Second Cuban Film Festival launches in Glasgow

The Second Havana Glasgow Film Festival has launched its new programme online this weekend. The festival has built on last years’ initial success extending its run from seven to ten days in November and increasing the number of films.

This year it features a special day concentrating on Cuba’s low-budget film festival (Cine Pobre). There is an extended piece on Cine Pobre and connections between it and Glasgow's festival on the Culture Matters blog, here. Festival Director, Eirene Houston was asked to join the panel of judges earlier this year, and has brought back a selection of the winners to show – including the overall winner, an American film – Tangerine - shot entirely on a smartphone!

Eirene says, “We’re looking forward to an amazing ten days of Cuban and Scottish Film. In addition to a UK premiere of Cuban film, Bailando con Margot (Dancing with Margot) – a first feature-length film from award-winning director Arturo Santana, we have a fascinating documentary about Cuban director (and founder of Cine Pobre) Humberto Solas, and Oliver Hill’s La Rumba Me Llama (Rumba Calling).

Eirene Houston (pic Martin Shields)

“From Scotland, Paul Fegan’s gem of a film about Aidan Moffat and his encounter with folk icon, Sheila Stewart – Where you’re meant to be, and a session with short documentaries from the Sierra Maestra Community and from Scotland. The local cultures of our two countries will be seen, side-by-side!”

Other films include a couple of hits from last year’s festival (La Pared de las Palabras and La Pelicula de Anna) and a Cuba/Scotland History day where the Spanish Civil War story of Ethel MacDonald (An Anarchists Story) will be screened along with Cuba Libre (the story of two brothers in Cuba’s war of freedom from Spain).

Los Bolos en Cuba

Other films will include El Tren de la Linea Norte – a journey through forgotten Cuba, and Los Bolos en Cuba – Enrique Molina’s warm and sometimes irreverent documentary rescuing the memory of the relationship between the Soviet Union and Cuba.

Visiting film makers include, in addition to Arturo Santana from Cuba (brought over thanks to sponsorship from Unite the union), Festival co-director Hugo Rivalta from Cuba, Alejandro Valera from Cuba via Glasgow, and Paul Fegan from Glasgow.

The Festival runs from the 11^th-19^th November across a number of venues in the Glasgow School of Art, the Centre for Contemporary Art and the Glasgow Film Theatre, finishing at Kelvingrove Art Gallery.

In addition to sponsorship from Unite, and other TUs, the Festival is supported by the Cuban Film Institute (ICAIC), and Glasgow City Council. The Usheru Cinema app is also providing ticket sales support.

The programme is available on the Havana Glasgow Film Festival website - www.hgfilmfest.com/programme

Where is the TaxPayers'Alliance?

Unaccountably, those upstanding (and unelected) champions of your tax dosh,  the Tax Payers Alliance, seem to have missed a good news story for Scottish tax payers. 


This is the recent announcement by the Scottish Government that the massive M74 extension is due to open 8 months early and £20m under budget. Given all those private business funded resources for monitoring the media, and the close working arrangement private contractors had with the council and Transport Scotland joint venture, you'd think that they would have noticed either the Scottish Government release - http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2011/06/14151514 or the later (but more balanced) UNISON one - http://www.unison-scotland.org.uk/news/2011/mayjune/1706a.htm


Maybe only tax savings invented by the TDA and their private sector lobby make it into their PRs and onto their pages?

Aye Right!!

I have just seen the new programme for the 2011 Aye Write! festival that is run every year by Glasgow's Libraries. It has been a welcome development and one that seemed to be going from strength to strength.

It is particularly gratifying to remember that it started as an initiative while Glasgow's Libraries were still run directly by the elected council (in 2006) - thus giving the lie to those who say that this kind of partnership is only possible when our services are hived off from our control.

Is it just me, however, or do this years offerings have a aura of 'haven't we seen this before?' about them? No one has a greater admiration for Polly Toynbee than me, but weren't she and Richard Walker plugging The Verdict at last year's Edinburgh Book Festival? Didn't I see Michael Frayn and Steve Bell there too?

It's also a pity that the series of debates on the future of the economy, public services etc  - a good concept in itself, even if not linked to specific publications - don't include some people directly involved in the services and facilities under threat.

Is this diluted offering a product of the public service cuts beginning to bite? Or is it indicative of more serious problems at senior level in Glasgow Life (as we will never get used to calling it!).