Isolated Cuban film with four stories directed by women premieres at the Latin American Film Festival

December 8, 2023

Four pandemic stories. Four narratives where "nobody knows the life of the other, but everyone shares the same desire: to live", thus presents itself the Cuban film Isolated, which will have its world premiere next Sunday, December 10 at 8 p.m. in the Charles Chaplin theater, during the International Film Festival of Havana.

And what are the reasons why you should already schedule this premiere? First, you will notice while watching the film that each short has its color: yellow, green, red and blue, but in the end, everything ends up blending together. In this regard, says Jonal Cosculluela, its own producer: "They all have their independent story, but they coincide at some point".

Safari, If I Were You, Lapsus and, finally, The Test, are the narratives that structure Isolated, under the work of four Cuban filmmakers who, following a call launched by CiNESOFT to achieve a feature film directed only by women, dared to film in the midst of the pandemic, with many restrictions, few resources, a reduced crew, a couple of locations and tremendous desire to pull off this fiction.

Cosculluela, who this time took charge of production and not direction (Esteban, 2016), recounted how the project was born. First, Iván Barreto contacted him, who was then director of CiNESOFT and with whom he had worked before. They launched the proposal and after the selection of the directors, a key piece was missing: the screenplay. Fortunately, Yoe Pérez, one of the chosen ones, was a screenwriter and wrote the four stories that intertwined and resulted in the feature.

"As a guideline I proposed to them that for the film to have unity we work with the same cinematographer, the same editor, the same people in lighting, wardrobe, makeup, direct sound and later in post-production, of course, each one edited her short, but with the same editor. I was there the whole time making sure the film maintained a unity. In the end I think we achieved it", reflects Jonal.

Maritza Ceballo, Zenia Veigas, Sailin Carbonell and the aforementioned Yoe Pérez, took on these stories where sensitivity and the struggle for life is latent. For all the directors, this film constitutes their Coral Directorial Debut in fiction. However, it was not selected in this category in competition at the current edition of the Havana Film Festival. Its premiere was inserted in the space "Latin America in Perspective".

It was a difficult shoot, due to permits and sanitary conditions. But Cosculluela already came with the experience of filming the documentary The Hugs Will Return (2021) in which he shared direction with Maritza. "We were like prepared, almost ready for that. It was a spectacular experience and you see the work on screen", he summarizes about Isolated.

There are actors of great trajectory in the cast. Others younger, but who are making a presence in Cuban cinema, theater or television. Precisely, about the work with these, and the experience of directing in the film, we spoke with two of its filmmakers.

Lapsus was the short directed by Maritza Ceballo and "talks about the loss of a loved one and how to find hope to move forward in the midst of a hopeless environment like the pandemic was", she says.

"For my first opportunity directing actors, I was very fortunate to have the experience and sensitivity of Jacqueline Arenal along with Blanca Rosa Blanco and Ana Gloria Bouden".

To this, she adds: "We filmed during a pandemic, which meant a great challenge, since it already seems distant to us. Fortunately we had the help of doctors and nurses who advised and took care of us during the shoot, which they also participated in as actors".

Sailin Carbonell took charge of The Test, the narrative that closes the film. She highlights teamwork from the beginning to achieve harmony.

"Directing The Test was beautiful. I remember that the first day of shooting was my birthday and it was a good sign. But COVID-19 was hitting us hard and it was quite a challenge from the shooting schedule, filming in locations like a tenement in Old Havana, a super reduced crew and with precautions at one hundred percent, because people were dying back then".

She offers some clues about her short: "The relationship between a dedicated teacher and a 6th grade student who does not comply with the rules established at school intertwine. Paternal absence, loneliness, uncertainty are important themes in this story".

The characters, for their part, are conceived as: "A dedicated mathematics teacher, who has devoted his entire life to education and with the arrival of COVID-19, feels that his life has ended. A rebellious boy raised in a marginal neighborhood, but with excessive intelligence does not comply with the established school patterns. A single mother who has to figure out how to feed her son".

"Working with the actors was a great challenge. It was my first time working with a child, our Oscarito. The work with Eduardo Eimil (acting coach) was great from the casting. The mix of experienced actors like Bárbaro Marin and Yeni Soria with Brayan was a perfect gear for The Test", she adds.

Before telling me that the main character of this story was inspired by and bears the same name as her grandfather Nerio, Sailin makes clear: "When you work as a team, when everyone is clear about what they want, and everyone bets on your work, the job becomes easier, even though the circumstances weren't".

Under the general production of CiNESOFT, with the support of UNEAC and Siguaraya Village, the production by Cosculluela and Juan Perdomo, the cinematography by David Cruz, the acting coach Eduardo Eimil and art director Juan Carlos Tavio, the editing by Lemuel and sound by Irina Caballero, the music by Jorge Amado and Fran Jordan González, Isolated arrives to remind us of those days that we survived, the days that are not forgotten because of a tragic pandemic.