The Havana Film Festival is a Cuban festival that focuses on the promotion of Latin American filmmakers. It is also known in Spanish as ''Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano de La Habana,'' and in English as International Festival of New Latin American Cinema of Havana. It takes place every year during December in the city of Havana, Cuba.

History

The inaugural International Festival of New Latin American Cinema was held on December 3, 1979, and more than 600 film directors of Latin America responded to the first call made by the Cuban Institute of the Cinematographic Art and Industry (ICAIC). Its founders included ICAIC president Alfredo Guevara, and the filmmakers Julio García Espinosa and Pastor Vega. As expressed in its founding convocation, the festival aimed to "promote the regular meeting of Latin American filmmakers who with their work enrich the artistic culture of our countries (…); ensure the joint presentation of fiction films, documentaries, cartoons and current events (…), and contribute to the international diffusion and circulation of the main and most significant productions of our cinematographies". The inaugural festival hosted over 600 filmmakers from across Latin America. Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez as president of the Fiction jury and Cuban filmmaker Santiago Álvarez as president of the jury for Documentaries and Animation. The Coral Grand Prize winners were ''

Colonel Delmiro Gouveia ''Colonel Delmiro Gouveia'' ( pt, Coronel Delmiro Gouveia) is a 1978 Brazilian drama film directed by Geraldo Sarno. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1978 Cannes Film Festival. The film accounts the story and exploits of " ...

'' (dir.

Geraldo Sarno Geraldo Sarno (6 March 1938 – 22 February 2022) was a Brazilian documentarist, screenwriter and film director. Life and career Born in Poções, after studying law at the Universidad del Salvador Sarno moved to São Paulo where he became ...

, Brazil) and ''Maluala'' (dir. Sergio Giral, Cuba) in Fiction, ''The Battle of Chile: the Struggle of a People Without Arms'' (dir. Patricio Gúzman, Chile) in Documentary, and '' Elpidio Valdés'' (dir.

Juan Padrón Juan Manuel Padrón Blanco (January 29, 1947 – March 24, 2020) was a Cuban animation director and comics artist, best known as the creator of the comic strip ''Elpidio Valdés''. He was born in Matanzas. From 1963 he published sketches and car ...

, Cuba) in Animation. In 2013, following the death of current President and co-founder Alfredo Guevara the Havana Film Festival announced that it was reappointing Iván Giroud as its President. Giroud had previously served as President from 1994-2010.

Awards

Within the following categories, approximately 40 awards are given:Havana Film Festival
website, Awards section. * Films * Documentaries * Animation * First Work * Direction * Cinematography * Other

Awards An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An award ...

, including a

FIPRESCI The International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI, short for Fédération Internationale de la PRESse CInématographique) is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the world fo ...

prize

Grand Coral - First Prize winners (Fiction)

Awards by nation

Footnotes

External links