Cuba/Spain, Observational Documentary, 2014
71 min, HDV, Color
Spanish with English subtitles

The formerly luxurious Hotel Nueva Isla of Old Havana is now in ruins, but it is home for people living on the fringes of society: Jorge, a retired public servant, and two neighbors, Waldo and La Flaca. With almost no contact with the outside world, Jorge resembles a Don Quixote, gone astray and definitely forgotten. Day by day, his health and body weaken like the walls of Hotel Nueva Isla. Abandoned by his offspring and by the women he was with, his only motivation is to follow a secret revelation he’s had for years. He is convinced that in some place of the ruinous hotel the former owners hid valuable objects before fleeing with the triumph of the Cuban Revolution. But life inside the ruins has become dangerous and while its other tenants look for a safer place, Jorge decides to stay with the building.

Regional Premiere

www.hotelnuevaisla2015.com

About the director

Irene Gutierrez graduated as a Documentarian from the International Film School of San Antonio de los Baños (EICTV, Cuba). She’s currently working as a freelance filmmaker between Spain and Cuba, and is also responsible for the Documentary Department in the EICTV.

Javier Labrador is a Cinematography graduate from the International Film School of San Antonio de los Baños (EICTV, Cuba). He is currently working as a freelance cinematographer in Cuba.

Credits

Producer: José Alayón, Claudia Calviño
Production Companies: El Viaje Films
Screenwriter: Irene Gutierrez, Javier Labrador, Lorenzo Mora
Cinematographer: Javier Labrador
Editor: Lorenzo Mora
Sound Design: Carlos Esteban García
Music: Armando Salomón Peñalver
Cast: Jorge De los Ríos Vega, Josefina Patterson, Vivian Pacheco, Waldo Muñoz Hernández

Print Source: Irene Gutiérrez Torres, cienfuegosproducciones@gmail.com