Doha: My Cuba is a new series of six programmes from Al Jazeera English starting on August 22.
The series gives an insight into Cuba through the eyes of six people living in places as varied as buzzing Havana, the Afro-Cuban neighbourhood of La Marina in Matanzas, or a quiet village in the mountains at the opposite end of the country.
Each intimate portrait takes the viewer way beyond the headlines and the familiar stories about ‘Cuba opening up’. We see people’s individual struggles and the challenges they set themselves; see their rewards and successes; hear their frustrations and pleasures — and see the Cuban trait of finding humour in everything. Some are benefitting from the possibilities of the ‘new Cuba’ but others’ lives have been completely untouched.
Avoiding clichés, the series attempts to get behind the statistics, the views of political commentators and the soundbites on the news to hear what Cuba means to some of its people and show their day to day lives.
It features TV comedian Luis Silva (Panfilo); ballet dancer Laura Rodriguez; community worker and Female Rumba Association Founder Regla Gonzalez; rural shoe maker Alexis Martinez Pena; wedding and event planner Ailed Guevara; and Jose Enrique Gomez, whose job is to make sure his neighbourhood has the best fireworks, lighting and float displays at the Las Parrandas carnival, even if it means preparing 150,000 handmade fireworks.
Al Jazeera online will also roll out a series of stories that tap into the lives of unique individuals to provide deeper insights into Cuban culture.
The stories will feature the work of local writers and photographers and explore topics from a day in the life of two Havana vegetable sellers and a profile of a well-known performance artist to the experiences of a young santero and a duo putting Guantanamo on the map with their contemporary dance company.
Ingrid Falck, Head, AJE Documentaries, conceived and commissioned the series.
“My Cuba is part of Al Jazeera’s commitment to give people from the global south a platform to tell their own stories in their own words and directly to the world.”
The Peninsula
Doha: My Cuba is a new series of six programmes from Al Jazeera English starting on August 22.
The series gives an insight into Cuba through the eyes of six people living in places as varied as buzzing Havana, the Afro-Cuban neighbourhood of La Marina in Matanzas, or a quiet village in the mountains at the opposite end of the country.
Each intimate portrait takes the viewer way beyond the headlines and the familiar stories about ‘Cuba opening up’. We see people’s individual struggles and the challenges they set themselves; see their rewards and successes; hear their frustrations and pleasures — and see the Cuban trait of finding humour in everything. Some are benefitting from the possibilities of the ‘new Cuba’ but others’ lives have been completely untouched.
Avoiding clichés, the series attempts to get behind the statistics, the views of political commentators and the soundbites on the news to hear what Cuba means to some of its people and show their day to day lives.
It features TV comedian Luis Silva (Panfilo); ballet dancer Laura Rodriguez; community worker and Female Rumba Association Founder Regla Gonzalez; rural shoe maker Alexis Martinez Pena; wedding and event planner Ailed Guevara; and Jose Enrique Gomez, whose job is to make sure his neighbourhood has the best fireworks, lighting and float displays at the Las Parrandas carnival, even if it means preparing 150,000 handmade fireworks.
Al Jazeera online will also roll out a series of stories that tap into the lives of unique individuals to provide deeper insights into Cuban culture.
The stories will feature the work of local writers and photographers and explore topics from a day in the life of two Havana vegetable sellers and a profile of a well-known performance artist to the experiences of a young santero and a duo putting Guantanamo on the map with their contemporary dance company.
Ingrid Falck, Head, AJE Documentaries, conceived and commissioned the series.
“My Cuba is part of Al Jazeera’s commitment to give people from the global south a platform to tell their own stories in their own words and directly to the world.”
The Peninsula
