Stories We Tell: Cuban Short Animations and Fictions, 1961-2017

This screening of animated and fiction short films, the majority of which were produced at three major Cuban cultural institutions—the Escuela Internacional de Cine y TV (EICTV), the Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA), and the Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematográficos (ICAIC) Animation Studios—highlights the work of the Chicago-based Americas Media Initiative. AMI is the only organization working nationally in the U.S. to bring the work of emerging Cuban filmmakers to diverse venues and audiences—from think tanks in Washington D.C. to urban farmers in Detroit, and now to a coffee shop in Pilsen.

Program (approx. 60 min.):

El Cowboy (Jesús de Armas, 1961, 8 min., ICAIC Animation Studios). This cowboy can’t seem to do anything right.
El poeta y la Muñeca (The Poet and the Doll) (Tulio Raggi, 1967, 6 min., ICAIC Animation Studios). A poet ponders art, love, death, and human intelligence.
Otro animado no para niños (Another Animation Not for Kids) (Harold Díaz-Guzmán Casañas, 2013, 6 min., independent production). It seems like there are fewer and fewer animations made for kids in the cinemas; this in many ways is no exception.
Bienvenidos al cielo (Welcome to Heaven) (Marcos Menendez, 2012, 3 min., independent production). Heaven is not a pretty place.
La Maldita Circunstancia (Damn Circumstances) (Eduardo Emil, 2002, 10 min., EICTV). Candido, the piñata seller runs into some serious bad luck.
Tiln, Tiln (Ring, Ring) (Violena Ampudia, 2017, 3 min., ISA). Children like to mimic their parents, sometimes with unexpected results.
Filiberto (Amanda Garcia, 2008, 11 min., EICTV). Filiberto is unhappy in his marriage until a unique opportunity presents itself that will change everything.

We want to thank EICTV, Muestra Joven, FAMCA/ISA, the ICAIC Animation Studios, and the filmmakers for providing us with copies of the films.