The 32nd Havana International Festival of the New Latin American Cinema, to be held from December 2nd through the 12th, within the context of a revolution that revolutionizes itself, said Alfredo Guevara.
Defined by its founder as “a feast of thought and intelligence,” the 32nd presentation of Havana’s International Festival of the New Latin American Cinema, is to be held in this capital from December 2nd through to the 12th, within a particularly encouraging context, when Cuban society has taken upon itself “the revolutionizing process of its Revolution,” according to the assessment made by Alfredo Guevara, president of the event, while presenting its program to the press on Monday. Save
This process is possible,” stated Guevara, “because we have the power, achieved half a century ago when the Revolution toppled the pro-imperialist oligarchy, and no one can push us in another direction but the one we have chosen ourselves. It’s an experience that should serve as an example.”
The well-known intellectual referred to the passion with which the Cuban public follows the festivals, but pointed out how these events go beyond screenings. And that’s because cinema, he underlined, should not be understood on the margin of culture.
With respect to the impact of new technologies on audiovisual production, he stated that, on the one hand ,they guarantee freedom of creation “the times of the large studios and truck-dressing rooms of his days as Luis Bunuel ‘s assistant in Mexico,” he said with nostalgia, “have been left behind, but on the other they have recycled stupidity.
But he expressed his confidence that young producers will take advantage of these possibilities to achieve the world of freedom.
The new edition of the Festival will be a milestone in terms of the record participation of 515 productions, 163 of them in the various categories of the contest.
Participating in the competition for the coveted Coral prizes in the feature film category will be 21 films made over the last year, some of them preceded by an aura of success, like Argentina’s Carancho, by Pablo Trapero and La Mirada Invisible, by Diego Lehman; Chile’s La Vida de los Peces, by Matias Bize; Mexico’s Chicogrande, by veteran Felipe Cazals; and Cuba’s Marti, El Ojo del Canario, by Fernando Parez.
A strong battle to be among competitors in the First Work category with their feature films – a total of 25 on this occasion – is also expected, two of them made by celebrated actors who decided to place themselves behind cameras: Cubans Vladimir Cruz and Jorge Perugorria (Afinidades) and Mexican Diego Luna (Abel), and another one by a Venezuelan director, Marcel Rasquin, who has just received the Colon de Oro Prize of the Huelva Festival for Brothers.
Granma
November 23th, 2010
