London, November 18: From November 11 to 16, the tenth edition of the Havana Glasgow 2025 Film Festival took place in Glasgow, Scotland. This year, the event focused its programming on the values of Solidarity and Resistance as its main theme. The film festival, now established as an essential space for cultural exchange about Cuba, with attractive promotion on social media and its website, had three main venues located in emblematic areas of the city: the Glasgow Contemporary Art Center (CCA), the renowned Glasgow Film Theatre (GFT), and The Boardwalk, which hosted several of the presentations and meetings.
The program included morning and afternoon sessions with a varied lineup of films, documentaries, and discussions. One of the most eagerly awaited moments was the UK premiere of the documentary La vida es bailar (Life is Dance), made by the festival's founders and directors, Hugo Rivalta and Eirene Houston, which received a warm welcome from the audience.
As part of the opening day, the Lord Provost of Glasgow, Cllr Jacqueline McLaren, hosted a civic reception at the iconic Glasgow City Chambers, attended by the Ambassador, who highlighted in her speech that this year marks 23 years of twinning between Havana and Glasgow, a bond that has been strengthened through joint initiatives such as the Memorandum of Understanding between the University of Glasgow and the University of Havana, as well as the continuity and growth of the festival itself, which is now celebrating its tenth anniversary.
For her part, the Lord Provost underscored the importance of the historic relationship with Havana and the cultural contribution that the festival represents for the Scottish public.
The festival program also included panels and discussions with filmmakers, academics, and specialists. One of the most celebrated attendees was renowned actress Mirta Ibarra, recognized as one of the essential faces of Cuban cinema. Cuban filmmakers Alejandro Valera and Osaín Álvarez, the latter being the son of renowned documentary filmmaker Santiago Álvarez, also participated. Osaín presented Los Ojos de Santiago (2019), a work created on the occasion of the centenary of his father's birth, which revisits his work in Vietnam. The screening took place during the day dedicated to solidarity between Vietnam and Cuba, which was attended by the Vietnamese ambassador to the United Kingdom, Do Minh Hung.
The festival dedicated a special moment to the legacy of Santiago Álvarez, internationally recognized for the historical and testimonial value of his ICAIC Latin American Newsreels. In this context, a documentary by a Vietnamese filmmaker who worked alongside the Cuban filmmaker during the filming in Vietnam in the 1960s was also screened.
Representing the Cuban Embassy in the United Kingdom were First Secretary for Political Affairs Pablo Ginarte and Cultural Affairs Specialist Adislenes Ruenes.
