Lights! Camera! Revolution! - film from Russia and Cuba

I've written before about the role of Trades Union Councils in promoting (or should that be

fomenting) working class and left political culture. Another example is taking place this weekend in Dumfries.

There, the local TUC (what we used to call Trades Councils) in association with the Robert Burns Centre Film Theatre, is screening a small film festival to mark the centenary of the Russian Revolution.

Called Representing Revolution the first film - At Home among Strangers - screens tonight and then we have another 5 films including Eisenstein's October, screened with The End of Saint Petersburg, and Warren Beatty's Reds. The films are introduced and illustrated by a variety of talks by prominent academics. The Morning Star (also a partner in this project) has a fuller description here.

Tickets are available from the Robert Burns Centre here.

If the Russian Revolution is not your bag (all that snow and ice) how about a revolution performed in the somewhat warmer climes of the Caribbean? The Third Havana Glasgow Film Festival is coming up in Havana's twin city on the Clyde.

This year concentrated into an extended weekend the Festival has concentrated on bringing the stars and filmmakers over from Cuba to speak to their creations. Starting from Thursday 9 November with Jonal Cosculluela here to talk about his film Esteban - about a 9-year-old's determination to learn the piano - this year's festival also welcomes Luis Alberto Garcia, star of films like - Ya no es Antes - the premiere of this film about a couple split by emigration, and Clandestinos - a love story set against the last days of the revolution against Batista.

Dr Aleida Guevara March

Other Cuban friends arriving are Che Guevara's daughter, Aleida, in Glasgow as part of a UK-wide speaking tour on the 50th Anniversary of her father's assassination.  In addition to the rally organised by the Scottish Cuba Solidarity Campaign, she will take time out to discuss two films-San Ernesto nace en La Higuera - about the impact of Che's death amongst the Bolivian villagers in the area - and The Man Behind the Myth - on Che's compadre. Fidel. HGFF's Cuban co-director, Hugo Rivalta flies in tomorrow (Saturday)!

The HGFF website has details of these and many other films (me? I'm lookng forward to Ghost Town to Havana - about two kids baseball teams - from Oakland and Havana and the parallels and differences between them.). The programme is here.