On Saturday night, February 24, the awards of the Por Primera Vez National Audiovisual Festival were given in the categories of short film and pitching; contest sponsored by the Provincial Film Center of Holguin, the support of the Directorate of Culture and independent producers.
Thirty-three works were submitted to Por Primera Vez, of which 25 were selected to compete, and were evaluated by Lázaro Alderete Terry, president of the Cuban Film Association, president of the Cuban Association of Cineclubs; together with Alejandra Rodríguez Segura, documentary filmmaker, and critic José Rojas Bez.
The work “Levedad” (Lightness) by filmmaker Cristhian Menéndez Altunaga was granted the Grand Prix the short film; the second award went for “Sueños” (Dreams) by Ricardo de La Paz Cervantes, and a third award went for “A dónde van los hijos” (Where do children go) by Arnel Ernesto González Álvarez.
Nine projects were submitted to the pitch folder contest, six of which were selected and evaluated by Rosa María Rodríguez Pupo, director and producer; Inti Herrera Núñez and Reymel Delgado Rodríguez, both producers of I4films; together with producer Yamila Marrero Montero and Enrique Betancourt Gutiérrez, a specialist from the Provincial Film Center.
In this contest, which was launched since the previous edition, turning the Por Primera Vez Festival into another fund to help young filmmakers, the project “Un domingo de fiesta”, by director Damián Pérez Quesada and producer Rosse Mary Suárez Fagales, was awarded a net fund of 100 thousand pesos and the independent production companies present awarded it with script consultancy by Gatorrosa Producciones, production and editing consultancy by I4FILMS and visual effects supervision by Wilderigners Production.
This edition had three highlights: the reopening of the Cine Martí Cultural Complex by the highest authorities of the Communist Party of Cuba, the Government and Culture in Holguin; the presentation of the restored copy of Strawberry and Chocolate by Mirtha Ibarra, special guest on this occasion, and the proposal by Sergio Benvenuto Solas to create “The Poor Film Festival Factory”, an idea launched to join efforts between institutions and festivals in Holguin, and the presentation of the restored copy of Strawberry and Chocolate by Mirtha Ibarra, special guest on this occasion.
Based on the dedication and improvement of young creators as the style of this Festival, seven workshops were held, in addition, the Tres Lucías café hosted the talks with film critic Rafael Grillo, director Jorge Luis Sánchez and producer Inti Herrera, while the Ateneo Cinematográfico Hall screened the works in competition and the collateral samples of festivals held in the east of the country such as: The International Exhibit El Almacén de la Imagen of Camagüey, The Museum of Sound and Image of Santiago de Cuba and Cine Andante of Guantánamo.
- Holguin workers parade on May Day celebration - 1 de May de 2024
- Jibarama 2024 Environmental Film Festival begins in Gibara - 24 de April de 2024
- Holguin says stop genocide in Palestine (+Photos) - 2 de March de 2024