The politically-infused romantic comedy “1/20” is premiering June 23 at the Detroit-Windsor International Film Festival, followed by a Q&A session with actor Will Shepherd.

The movie, which takes place in 2009, is about a group of small-town young adults who try to escape their mundane situations in life by taking a road trip to Washington, D.C.

Xiomira, played by Ayako Ibaraki, is a Japanese immigrant from West Virginia who is sick of her boring, small town life. She hatches a plan to make it to Washington, D.C. in time for President Barack Obama’s inauguration speech.

“The film is about the people, and I like that; it wasn’t some political film pushing one party. It’s about people,” said Shepherd, who plays Arlo, a mechanic from West Virginia romantically involved with Xiomira.

Arlo tries to keep the relationship together even though they are moving in different directions. Shepherd describes his character as simple, conservative, down-to-earth and wise above his age.

“It gave me an opportunity to portray an individual that I was somewhat familiar with,” Shepherd said.

North Carolina-born Shepherd said being a mechanic could have been a career choice if not for acting. He has been a professional actor four years and won a Best Actor Award at the Barebones Film Festival for the movie “Purple Mind.”

“Motivation to make this movie was to break the molds of comedy individual archetypes and representations of behavior and family,” Director Gerardo del Castillo Ramirez said in a statement. “The objective was to build a rebellious film, very independent, but at the same time innocent.”

“1/20” is the first feature by Ramirez, who studied film directing at the Film School of Barcelona and helped organize the Buenos Aires and Oaxaca film festivals.

“[Ramirez] is an amazing director,” Shepherd said. “I would work with him the rest of my career. He is just awesome.”

Shepherd said that after his audition for the film, the language barrier between him and Ramirez was a challenge, but after filming started, he discovered Ramirez to be patient and skilled in directing other actors.

The film also focuses on punk music and features the band Against Me!, along with music donated by various indie artists.

The Detroit-Windsor International Film Festival, sponsored in part by Wayne State University, runs from June 22 until June 26.