambriz. “That’s when he started helping us more profoundly. Since then, we have been talking with him daily.” 

Describing the three-time Academy Award winner as “our mentor and a really good friend,” Ambriz also shared the pointed advice del Toro offered following the breakout success of “Frankelda.”

“Everybody is going to tell you that for the next film, you have to do it cheaper, and that you have to take less risks. But you have to do completely the opposite,” Ambriz recalled the director saying. “No one is going to tell you this except me, but I know how this works. You have to go bigger.”

Bolstered by the extraordinary success of “Frankelda,” the brothers are looking to do just that — and hoping others will feel inspired to follow in their footsteps.

“Now that we proved that these productions can be made in Mexico, and that [‘Frankelda’] was a hit on the theatrical release…I really hope that this will help new filmmakers realize that these productions can be made,” Ambriz said. “And also, for producers, that it’s a good idea to invest in these kinds of stories and aesthetics.”