The Women In Film International Committee, the Cuban Women Filmmakers Mediatheque, the Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematograficos (ICAIC) and the American Cinematheque are taking on a huge, exciting new project—a Tri-State showcase of films by Cuban women.
In collaboration with a bevy of organizations including Women Make Movies, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, NewFilmmakers Los Angeles, New York Women In Film & Television are bringing an exciting slate of films (shorts, documentaries and features) directed by Cuban woman to Los Angeles, New York and Miami.
The women participating in the showcase include some of Cuba’s most accomplished directors, writers and actors including award-winning filmmaker and head of the Cuban Women Filmmakers Mediatheque, Marina Ochoa; award-winning Afro-Cuban documentary filmmaker, Gloria Rolando; award-winning feature filmmaker Milena Almira and one of Cuba’s most internationally acclaimed film and theater actresses, Claudia Rojas. It is the first time a group of Cuban women filmmakers have shown their work in the U.S.
Over 20 films from the Cuban Women Filmmakers Mediatheque will be shown at various times at the venues participating in the three cities. Alongside films there will also be panels and Q&As to create opportunities between U.S. and Cuban women within the industry.
Ruby Lopez, WIF International Committee co-chair says:
The industry has become a dynamic global community. The Women In Film International Committee mission is to create programming that offers women the opportunity to express and share their voices. Creating this showcase allows for the exploration and expression of multicultural viewpoints that serve to broaden and deepen the art of telling stories through cinema.
The showcase kicks off in Los Angeles on March 6, New York on March 13 and ends in Miami on March 18-25. You can find more information on the showcase here and a preview of some of the films playing below.
DERECHO DE SER (THE RIGHT TO BE) – Claudia Rojas (First U.S. Screening)
Year: 2013, Genre: Documentary
Synopsis: Queen Nzinga Maxwell talks for the first time about her most personal and most painful experiences. In a sunflower field she gets rid of the pain, while she gives the air her poems
BLANCO ES MI PELO, NEGRA MI PIEL (WHITE IS MY HAIR, BLACK IS MY SKIN) – Marina Ochoa
Year: 1997, Genre: Documentary
Synopsis: Four moments in the life of María de los Reyes Castillo (Reyita), 95 years old. She was born with the Republic, was a slave's granddaughter and a free womb’s daughter.
JULIETA BUSCA A ROMEO (JULIET IS LOOKING FOR ROMEO) -Marina Ochoa
Year: 1998, Genre: Documentary
Synopsis: Holguín, Cuba, the 1990s. A group of girls talks about what receiving a letter from abroad means.
EL GRITO (THE SCREAM) – Milena Almira
Year: 2007, Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: A woman and a man are having dinner in a restaurant. Everything seems to go fine, until she gets bored of the usual protocol and makes a comment that will change the course of the night. It is a reflection on the relations of power.
QUORUM- Milena Almira
Year: 2009, Genre: Fiction
Summary: Five youngsters and Berta Lí meet in an old cemetery. A reflection on the limits of existence
UNO AL OTRO (ONE ANOTHER) – Milena Almira
Year: 2011, Genre: Documentary
Synopsis: A couple of young artists marked by love and difference
NOSOTROS Y EL JAZZ (US AND JAZZ) – Gloria Rolando
Year: 2004, Genre: Documentary
Synopsis: During the 1940s and 1950s, young dancers from Havana discovered jazz and gathered around it. At the beginning, that genre in the south of the United States was confluence of multiple styles and ways of making music. In private houses, black societies and some bars in Havana, people enjoyed what they called jam sessions. Despite the years passed by, some of them stay together, dancing and enjoying jazz and the friendship that keeps them together.
