By Emily J Weitz
After this year’s Hamptons International Film Festival, which was chock-full of thought-provoking material, you might have thought it was time to tune out and watch some blockbuster fluff for a few months. But as rapidly improving technology allows more and more bright young minds to create films, there’s no shortage of enlightening material on the silver screen. This weekend, Guild Hall will be hosting the Havana Film Festival of New York (HFFNY), which aims “to introduce prominent and emerging filmmakers by showcasing the latest award-winning films from and about Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain, and the US Latino community,” says Executive Director Carole Rosenberg.
For the past twelve years, HFFNY has been showcasing work that may otherwise have never been seen in the US. This service is valuable to our community “for two reasons,” says Sarah Miller, production manager of the festival.
“First, it's valuable for the increasing number of Hispanics to be able to see films from their and their parents' countries of origin. Films are a great way to get a full sense of a country, from the way the countryside and streetscapes look, to the way people dress, to the dialects and slang they use. And secondly, it's great for non-Hispanics to see these for the same reason - to be exposed to other countries, see these universal stories in another setting.”
Three films will be presented at Guild Hall as part of the festival: “Los Pecados de Mi Padre” (Sins of My Father), a Colombian film, will be on Friday, November 5 at 7:30 p.m. Following the film will be a Q&A with the director, Argentinian filmmaker Nicolas Entel.
“El Cuerno de la Abundancia” (Horn of Plenty) is a Cuban film and will screen on Saturday, November 6 at 7:30 p.m. Directed by Juan Carlos Tabio (Fresas y Chocolate), this comedy utilizes humor as “a tool capable of revealing the key to life,” says Tabio. Sunday, November 4 will be an all-day family affair. All events on Sunday are free and open to the public. There will be dancing and musical performances, arts and crafts workshops, and free refreshments. At 4 p.m., the Peruvian children’s film “Valentino and the Can Can Club” will enjoy its U.S. premiere.
Nicolas Entel’s film “Los Pecados de Mi Padre”, kicks off the festival. It tells the story of Pablo Escobar, Colombian drug czar, through the eyes of his son, Sebastian Marroquin. Entel explains that, as a documentary filmmaker, the subject for the next film often comes about “in a random way and you instantly know you must make a documentary about it.”
He was speaking to a friend in the film business who suggested that he make a documentary about Escobar, and he “immediately thought it was a very boring idea. I didn't want to make another film that was simply ‘Pablo Escobar was born in such year, etcetera, etcetera.’ But at the same time I knew that the subject matter was fascinating. I'm obsessed with Latin America and the so-called ‘war on drugs.’ The film has to do with politics and counter culture — a lot of things I am interested in.”
Often with films about “bad guys”, the subject matter gets sensationalized and the main character is either demonized or turned into some sort of hero. Entel addressed this tendency in a creative way. Instead of telling the story through the eyes of Escobar, he realized he needed to make the movie “from the point of view of his son.” Soon after, he had another “ah ha moment- Let’s get Pablo Escobar’s son together with the sons of Luis Carlos Galan, who was murdered by Escobar’s cartel. I have no idea how that occurred to me,” he says, “and it is not something that should have been doable, and somehow, five years later, we were able to do it.”
“Los Pecados de Mi Padre” aims to break the cycle of violence that “can be passed from generation to generation,” says Entel.
“Literally - like the book One Hunderd Years of Solitude. You kill me so my brother goes and tries to kill you; you aren't there so he kills a dog instead. It happens to be your neighbor's dog so the neighbor goes and kills my brother.”
For someone like Sebastian Marroquin, who was raised in a culture of violence, there was an expectation for him “to avenge his father’s death; that was the rule and it was expected.” But instead, Sebastian chose to end the cycle. He chose to participate in an act of peace like this one, creating a film that increases dialogue and communication instead of resorting to violence.
“For the people of Colombia,” says Entel, “I hope they become aware that they can choose to end that cycle.”
While Entel’s primary message may have been geared towards the people of Colombia, by bringing this film and the HFFNY to East Hampton, these filmmakers are also opening the gates to peace and communication here, in a place where our cultures are often worlds apart. For more information, check out Guild Hall’s web site at www.guildhall.org or follow the HFFNY on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hffny.
