Cuban Cinemas of the Diaspora in the 21 St Century
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Roots and Routes: Cuban Cinemas of the Diaspora in the 21st Century By Zaira Zarza Blanco A thesis submitted to the Graduate Program in Cultural Studies in conformity with the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Queen’s University Kingston, Ontario, Canada September, 2015 Copyright © Zaira Zarza Blanco, 2015 ii Abstract This thesis is one of three components of the doctoral project Roots and Routes: Cuban Cinemas of the Diaspora in the 21st Century. The project also comprises an archive of materials on Cuban diasporic cinemas in the post-2000 era and a travelling showcase —animated by the archive— which took place in Canada in March-April, 2015. The written text is formed by six chapters and several attachments that present information on the films, filmmakers, program notes and other data relevant to the curated events. The thesis is motivated by two main research questions. 1) In what ways has the diaspora experience transformed Cuban filmmaking practices? 2) How have the aesthetic decisions and economic processes of film production in the diaspora placed young Cuban filmmakers vis-à-vis the hegemonic structures of the nation-state, both in the homeland and the host societies? In answering those questions, this study offers insights into the new forms of mobility, politics of place and gendered/racial identities that emerge in the cultural landscapes of contemporary Cuban diasporas. Since young diasporic filmmakers contest the previous notion of Cuban “national cinema,” the hypothesis states that audiovisual producers in the diaspora have indeed transformed the way in which Cuban film is conceived and understood today, on and off the Island. The project had three main goals: to gather and organize information on Cuban diasporic filmmaking; to promote this form of cinema among Canadian audiences through a travelling showcase; and to generate scholarship on this topic that had not been considered by systematic academic investigations to date. The research presents a model of autoethnographic curatorial work and considerations that may be of help to future students developing project-based thesis. One of the fundamental contributions of Roots and Routes… is how it transcended the borders of the academic context and succeeded in engaging local communities in different sites. iii iv Acknowledgements This thesis project is the result of several years of work in a place that has become my “home away from home.” Places have the capacity to make us feel welcome and rejected at times. I am forever indebted to beautiful people who have made the welcoming part crucial to my experience as a person in the diaspora. Without them I wouldn’t have found the strength to accomplish this goal. In my Roots, I want to thank: My parents María Teresa Blanco and Carlos Zarza, to whom I dedicate this research. My mother is my engine and my father is my pillar. Their love is the most important thing in my life. My grandparents, who have struggled through learning how to live apart from their Yayita. They are the main reason why I do everything I do. To my sister and niece in Havana. For being there and keeping los viejucos happy. To my madrinas María Caridad Cumaná and Mirta Carrera, who were central in the first impulse of this project, and who have been close godmothers for many years. In my Routes, I want to thank: My smart, creative and supportive supervisor Dr. Susan Lord. She is an inspiration. Working with her has been the main reason of my growth as a scholar. To her family Paul (Pablo) Kelley and Kurt Kelly Lord I will be eternally grateful. Dr. Karen Dubinsky, and her family Susan Belyea and my forever niño Jordi Belyea Dubinsky, with whom I had my first snowball fight ever. They taught me the new meaning of “home” on Rideau Street. v My partner Freddy Monasterio who followed me in this journey and later made his own to make me and our loved ones very proud. My friends Scott Rutherford and Sayyida Jaffer, who were always there for me in this process of learning and becoming. Also to Fadzai Katzenga and Mary Ceasar who complete my diasporic family in Kingston with everyone above. Dr. Cathie Krull, Dr. Jennifer Hosek and Dr. Dorit Naaman, for their generosity and encouragement for my work. Ruth Warner, whose knowledge, friendship and support has been inspiring and illuminating. The students of DEVS 305 Cuban Culture and Society and FILM 400-5 Cinemas of the Diaspora, because I have learned from them much more than I was able to teach them. My old friends in Cuba and my new friends in Canada. My best critics and cheerleaders. They know who they are. Finally, I am forever thankful to the over 30 filmmakers who have been part of this project in different capacities. I especially appreciate the hard work of those who contributed to the first iteration of the travelling showcase Roots and Routes: Cuban Cinemas of the Diaspora in the 21st Century, for trusting this idea and collaborating with me to share their fantastic work with multiples audiences in Canada. Heidi Hasan’s artistry, sense of responsibility and commitment was fundamental in this effort to visibilize Cuban diasporic youth cinema. To everyone, thank you. vi Table of contents Abstract ..................................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements ..................................................................................................................... v Table of contents ...................................................................................................................... vii Chapter 1. Introduction............................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Prelude ................................. ............................................................................................ 1 1.2 Project Overview and Literature Review ......................................................................... 4 1.2.1 Description, Process, and Thesis Organization ........................................................ 4 1.2.2 Concepts that Matter................................................................................................. 9 1.2.3 A World in Motion: Migration, Translocality and Space/Place ............................. 11 1.2.4 The Plural Universes of Diaspora and Transnationalism ....................................... 17 1.2.5 Cuba in the Diaspora ............................................................................................. 24 1.2.6 Exile, Diaspora, Transnationalism in the Movies .................................................. 33 1.2.7 Cuban Cinema Studies in the Global North .......................................................... 37 1.3 Methodology ............................................................................................................. 41 Chapter 2. Contexts of Production ........................................................................................ 44 2.1 Sites of Emergence (Roots) ............................................................................................ 45 2.1.1 EICTV and FAMCA: Learning Filmmaking in Cuba ............................................ 45 2.1.2 From the School of Three Worlds to the School of All Worlds ............................. 48 2.1.3 FAMCA. “Thinking Cinema” ................................................................................ 52 2.2. Landing Zones (Routes) ................................................................................................ 56 2.2.1 Patterns, Trends and Numbers ................................................................................ 59 2.2.2 New Production Companies ................................................................................... 62 2.2.3 Kinomada and KinoCuba as Case Studies ............................................................. 66 Chapter 3. Small Cinemas by Cuban Women: First-Person Films of Resistance in the Diaspora ................................................................................................................................... 74 3.1 Contexts: Gender Politics, on and off Screen ................................................................ 76 3.2 Heidi Hassan .................................................................................................................. 85 3.2.1 A Woman/Two Worlds. Tierra Roja (Heidi Hassan, 2007) .................................. 85 3.2.2 Fragments of the Self: Orages d’été (Heidi Hassan, 2008).................................... 91 3.3 Daniellis Hernández ....................................................................................................... 93 3.3.1 In and Out: the Borders of Race. Extravío (Daniellis Hernández, 2008) ............... 94 3.4 Susana Barriga ......................................................................................................... 101 3.4.1 Wrong Kinds of Politics? The Illusion (Susana Barriga, 2008) ........................... 101 3.5 Women beyond the Nation ........................................................................................... 106 Chapter 4. On Location in the World: the Politics of Place.............................................. 111 4.1 Cosmopolitan Spaces and Cinema ............................................................................... 112 4.2 Havana on the Screen ................................................................................................... 115 4.3