»For us dancing is like talking. We are born dancing«
Eduardo Veitia, director of the Ballet Espanol de Cuba
This documentary starts with a core statement on Cuba, the philosophy of life regarding the dancing culture in Cuba. The three carrying, inspiring pillars of dance on the Caribbean island are illustrated by:
the classical Spanish influence
the Afro-Cuban roots
the Latin American mentality
In the meantime a diverse mixture has arisen from these three pillars, continuously new influences keep shaping the Cuban dance. And yet, almost everything is based on the origins mentioned above.
When the painter Christian Sommer was traveling around Cuba three years ago, he was looking for motives away from the common clichés. He found a special one he in the »Gran Teatro«, the State Theater of Havana. He got to know the prima ballerina Irene Rodriguez and painted her on several occasions in different poses. Flamenco on Cuba? A totally new aspect for him.
Most visitors to the island , but also the television viewers, associate »hot rhythms« with Cuba and the synonym is world-famous: »Tropicana«. Mr. Sommer thought, however, that there must be more that is worth mentioning about Cuba – and thus an idea was born.
In February of 2008 he met the German cameraman Jochen Beckmann, now a resident of Havana, and the television journalist Jens Wohlrab. The idea took shape. Approval proceedings were shouldered, the approach of the film was even supported by the Cuban authorities. Variety instead of simplicity, not the stereotype postcard showing an oldtimer and the cigar.
For the first time a foreign TV production company, that is our team, was allowed to take a look behind the scenes of the »Ballet Espanol de Cuba« , without any restrictions. That meant everywhere, at all times.
The shooting started at the end of August and was supposed to be finished by the middle of September with the premiere of »Carmen«. Something extraordinary was achieved: the dance company danced the night away on the world famous Malecon.
Unusual as well: a look at the heart of the Cuban carneval in the town of Santiago de Cuba. The whole town lives for these days, for the great performance. In spite of limited resources they manage to create instruments themselves – some instruments can be traced back to a Lada car. The principle of neighbourly help discloses itself to the viewer through pictures and interviews.
Even if a few things remind one of the Brazilian carneval, there are differences. The music originally comes from the Maghreb in Africa and the carneval takes place in the middle of the summer.
There are many dance companies and groups in a country in which dance is associated with social advancement. In the film “Baila!” everyday life of one of these dance groups is depicted: waiting for the opening of the rehearsal room, waiting for the bus, waiting for success ….? Sadness and apparent glamour are close together here.
The documentary attempts to intertwine and intensify these different strands. It is very close to the people; there is no lecturing nor an attempt to present things in a simplistic way. A lot of things are disclosed to the viewer through personal impressions of the protagonists. Their statements and pictures speak for themselves.
A natural phenomenon of a particular kind endangered the whole project. In the middle of the preparations for »Carmen« on the one hand, and the performance of a salsa group in a holiday resort on the other hand, the hurricane »Ike« hit Cuba with full force. Nothing was moving any longer. The shooting had to be postponed to the middle of November.
The Cuban Embassy in Berlin as well as the International Press Center in Havana and the affiliated authorities showed a lot of understanding for the difficult situation of the team. There were no restrictions at all, no watchdogs. The shooting continued without any interference. The team was very thankful for all the support they received from the authorities.
In the end, more than 23 hours of filmed material resulted in an one hour documentary film. It is about the people of Cuba trying to live their dream. Their dream of dancing. For us Europeans it is time to realize: Cuba IS dancing!