Documentaries On Cuban Artists And Writers by Juanamaría Cordones-Cook
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1. Cimarroneando con G.H. (2011), 30 minutes long with English subtitles. A documentary of a candid interview of Georgina Herrera (Jovellanos, Cuba, 1936) with Juanamaría Cordones-Cook where the poet discusses memories, gender issues, racial relations, and racism in socialist Cuba. Film includes images of the poet in different moments of her life, with art work and African masks from the University of Missouri, Museum of Art and Archaeology and Museum of Anthropology. The music was composed and played for this documentary by Professor Anthony Glise.

Cimarroneando con G.H. (2011), 30 minutos con subtítulos en inglés. Franca y abierta entrevista con la poeta Georgina Herrera (Jovellanos, Cuba, 1936) comentando memorias personales, temas de género, relaciones raciales y racismo en la Cuba socialista. El film incluye imágenes de la poeta en diferentes mom entos de su vida, con máscaras y objetos de arte  africanos del Museo de Arte y Arqueología y el Museo de Antropología de la Universidad de Missouri. La música fue compuesta y ejecutada para este documental por el Profesor Anthony Glise.

2. Nancy Morejón: Famous Landscapes (2013), 52 minutes long with English subtitles. Filmed with Imágenes del Caribe company. This documentary offers a unique perspective on contemporary Cuban culture and intellectual life through the world and artistic achievements of one of its most celebrated poets, Nancy Morejón (Havana 1944), as well as through the voices and images of prominent Afro-Cuban intellectuals. The music was performed by Richard Egües, Marta Valdés, and Elena Burke.

3. Diago, A Maroon Artist (2013), ca. 28 minutes long with English subtitles. Presentation of a prominent multimedia artist, Juan Roberto Diago (1972), who employs discarded materials. Diago understands the creative possibilities of recycling and bricolage and enriches his images by juxtaposing graffiti with racially contesting intent. He has labeled himself a “maroon artist” and his art work results in “cultural resistance”. In this documentary, Diago openly discusses issues of race and poverty in contemporary Cuba, as well as their representation in his paintings and installations.

Diago, artista apalencado (2013), ca. 28 minutos con subtítulos en inglés. Presentación de un prominente artista, Juan Roberto Diago (1972), que crea empleando materiales desechables. Diago comprende las posibilidades creativas del reciclaje y del bricolage, además enriquece sus imágenes yuxtaponiendo graffiti con sentido racial desafiante. Se ha autodesignado “artista cimarrón” y su arte resulta en un acto de “resistencia cultural”. En este documental, Diago abiertamente comenta sobre temas de raza y pobreza en la Cuba de hoy en día, y en su representación en sus cuadros, fotografías e instalaciones.

Roberto Diago, un artista "apalencado" 9/1/2011 de Juanamaría Cordones-Cook, testimonio generado de sus entrevistas al artista filmadas durante tres años para el documental Choco, Afro Hispanic Review, Vol 36, #2, Fall 2017 

4. Rogelio Martínez Furé: A Cuban Griot (2014), ca. 30 minutes with English subtitles. Presentation of a writer, Africanist, scholar of folklore, and religion, and founder of the National Folkloric Ballet. Through conversations with Furé and other prominent Afro-Cuban intellectuals, as well as images of religious rituals and dances of the National Folkloric Ballet and the Olurum Group, film discloses layers of Cuba’s rich cultural heritage and African legacy. It portrays Furé as a contemporary griot, a repository of oral tradition who recovers and guards Afro-Cuban and Caribbean silenced memories and true identity.

Rogelio Martínez Furé: Un griot cubano (2014), ca. 30 minutos con subtítulos en inglés. Presentación de un escritor, africanista, investigador de folclore y religión y fundador del Ballet Folclórico Nacional de Cuba. Mediante conversaciones con Martínez Furé y otros destacados intelectuales afro-cubanos, así como también con imágenes de rituales religiosos y danzas del Ballet Folclórico Nacional y del grupo Olorum, el documental revela niveles desconocidos del rico legado cultural cubano y africano. Presenta a Martínez Furé como un griot, depositario de tradiciones orales y guardián de memorias cubanas y caribeñas silenciadas, de una auténtica identidad cubana.

5. Choco (2014), ca. 29 minutes long with English subtitles. Presentation of Eduardo “Choco” Roca Salazar, an artist who embodies the cultural success of the Cuban Revolution in its promotion of the arts. Born in a working class family in a small town in the Oriente province, Choco graduated from Cuba’s National Superior School of Art and became a world famous print-maker. Documentary shows Choco at work in his Old Havana workshop, as well as visiting his former art school and a vast collection of his art work from the start of his career. Film is enriched by readings by Nancy Morejón and Pablo Milanés, as well as the music created specially for this film by Miguelito Núñez.

Choco (2014), ca. 29 minutos con subtítulos en inglés. Presentación de Eduardo “Choco” Roca Salazar, artista plástico que encarna el éxito cultural de la Revolución cubana en su promoción de las artes. De origen muy humilde en una aldea de la Provincia de Oriente cubana, Choco se graduó del Instituto Superior de Arte y ha llegado a ser un celebrado grabador en su realización de colagrafías. El documental lo muestra trabajando en su taller en La Habana Vieja, recorriendo su ciudad y visitando la escuela de arte, a la vez que exhibe una amplia gam a de su creación desde los inicios de su carrera artística. El filme es enriquecido con lecturas de Nancy Morejón y Pablo Milanés, y con la música creada especialmente para Choco por Miguelito Núñez.

Choco: Con los pies en La Habana, de Juanamaría Cordones-Cook con Elvira Aballí Morell, testimonio generado de las entrevistas al artista filmadas por J. Cordones-Cook durante tres años para el documental Choco (Afro-Hispanic Review. Vol. 36, # 2, Fall 2017).

6. The Magical World of Mendive, ca. 40 minutes long, with English subtitles. Offers a unique perspective into the personal and artistic world of Manuel Mendive, the leading contemporary Cuban artist. Creating in various genres, drawing, painting, body painting, soft and hard sculpture, installations, and performances, Mendive is also a Santería priest, whose spirituality permeates all of his creations. This documentary shows a broad spectrum of his work including his latest performance in Havana, Las Cabezas (May 2012). Mendive appears painting in his studio as well as in the midst of his tropical forest offering some unprecedented remarks on his early life, on African elements in his art while he discusses his aesthetics and his profound fascination with the creative process. This film is enriched with comments by major Cuban intellectuals, Adelaida de Juan, Nancy Morejón, Pablo Armando Fernández, and Yolanda Wood, as well as with music by Ulises Hernández and Argeliers León.

El mundo mágico de Mendive, ca. 40 minutos con subtítulos en inglés. Ofrece una perspectiva única en el mundo personal y artístico de Manuel Mendive, el más celebrado artista plástico cubano. Creador en varios géneros, el dibujo, la pintura, la pintura del cuerpo desnudo, escultura blanda y en metales y maderas, instalaciones y performances, Mendive es un sacerdote de la santería cuya espiritualidad permea toda su obra. Este documental muestra la amplia gama de su creación incluyendo su última performance en La Habana, Las cabezas (mayo 2012). Asimismo Mendive aparece pintando en su estudio y también en medio de su bosque tropical, a la vez que ofreciendo comentarios inéditos sobre su vida, los elementos africanos en su arte, sus estéticas y su profunda subyugación con el proceso creativo. El filme es enriquecido con comentarios de prominentes intelectuales cubanos Adelaida de Juan, Pablo Armando Fernández, Nancy Morejón y Yolanda Wood, además de música de Ulises Hernández y Argeliers León.

Manuel Mendive: Embellecer la vida es mi gran objetivo, de Juanamaría Cordones-Cook con Elvira Aballí Morell, testimonio generado de las entrevistas al artista filmadas por J. Cordones-Cook para el documental El mundo mágico de Mendive (Afro-Hispanic Review. Vol. 36, # 2, Fall 2017).

7. La silla dorada (audiovisual anthology) (2010), 90 minutes long. Audiovisual anthology of poetry by Nancy Morejón, filmed in Cuba. The poet reads 52 of her most celebrated poems. "While it is true that Nancy Morejón initially achieved fame and has been and continues to be acclaimed as an Afro-Cuban poet, feminist poet, poet of the Revolution, leaving her identified exclusively with these categories would be a limiting attitude. Carrier of a strong, multidimensional ethos, her poetic voice leads her reading public towards a wide range of experiences ."

La silla dorada (antología audiovisual) (2010), 90 minutos. Antología audiovisual de poesía de Nancy Morejón, filmada en Cuba. El poeta lee 52 de sus poemas más famosos. “Si bien es cierto que Nancy Morejón inicialmente alcanzó notoriedad y ha sido y sigue siendo aclamada como poeta afro-cubana, poeta feminista, poeta de la Revolución, dejarla identificada exclusivamente con estas categorías sería una actitud limitante. Portadora de un fuerte ethos, multidimensional, su voz poética conduce a su público lector hacia una amplia gama de experiencias”.

8. Olazabal: Un hacedor de objetos / A Maker of Objects (2015), ca. 34 minutes with English subtitles. Nurtured by spiritual traditions of the Yoruba culture, multimedia artist Santiago Rodríguez Olazábal (Havana 1955) establishes an intense and constant aesthetic dialogue with the divinities of the Ifá Orisha religion. Through unique symbols, rituals, and mysteries, his work expresses the profound grief of his African ancestors. In this documentary, Rodríguez Olazábal shares his thoughts about his personal and artistic development, visits his childhood neighborhood and meets with old friends. He also draws in charcoal human figures that he effectively complements with vibrant primary colors. The film displays a wide range of his bidimensional and tridimensional oeuvres including his recent exhibit at Galería Habana, “Palabras” (2014-2015). The documentary is enriched by remarks of outstanding personalities of the Cuban art scene, curator Gretchen Lima Molina, gallerist Luis Miret and art critics Hilda María Rodríguez and Yolanda Wood.

9. Alberto Lescay, Earth and Soul (2016) 37 minutes with subtitles in English. Film on Alberto Lescay Merencio (Santiago de Cuba 1950), a prominent sculptor and painter. Artist is presented working in sculptures, paintings, and performances, in his own personal and creative environment in Santiago and in Havana. He discusses his family roots, his life, his world, and artistic objectives and accomplishments. Film shows a broad spectrum of his artwork including his magnificent paintings and bronze sculptures, icons of Cuban culture and history, prominently displayed throughout the island. In addition the film is enriched with comments by major Cuban intellectuals.

Alberto Lescay, alma y tierra (2016) 37 minutos con subtítulos en inglés. Película sobre Alberto Lescay Merencio (Santiago de Cuba 1950), un prominente escultor y pintor. Artista es presentado trabajando en esculturas, pinturas y actuaciones, en su propio ambiente personal y creativo en Santiago y en La Habana. Él discute su raíces de familia, su vida, su mundo, y objetivos artísticos y logros. La película muestra un amplio espectro de sus obras de arte, incluyendo sus magníficas pinturas y esculturas de bronce, iconos de la cultura y la historia cubana, destacados en toda la isla. Además, la película se enriquece con los comentarios de los principales intelectuales cubanos.

10. An Afro-Cuban Journey: Zuleica Romay/ Una ruta afro-cubana: Zuleica Romay (2017), 34 minutes with subtitles in English. Presents the oral history of Zuleica Romay, an award winning writer and a remarkable cultural leader, president of the Cuban Book Institute (2009-2016), and director of the Program of Afro American Studies at Casa de las Americas, since 2016. In her testimonial, Romay shares her life journey going back to her ancestral memories. She discusses her humble background and early experiences, her reflections on her development and her human environment, the awakening of her interest in books, the role of religion in her family. Romay reveals her independent and rebellious spirit, and at the same time her loyalty to the ideals of the Cuban Revolution that gave her the opportunity to be educated. In addition she discusses her thoughts about race in Cuba, the racialized vision of people, the naturalization of prejudice, as well as racism and racial discrimination in 21st century Cuba. Zuleica Romay asserts the need to have a ubiquitous social debate on racial issues, as well as a struggle against racism at several levels in order to give the problem and its consequences the visibility they deserve.

11. Africa in Modern Cuban Dance: Eduardo Rivero . (2017), 42 minutes with subtitles in English. Documents the life history and artistic legacy of Cuba’s great dancer and choreographer Eduardo Rivero Walker (1936-2012) told by himself and by some of those who knew him well: Alberto Lescay, Nancy Morejón, Santiago Alfonso, Isidro Rolando and Natalia Bolívar, among others. A member of the founding generation of contemporary Cuban dance, Eduardo Rivero developed a unique and effective technique to dance and to teach. He created unforgettable choreographies and was a master of generations of dancers in Cuba, the Caribbean, Europe and Canada. The film is enriched by declarations of personalities of Cuban culture presented with clips of Rivero dancing and of several of his classics, such as Súlkary, Okantomí, Duo a Lam, among others. Eduardo Rivero was and still is –even after his death- a Master of Cuban Modern Dance. 

África en la danza moderna cubana: Eduardo Rivero  (2017), 42 minutos con subtítulos en inglés. El film documenta la historia de vida y el legado artístico del emblemático bailarín y coreógrafo cubano Eduardo Rivero Walker (1936-2012) contados por él mismo en una entrevista inédita y por quienes lo conocieron: Alberto Lescay, Santiago Alfonso, Nancy Morejón, Isidro Rolando y Natalia Bolívar, entre otros. Representante de la generación fundacional de la danza contemporánea en Cuba, Eduardo Rivero desarrolló una técnica muy singular para bailar y enseñar. Fue un creador de clásicos inolvidables de la danza contemporánea y maestro de generaciones de grandes bailarines a lo largo de toda Cuba y el Caribe. Los testimonios de personalidades de la cultura de la Isla se entremezclan con imágenes de este gran artista bailando y de varias de sus piezas clásicas Súlkary, Okantomí, Duo a Lam, entre otras, configurando un gran fresco que muestra la dimensión única de quien fue -y sigue siendo, a pesar de su muerte- un Maestro de la Danza Cubana.