Cuban filmmaker Marilyn Solaya announces premiere of feminist film

June 5, 2019

Cuban filmmaker Marilyn Solaya announced today the premiere of the documentary "In Search of a Space," which addresses the role of women in the construction of the nation and citizenship on the island.

The feature film that reveals the contributions of suffragists and feminists from the Caribbean country to society will arrive at Cine Chaplin in the capital on June 26 at 8:00 p.m. local time.

According to its director and screenwriter, the film that seeks to rescue the historical memory of women constitutes a tribute to 'that invisible half of history, vilified and misunderstood in their time and barely known today.'

"In Search of a Space" is part of the development process of a feature film project titled TODAS, which Solaya has been working on for several years and which aims to consolidate during the present year.

For its realization, the filmmaker had the advisory assistance of historian Julio César González Pagés, author of the book "In Search of a Space. History of Women in Cuba" published in 2003 under the Ciencias Sociales publishing label.

The documentary reveals important achievements obtained by feminists in the first half of the twentieth century such as the law to be able to manage their assets independently (1917), the Divorce Law (1918) and the abortion law (1936).

'Cuban women managed to exercise the right to vote in 1934 and that same year, a Decree Law for the protection of motherhood, this was undoubtedly one of the most important movements of its time and one of the least known to date,' highlighted the filmmaker of the film Wedding Dress.

It is a collective effort to preserve a significant part of the country's memory and culture; it is important to point out the poor representation of women in history which constitutes an expression of patriarchal power, makes invisible the contributions of half the population of each country and limits social development, noted Solaya.

Important Cuban researchers participate in the documentary such as González Pagés, Norma Vasallo, Yamila González Ferrer, Gisela Arandia and Daysi Rubiera, while actresses Isabel Santos, Andrea Doimeadiós and Amada Morado bring to life the feminists of the era.

The production had the support of the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the Invisible Film Festival of Bilbao, Spain, the Norwegian Fund for Cuban cinema and Rueda Producciones.

With original music by Rodrigo García Ameneiro and soundtrack by Osmany Olivare, the feature film had cinematography by Rafael Solís, camera by Victor González, lighting by Oscar Pérez Hendrickson, sound by Ricardo Tato Pérez and editing by Kenia Velázquez.

Members of the Ibero-American and African Network of Masculinities (Riam) also participated in the production process such as Yonnier Angulo and Neida Peñalver in production, Younielsis Hernández in costume and Jesús Muñoz Machin as head of press.

With the film's premiere, the feminist project TODAS will develop a group of actions aimed at celebrating and disseminating the achievements of feminists a hundred years after these events occurred, in order to transcend the big screen and rescue female historical memory.