Gibrara is a town so obscure even many Cubans struggle to find it on a map, yet every year since 2003 this picturesque town has hosted one of the most interesting and authentic festivals on the independent / alternative film circuit
Don't expect any Hollywood stars to be making the trip out to Gibrara in Eastern Cuba for the 5th International 'Cine Pobre' to be held from 16-22 April. Hype, glamorous red carpet photo shoots and luxurious after-parties are also likely to be absentees. Yet you should not make the mistake of taking Cine 'Pobre' ('poor') too literally. For, while even many Cubans may struggle to find this picturesque fishing village on a map, the International Low-Budget Film Festival has managed to carve out a niche for itself as one of the most interesting and authentic events on the independent / alternative film circuit-
Humberto Solás, the festival's president (and well known Cuban film director), emphasizes that 'Low Budget does not mean films devoid of ideas or artistic quality; it simply means films made with a limited budget'. Indeed this year's catalogue suggests both quality and diversity; filmmakers from every continent are represented, from countries with a long-established cinematic tradition―Germany, France, India, United States―and others with an emerging cinematography―Chad, Ecuador, Lebanon, Macedonia, Burkina Faso, Mauritania. The themes covered are similarly eclectic with this year's offerings including serious, historical, funny and heart warming looks at love, migration, communication, alienation and engagement.
The cinema itself is a young one, not only because of the age of many of the participating filmmakers, but for the general spirit. It is a cliché to refer back to the 1960's but the irreverence, enthusiasm and desire for something new present during the week would be recognizable to any ageing hippy. The Festival director, Sergio Benvenuto, points out that the event provides an outlet for the expression of films which are not handicapped by the conservatism of big studios nor restricted by the need to secure instant commercial success. This allows an expression of artistic purpose which does not start with how best can films be marketed, sponsored and product linked.
The choice of Gibrara as the principal venue has certainly made the organisers job that much harder. It is a hefty 800-kilometre trek from Havana and an hour's drive along poor roads from both Holguín (which boasts an international airport) and the pristine resort of Guardalavaca (home to many all-inclusive resorts). Moreover, Gibrara, has no hotel and a limited number of private rooms (which are booked up early for the week of Cine Pobre).
Yet in many ways it is this remoteness, this sense of somewhere which is 'virgin' territory that gives this event its intimate, authentic and unique charm. The town itself was declared a National Monument in 2004 and is near the place where Christopher Columbus first set foot on Cuban soil. When we asked The Festival director Sergio Benvenuto whether he would ever consider moving the festival he talked of the synergy felt between the organisation and the town. Perfect hosts, it is the fiercely proud Gibrararians who provide much of the laid back and friendly ambience that draws visitors, filmmakers, actors, musicians, photographers, critics and artists.
Limited in the number of films which may be shown, the selection committee spends much of the year deciding on (and sometimes convincing) the next year's selection. It is a sign of the prestige and / or affection held that generally no payment is made to secure the chosen films. Juries which select the winning films in each category (Fiction and Documentaries) are well-known and respected artists, critics and film directors.
While it is a risky chore to predict this year's favourites for the top prizes, there are a number of fiction feature films worth mentioning that have earned great reviews: Viviane Candas's Suzanne (France), the story of a devastated widower who had given up on life but finds love all over again, will open the competition; Alejandro Gil's La pared, (Cuba), which premiered at the Festival of New Latin American Cinema last December, has been made into a play. Look out also for Mario Iglesias's De bares (Spain), a gallery of characters and stories that move in the microcosm of a bar. In documentaries: San Ernesto nació en La Higuera by Cuban actress Isabel Santos and Rafael Solís, about the mythicization of Che Guevara in the region where he was murdered and buried, has aroused divergent opinions; Surfeando favelas (Argentina-US), by Maximiliano Ezzaoui, Natalia Bacalani and Tomas Crowder, deals with a group
of surfers who are resolved on helping a group of children from the favelas—shantytowns—in Río de Janeiro to escape from their tragic fate; We'll Meet Again (Switzerland-Germany) by Oliver Paulus and Stefan Hillebrand, takes place in an old people's home and reveals the loneliness, anguish and fear shared by staff and residents; and Seoul Train (United States) by Jim Butterworth, Aaron Lubarsky and Lisa Sleeth, a look into the dramatic reality of North Koreans who seek to escape to China.
While there is a top prize of Euro 15,000 the entrants are clearly not here for the money and indeed many of the prizes are intended to assist in making the transition to 35mm. Moreover, Cine Pobre is not meant as a simple feeder pond in the rush to DVD market but as an alternative venue which may help to develop alternative distribution channels for low-budget films, which would secure an audience for some of the outstanding films showcased at Gibrara.
During the course of the week, there will also be a number of concerts (including by the exceptional singer-writer Carlos Varela), an exhibition of backdrops by various Cuban artists (including Alicia Leal and Agustín Bejarano) and an exhibition of paintings by Humberto Solás. When guests and locals join the opening parade on the 16th of April they will be part of an event where in the words of the director: 'creativity is substituted for complaint, exercise of talent for inertia, and collaboration for competition'.
Utopian maybe, fascinating definitely. Gibrara 16-22 April, 2007.
For more information see: www.festivalcinepobre.org / www.cubacine.cu/cinepobre
Humberto Solás, the festival's president (and well known Cuban film director), emphasizes that 'Low Budget does not mean films devoid of ideas or artistic quality; it simply means films made with a limited budget'. Indeed this year's catalogue suggests both quality and diversity; filmmakers from every continent are represented, from countries with a long-established cinematic tradition―Germany, France, India, United States―and others with an emerging cinematography―Chad, Ecuador, Lebanon, Macedonia, Burkina Faso, Mauritania. The themes covered are similarly eclectic with this year's offerings including serious, historical, funny and heart warming looks at love, migration, communication, alienation and engagement.
The cinema itself is a young one, not only because of the age of many of the participating filmmakers, but for the general spirit. It is a cliché to refer back to the 1960's but the irreverence, enthusiasm and desire for something new present during the week would be recognizable to any ageing hippy. The Festival director, Sergio Benvenuto, points out that the event provides an outlet for the expression of films which are not handicapped by the conservatism of big studios nor restricted by the need to secure instant commercial success. This allows an expression of artistic purpose which does not start with how best can films be marketed, sponsored and product linked.
The choice of Gibrara as the principal venue has certainly made the organisers job that much harder. It is a hefty 800-kilometre trek from Havana and an hour's drive along poor roads from both Holguín (which boasts an international airport) and the pristine resort of Guardalavaca (home to many all-inclusive resorts). Moreover, Gibrara, has no hotel and a limited number of private rooms (which are booked up early for the week of Cine Pobre).
Yet in many ways it is this remoteness, this sense of somewhere which is 'virgin' territory that gives this event its intimate, authentic and unique charm. The town itself was declared a National Monument in 2004 and is near the place where Christopher Columbus first set foot on Cuban soil. When we asked The Festival director Sergio Benvenuto whether he would ever consider moving the festival he talked of the synergy felt between the organisation and the town. Perfect hosts, it is the fiercely proud Gibrararians who provide much of the laid back and friendly ambience that draws visitors, filmmakers, actors, musicians, photographers, critics and artists.
Limited in the number of films which may be shown, the selection committee spends much of the year deciding on (and sometimes convincing) the next year's selection. It is a sign of the prestige and / or affection held that generally no payment is made to secure the chosen films. Juries which select the winning films in each category (Fiction and Documentaries) are well-known and respected artists, critics and film directors.
While it is a risky chore to predict this year's favourites for the top prizes, there are a number of fiction feature films worth mentioning that have earned great reviews: Viviane Candas's Suzanne (France), the story of a devastated widower who had given up on life but finds love all over again, will open the competition; Alejandro Gil's La pared, (Cuba), which premiered at the Festival of New Latin American Cinema last December, has been made into a play. Look out also for Mario Iglesias's De bares (Spain), a gallery of characters and stories that move in the microcosm of a bar. In documentaries: San Ernesto nació en La Higuera by Cuban actress Isabel Santos and Rafael Solís, about the mythicization of Che Guevara in the region where he was murdered and buried, has aroused divergent opinions; Surfeando favelas (Argentina-US), by Maximiliano Ezzaoui, Natalia Bacalani and Tomas Crowder, deals with a group
of surfers who are resolved on helping a group of children from the favelas—shantytowns—in Río de Janeiro to escape from their tragic fate; We'll Meet Again (Switzerland-Germany) by Oliver Paulus and Stefan Hillebrand, takes place in an old people's home and reveals the loneliness, anguish and fear shared by staff and residents; and Seoul Train (United States) by Jim Butterworth, Aaron Lubarsky and Lisa Sleeth, a look into the dramatic reality of North Koreans who seek to escape to China.
While there is a top prize of Euro 15,000 the entrants are clearly not here for the money and indeed many of the prizes are intended to assist in making the transition to 35mm. Moreover, Cine Pobre is not meant as a simple feeder pond in the rush to DVD market but as an alternative venue which may help to develop alternative distribution channels for low-budget films, which would secure an audience for some of the outstanding films showcased at Gibrara.
During the course of the week, there will also be a number of concerts (including by the exceptional singer-writer Carlos Varela), an exhibition of backdrops by various Cuban artists (including Alicia Leal and Agustín Bejarano) and an exhibition of paintings by Humberto Solás. When guests and locals join the opening parade on the 16th of April they will be part of an event where in the words of the director: 'creativity is substituted for complaint, exercise of talent for inertia, and collaboration for competition'.
Utopian maybe, fascinating definitely. Gibrara 16-22 April, 2007.
For more information see: www.festivalcinepobre.org / www.cubacine.cu/cinepobre
Surfeando Favela-doc
Voyage en Soul Ma
Nos Volveremos a Ver
Seoul Trai -doc
India -doc
De Bares
Maņana
Suzanne
La Pared
San Ernesto naciķ-doc
