# Cuban series "11:once" triumphed in Hollywood and announces second season

**Date:** 02/21/2023

The audiovisual series "11:once" was a finalist in 2022 in the Web Series category of the Eighth Annual Web Series Global 2022 Festival, held in Hollywood, and now announces its second season.

With six episodes of between 16 and 20 minutes, the first season premiered in June of last year through the Youtube platform. Following its release, the audiovisual content exceeded 4,000 views per episode and sparked controversy as it is an independent Cuban production.

According to the non-state media outlet El Toque, the team expects to finalize its second season, which is currently in the pre-production phase and is expected to premiere during the summer of this year.

The challenge is taken on by a team of young people from Pinar del Río between 20 and 33 years old, mostly trained in theater; in addition to its director Ernesto Naveda, a graduate in Visual Arts from the School of Art Instructors (EIA) in that Cuban province.

On the other hand, the script was written by playwright Irán Capote and, as in the first season, the production will once again be under the independent audiovisual label Vision Plus Productions.

The creator of the series, Jonathan Montelongo, commented to the aforementioned media outlet that the second season will add new characters to the plot, will increase the duration of the episodes and will have some surprises in its actor casting.

This is how the stories of its 14 main and secondary characters will unfold, while the team behind the cameras continues to face the challenges of producing independently on the island.

On this matter, its creator added to El Toque that the "biggest challenge of the first season was inexperience. We had to study and prepare ourselves to solve the obstacles that this type of independent productions posed to us."

Furthermore, Montelongo commented that during the filming of that season, "we would arrive at a public space to film and immediately they would ask us for credentials, they would ask if we were journalists, why we were filming, they would prohibit us from filming in some establishments. All that kind of situations."

To this must be added that the sponsorship of both seasons comes from a company based in the U.S. and directed by Joseph Lowis, Monarca Insurance Group.

However, Montelongo assured the aforementioned media outlet that he hopes that the production of the current season will have fewer setbacks, taking into account that some staff members received the credential that accredits them as members of the Registry of Audiovisual and Cinematographic Creators, subordinate to the Cuban Institute of Film Art and Industry (ICAIC).

This accreditation recognizes and authorizes the work of creators who do not belong to any cultural institution of the government, so the obstacles when filming in public spaces or establishments in the territory could be fewer.

Finally, the team stated that it will continue to contribute to independent art, from which it finds a more emancipatory sense and a greater approach to the reality of the island. To this they add the great possibilities that the Internet era offers them to achieve greater dissemination, international reach and insertion in important events and platforms around the world.