Cinema to link with Cuban film school
Richard Kerr (centre with glasses) works on a motion-picture weaving with his students in Cuba in January.
Courtesy of David Douglas
An encounter between Cinema professor Rosanna Maule and Julio García Espinosa at the University of Iowa five years ago is leading to a partnership between Concordia and the prestigious Escuela Internacional de Cine y Televisíon in Cuba.
That meeting was followed by visits by Espinosa, the director of the school, and Maule, Peter Rist and David Douglas, all of the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema.
Douglas hopes the agreement will formalize an opportunity for students and faculty to exchange skills and attend courses across the two institutions. The Escuela limits itself to formal ties with only one institution in any country. “It’s a real feather in our cap.”
David Douglas is a part-time cinema professor whose expertise includes avant-garde and world cinema with a focus on that of Cuba. He just returned from a trip to Cuba to teach in his area and further his research.
The Escuela attracts students from around the world, and exposes them to the latest in techniques and equipment.
“The level of support they have there is significant,” Douglas said. “They work with 35 mm film, and then with HD equipment. Our students would love that opportunity.”
His trip began in Havana to take advantage of the Latin American film festival there. He then travelled around Cuba, as did three film students — Tara Arnst (Production), Eva Cvijanovic (Animation), Faisal Lutchmedial (a recent graduate) — who went along to collect footage and ideas.
Douglas’s trip culminated in teaching a two-week intensive course at the Escuela alongside Cinema chair Richard Kerr. “In the weeks before we were there, students had sessions with Stephen Frears and Ralph Fiennes.”
The students in their graduating class seminar on experimental films and filmmaking techniques came from Argentina, Ecuador, Venezuela, Belize, Puerto Rico and Germany. This combination reflects the school’s global profile with a Latin American edge. It is located “40 kilometres out of Havana, surrounded by a grapefruit farm,” Douglas said.
The three-year, high-profile program accepts only 40 students a year. Students can specialize in one of seven areas, including directing, sound editing, documentary production or scriptwriting, to name a few. The school was founded 20 years ago, with writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez as one of the original founder/financiers for the project.
Douglas is not concerned about how the current political climate might affect the school’s future, since the foundation that runs it is located in Mexico.
Douglas lectured on the history of avant-garde cinema. He was pleased that he was able to offer his expertise in an area that the students were interested in.
Kerr provided hands-on opportunities to explore ways to manipulate film stock itself, with techniques like boiling, scratching and bleaching film.
“For the students, the idea of an individual approach to the medium was the breakthrough. They were able to see their role as more like that of a poet or painter,” Kerr said.
The school’s hallways are covered with messages written by those who have visited the school. Kerr and the students created a motion-picture weaving to light up the space. This is a 3D sculpture illuminating old film footage, in this case, film stock left by graduated students.
Kerr and Douglas have footage of their trip and experiences at the Escuela. They hope to present some highlights of that material at an event in the next few weeks. If all goes as planned, Cuban poet and cinema scholar Jorge Yglesias will be here next summer from Cuba to teach a session for Concordia students.