Mexico to Host Cuban Film Week Featuring Classic Screenings

A Cuban Film Week will take place in Mexico starting January 30, with final details being arranged today by Mexico's Cineteca, the Cuban Embassy, and the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry (Icaic).

"Mexico welcomes our cinematography with open arms," stated the cultural attaché of the Cuban embassy in the Latin American nation, Norma Rodríguez, during a press conference held the previous day at Icaic's headquarters.

As a prelude to the festival, the feature film "Fresa y Chocolate" (1993) was screened at the Cineteca on November 11, alongside a selection of Cuban film posters that are part of UNESCO's Memory of the World collection.

Furthermore, on January 17, as the Mexican institution celebrates its 52nd anniversary, the feature film "Memorias del Subdesarrollo" (1968), by director Tomás Gutiérrez Alea, will be shown.

"The relationship between Cuba and Mexico in the field of culture is vast, and this will be a wonderful space and a demonstration of the permanent solidarity between our film industries," added Rodríguez.

Although the exact number and other titles of films selected for the event have not yet been revealed, the official stated they will be classics from the revolutionary era, curated by the director of Cuba's Cinemateca, Luciano Castillo.

Icaic describes Mexico's Cineteca as a fundamental pillar in the preservation and dissemination of national and international film heritage.

The Cuban Film Week is one of several cooperation projects between the two countries, which include the handover of the feature film "El hombre de Maisinicú" (1973) for restoration and the signing of an agreement between the International School of Film and Television in San Antonio de los Baños and the Churubusco Studios.