The 17th Havana Film Festival New York presents an exceptional program in celebration of the diversity of voices found today in Cuban and Latin American cinema and the inspirational stories they tell. Festival highlights include a tribute to the highly acclaimed and well-loved Cuban actors Isabel Santos (Vestido de novia, Cuba Libre) and Enrique Molina (La cosa humana); a retrospective commemorating the 20th anniversary of the late Tomás Gutierrez Alea, one of the most influential filmmakers of the last century; panels about filming and acting in Cuba; a special presentation of short documentaries about Cuban music; and World, U.S., and N.Y. premieres of award-winning features from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Ireland, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay, and U.S. Latinos. Havana Film Festival New York, a project of American Friends of the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba (AFLFC) takes place April 7-15, 2016.
"I applaud HFFNY, its organizers, and supporters for fostering cross-cultural exchange and advancing the film industry here in our city and beyond," says Mayor Bill de Blasio in his letter to HFFNY.
Our main venue this year is Village East Cinema, with other screenings and events taking place at the Directors Guild Theater (DGA), King Juan Carlos I of Spain Center at NYU (KJCC), and Instituto Cervantes in Manhattan; the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens; and The Bronx Museum of the Arts in the Bronx. All foreign language films are subtitled in English.
HFFNY starts with our ever-popular kick-off event First Fridays! at The Bronx Museum of the Arts, April 1st at 6pm with a free screening of Oliver Hill's La rumba me llama / Rumba Calling, the story of the rumba, from its roots to today, followed by a live performance with Cuban singer Melvis Santa.
Thurs. April 7 starting at 5:30pm at the DGA Theater, HFFNY rolls out the red carpet to officially launch its 17th edition with the N.Y. premiere of the critically acclaimed, independent Cuban drama El acompañante / The Companion, set during the AIDS epidemic in late 1980s Havana. Pavel Giroud (La edad de peseta, Omertá),one of Latin America's most influential directors, will be at the screening presenting the film alongside Orishas front man and leading actor Yotuel Romero.
Fri. April 15 at 6:00pm the festival closes with the Havana Star Prize ceremony followed by the N.Y. premiere of Papa, the first Hollywood picture filmed in Cuba since 1959. The film tells the story of a young journalist who becomes friendly with Ernest and Mary Hemingway and witnesses Hemingway's decline with the backdrop of the Cuban Revolution. Director Bob Yari will be presenting the film, followed by a Q&A and A Latin Night Party.
"No doubt Latin American cinema is having an extraordinary moment. Its strength comes from not only the fresh cinematic forms found in these movies, but the audacity and boldness of their filmmakers," says Diana Vargas, artistic director of HFFNY, who adds "In our 2016 line-up, we offer a raw worldly view of intimate stories and national histories that challenge us to expand our perspectives."
18 films are in competition for Havana Star Prizes: Best Film, Director, Screenplay, Actor, Actress and Documentary.
Fiction Competition: La patota / Paulina (Santiago Mitre, Argentina), Zoom (Pedro Morelli, Brazil), El bosque de Karadima / The Church of Karadima (Matias Lira, Chile), Magallanes (Salvador del Solar, Peru-Colombia), El acompañante / The Companion (Pavel Giroud, Cuba), Bailando con Margot / Dancing with Margot (Arturo Santana, Cuba), Cuba Libre (Jorge Luis Sanchez, Cuba), Eva no duerme / Eva Doesn't Sleep (Pablo Agüero, Argentina), Mi amiga del parque / My Friend from the Park (Ana Katz, Argentina), La Gunguna (Ernesto Alemany, Dominican Republic) and Presos / Imprisoned (Esteban Ramirez, Costa Rica).
Documentary Competition: Allende, mi abuelo Allende / Beyond my Grandfather Allende (Marcia Tambutti, Chile), El tren de la línea norte / The Train on the Northern Railway (Marcelo Martin, Cuba), Paciente / Patient (Jorge Caballero, Colombia), Made in Bangkok (Flavio Florencio, Mexico), Tiempo suspendido / Time Suspended (Natalia Bruschtein, Mexico), La prenda / The Pawn (Jean-Cosme Delaloye, Guatemala), El cuarto de los huesos /
THE ROOM of Bones (Marcela Zamora, El Salvador).
Special presentations will include Paddy Breathnach's Viva, Ireland's Oscar submission for best foreign language film; Cuban filmmaker Jessica Rodriguez's Espejuelos oscuros/ Dark Glasses and Ernesto Padrón's film for children Meñique / Tom Little and the Magic Mirror.
Queens joins HFFNY with screenings at Museum of the Moving Image (MoMI). Fri. April 8, 7:00 pm, from executive producer Benicio del Toro comes Viva, the story of a young man struggling to decide whether to pursue his dreams of performing in drag or repair his relationship with his father. Sat. April 9, 1:30 pm, a film for all ages, Meñique / Tom Little and the Magic Mirror, by Ernesto Padrónbased on emblematic Cuban writer Jose Martí's story for children, this film follows Tom Little, a peasant who rescues his family from poverty. 4:00pm, MoMI hosts the N.Y. premiere of Brazilian Pedro Morelli's Zoom, a multi-dimensional interface between a comic book artist, a novelist, and a film director. 7:00pm, MoMI screens Pavel Giroud's El acompañante / The Companion wherein an unknown destiny awaits two men who find themselves confined behind a wall due to an epidemic.
Featured films screening at the Village East Cinema: Fri. April 8, 3:00pm HFFNY welcomes Made in Bangkok by Mexican Flavio Florencio, an award-winning documentary about the sex transformation of a Mexican opera singer. Saturday, April 9, 7:30pm, Chilean Marcia Tambutti Allende's documentary about her grandfather, Salvador Allende, in Allende, mi abuelo Allende / Beyond my Grandfather Allende.
Sun. April 10, 4:45pm, Argentina's
Sundance award winning film, Mi amiga del parque / My Friend from the Park, a quirky, provocative story ofa mother struggling to adjust to her new life as a stay-at-home mom, presented by director Ana Katz, followed by a Q&A. 8:45pm, Cuban film Bailando con Margot / Dancing with Margot has its U.S. premiere, followed by a Q&A with its director, Arturo Santana. Mon. April 11, 7:00pm, Paciente / Patient, director Jorge Caballero's monumental indictment of the barbaric bureaucracy controlling the Colombian health care system told through the story of a mother fighting for
THE LIFE of her daughter. Tues. April 12, 7:00pm, Dominican box office hit La Gunguna, a highly-stylized portrait of Santo Domingo's seedy underbellyis presented by its director, Ernesto Alemany.
Wed. April 13, 6:45pm, Costa Rica's Presos / Imprisoned, a tale of
FORBIDDEN love by Esteban Ramirez. Thurs. April 14, 7pm, El bosque de Karadima / The Church of Karadima, a Chilean box office hit based on true events surrounding the pedophilia
SCANDAL of a powerful Catholic priest. 9:30pm, HFFNY honors actor Enrique Molina, a longtime friend, with the U.S. premiere of La cosa humana / The Human Thing in which the actor plays a boss mob turned antihero literary agent. Followed by Q&A with director Gerardo Chijona. Presented in association with Tribeca Film Festival.
Highlights of HFFNY 2016 include the world premieres of La ballerine, by Miguel Rueda-an animated short inspired by an urban legend of a ghost sighting at the Elizabeth Theater in New Jersey; La rueda de la vida / The Wheel of Life by Marcia Jarmel and Ken Schneider, which follows the founder of Casino-the Cuban dance that launched salsa; and Espejuelos oscuros / Dark Glasses, directorial debut of Jessica Rodriguez starring international Cuban stars Laura de la Uz and Luis Alberto García, the film tells a love story in four different eras in Cuban history.
SPECIAL PROGRAMS -FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
HFFNY is proud to collaborate with the prestigious Instituto Cervantes, one of NYC's premiere cultural entities. Mon. April 11, 6:00pm, we co-present a tribute to adored Cuban actress Isabel Santos. The program includes the screening of Vestido de novia / His Wedding Dress, which won her the Havana Star Prize as Best Actress and El camino de la vida / The Path of Life, a documentary she co-directed with husband, cinematographer Rafael Solis. Following is The Actor and the Camera: a conversation between Santos and Solis moderated by Prime Latino Media director, Louis Perego.
Tues. April 12, 6:00pm, NYU's King Juan Carlos I of Spain Center (KJCC), HFFNY commemorates the 20th anniversary of the late Tomás Gutierrez Alea with the program In Memory: Celebrating Tomás Gutiérrez Alea's Legacy featuring a screening of two of his works: El arte del tabaco /
THE ART OF Cigars plus documentary Titón, De la Habana a la Guantanamera/ Titón, From Havana to Guantanamera made by his wife, actress Mirtha Ibarra. 6:30pm, book launch of La biblia de cinefilo / The Cinephile's Bible by Luciano Castillo, Director of Cuban Film Archives; 7:00pm the panel Filming in Cuba featuring Papa's director Bob Yari, NYC-based Cuban director Asori Soto, U.S. filmmaker, activist, and educator Catherine Murphy, and film professor Michelle Farrell as moderator. Wed. April 13, 5:45pm, Las doce sillas / Twelve Chairs, a merchant, a revolutionary and a priest search for a chair containing hidden jewels in Tomás Gutiérrez Alea's classic film; 7:30pm screening of Cuban classic Video de familia / Family Video as tribute to Enrique Molina, who will host a conversation to follow.
"We are so grateful for the level of support that has allowed us to achieve success year after year and provide a very special platform for filmmakers from Cuba, Latin America and Latino's in the U.S.," says Carole Rosenberg, President of American Friends of the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba
The presenting sponsor of HFFNY 2016 is NBC/Telemundo 47. Additional sponsorship is provided by El Diario/La Prensa, Xael Charters, Cuba Travel Network, Horns of Havana, Latino Artists Round Table (LART), The Mexican Cultural Institute of New York, LatAm Cinema, Habanero Films, Centro de Capacitación Cinematogáfica de México, Aguijón Films, and The Sound of Two. Media patrons are Pie Derecho, Queens Latino, Latinos en Foco, and EnRola TV. HFFNY is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts and the Honorable Governor Andrew Cuomo, New York State legislators and supported, in part, by public funds from the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs in collaboration with the City Council.
About the American Friends of the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba (AFLFC)
AFLFC is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit, tax-exempt organization. Since 2000, we have been working with our partner the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba (LFC), a non-governmental, autonomous, non-profit art and cultural institution in Havana, founded in 1995. Together we have been building cultural bridges between the U.S. and Cuba through art programs that include visual and performing arts, educational and cultural exchange and professional development opportunities for artists, art professionals and students; the annual Havana Film Festival NY. We inspire artists, assist researchers, disseminate art information, provide instruction on new technology and software, excite audiences and facilitate communication between the art communities in both countries. We offer unique cultural travel programs to
THE ISLAND that expose American travelers to Cuba's cultural riches while generating meaningful personal connections.
About the Havana Film Festival New York (HFFNY)
AFLFC's flagship project, HFFNY, collaborates with Havana's International Festival of New Latin American Cinema to introduce its audience to prominent and emerging filmmakers by showcasing the latest award-winning films and classics from and about Cuba, Latin America, the Caribbean and Latinos in the U.S. HFFNY seeks to cultivate audience-artist dialogue through panel discussions designed to give a behind-the-scenes look at an industry that continues to gain global recognition. The festival program offers directors, actors, and producers an opportunity to exchange ideas, enriches and expands the vision of Latino culture, and provides a multi-cultural experience for a diverse audience.
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