This year the London Latin American Film Festival celebrates twenty-five years of Havana’s International TV and Film School, presenting the highlights from the past quarter century of one of the most influential of Cuban cultural institutions, alongside the best of this year's films, which reflect the changing priorities of Cuba's young filmmakers.
These include Mary Dickinson’s 1997 documentary, The Cigar: Out of the Humidor, that traces the history and tradition of cigar production, and the economic issues revolving around the US’s embargo on Cuban products. Armando Capo’s short, Absence, follows a mother and son who make a living from fishing in Santiago de Cuba Bay.
As 2011 is the United Nations International Year of People of African Descent, the festival will also pay tribute to the massive influence of the African Diaspora on Latin American culture. The line up includes the classic BBC Arena documentary Bahia of All the Saints, an audio-visual portrait of the north Brazilian city of Bahia which maintains its legacy of African traditions to this day.
The festival runs from 18 - 27 November 2011 Other highlights of the festival include the European premiere of Jorge Zima’s Strawberry Lips, a humorous exploration of a common theme in Argentinean film, the conflict between city and country.
There will be four Venezuelan films including a revival of Simon Bolivar, Ese Soy Yo by Edmundo Aray and Raiza Andrade; César Bolívar’s feature film Death in High Contrast; and Eduardo Barberena’s Cheila, a House for Maita, a delicate drama of family relations and sexual identity.
The Dominican Republic’s offering is Hermaphrodite, directed by Albert Xavier, which follows the fortunes of Maria, born with both male and female physical characteristics.
From Guatemala, Holy Cow, directed by Mendel Samayoa, is a comedy about greed and sex.
Colombia's Panela Project, directed by Omar Castaneda, is another short that explores the experiences of ordinary people resisting the advance of the bio-fuel industry which is slowly eradicating the production of panela.
Mexican feature, Goodbye Cruel World, directed by Jack Zagha Kababie, is billed as a dark comedy about a gang of thieves and the series of crazy money-making schemes they come up with.
Josh Hyde’s film, Postcards, is set in Cuzco, Peru and is a tale of young love growing between unlikely companions.
As always, there’ll be a selection of talks, Q & As, Latin American food, and various parties.
The festival runs from 18 - 27 November 2011.
Venues:
Riverside Studios, Crisp Road, Hammersmith, London W6 9RL
Bolivar Hall, 54 Grafton Way, London W1T 5DL
Shortwave cinema, 10 Bermondsey Square, London SE1 3UN
Roxy bar and screen, Borough High Street, Borough, London SE1 1LB
The Lantern Arts Centre, Tolverne Road, Raynes Park, London SW20 8RA
For more information visit : http://www.latinamericanfilmfestival.com/
