A cinema of beliefs. The presence of Yoruba religion in Cuban filmography
Abstract
The ethnic groups brought to Cuba by slavery carried their traditions. In the barracks of the island the Yoruba religion germinated, but this culture did not remain static, quickly there was a syncretism of the African and Catholic pantheon. Cinema in Cuba has seen religion as a fertile subject. But the influence exerted by foreign productions has led to two fundamental aspects: the copying of globalized canons and the search for a national aesthetic. The present text notes that in the audiovisual language, the Afrocuban rites are conceived as a resource for the construction of a cultural physiognomy where make a dialogue the contemporary trends and the roots of Cuba. Based on the review of the main bibliography of the area and audiovisual documents, a descriptive study with a qualitative approach establishes relevant conclusions regarding the analyzed historical process. So it is understood that in the audiovisual, the treatment of the religion of African origins has mutated: while some have approached with prejudices and stigmas, others have stereotyped it and some have chosen to explain, without mysticism, the Yoruba worldview. From every perspective, Cuban filmography contains signs of the Afrocuban culture, being a mirror of the Cuban imaginary. This magical-religious system is the basis of Cuban customs and culture.Keywords:
Cuba, cine, religión, afrocubanoReferences
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Álvarez Pitaluga, A. (2016). “Historic Retrospective of Cuban Cinema (1959-2015)”. Revista Estudios del Desarrollo Social: Cuba y América Latina. Vol. 4 no. 2, La Habana.
Araoz Valdés, R. (2017). “The Black Witches of Cuban Silent Film”. Revista Cine Cubano. 20 nov. 2017 <http://www.cubacine.cult.cu/revistacinecubano/digital17/articulo41.html>
Bianchi Ross, C. (2017). The Crime of the Stain on the Glass and other stories. La Habana: Ediciones Boloña.
Cabrera, L. (1993). El monte. La Habana: Editorial Letras Cubanas.
Cabrera, L. (2012). Black Stories of Cuba. La Habana: Editorial Letras Cubanas.
Castillo, L. & Agramonte, A. (2012). Chronology of Cuban Cinema II (1937-1944). La Habana: Ediciones ICAIC.
Del Río, J. (2017). “The First Six Decades of Cuban Cinema”. La Jiribilla. 13 dic. 2017 <http://epoca2.lajiribilla.cu/paraimprimir/nro54/1480_54_imp.html>
Douglas, M. E. (2008). Catalogue of Cuban Cinema 1897-1960. La Habana: Ediciones ICAIC.
“Cuban cinema after the Revolution”. Cinema 23. 13 dic. 2017 http://cinema23.com/trayecto23/el-cine-cubano-despues-de-la-revolucion/
Fernández, A. A. (2008). “Brief approach to Cuban Cinema of the Revolution (1959-2000)”. Otro lunes, Revista Hispanoamericana de Cultura. Abril.
Fowler, V. (2004). Conversations with a Uncomfortable Filmmaker. La Habana: Ediciones ICAIC.
García Borrero, J.A. (2008). “1959: Kilometer Zero for Revolutionary Cuban Cinema”. Cine cubano, la pupila insomne. 13 dic. 2017 <https://cinecubanolapupilainsomne.wordpress.com>
García de la Fé, J. M. (2014). “Afro-Cuban Religions in National Cinema”. (Tesis licenciatura, Universidad de Matanzas Camilo Cienfuegos, Cuba).
García Espinosa, J. (2000). “Life as a Road of Shortcuts”. Un largo camino hacia la luz. La Habana: Edición Unión.
García Espinosa, J. (2007). “The Signs of Imperfect Cinema”. Revista Cine Latinoamericano. 20 nov. 2017 <sergiotrabucco.wordpress.com>
Ortiz, F. (1983). Counterpoint of Tobacco and Sugar. La Habana: Editorial de Ciencias Sociales.
Ortiz, F. (2017). “For the Cuban Integration of Whites and Blacks”. La Jiribilla. 13 dic. 2017 http://www.lajiribilla.com.cu/2001/n18_septiembre/fuenteviva.html
Pichardo, H. (1965). Documents for the History of Cuba. La Habana: Editorial de Ciencias Sociales.
Rodríguez Torres, L. (2017). “Cuban Cinema, Society and Revolution”, 13 dic. 2017 www.monografias.com
Sánchez, J. L. (2010). Breaking the tension of the arch: Cuban documentary cinema movement. La Habana: Ediciones ICAIC.
