El mégano

EL MÉGANO was made in 1954 and is considered to be the first critical film in Cuban film history. It is a semi-documentary by a group of young filmmakers who got involved in the medium at an early stage. At the time, some of them were studying at Havana University, the two directors were attending the Centro Esperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome. Most group-members were active in the film department of Nuestro Tiempo, a cultural company. Some of them published film reviews in newspapers and magazines. They were committed to devoting themselves to the Cuban film industry. The makers of EL MÉGANO were searching for an alternative to the traditional film industry. Realism and an authentic national cinema seemed to be the answer. They were convinced that the Cuban film industry could only survive if it would concentrate on the problems within Cuban society. They also thought that everyone involved in the creative process of a film - from directors to technicians - should approach these issues as critically and thoroughly as possible. This would bring about a film culture of a higher quality. Influences from other film cultures were rejected, particularly the Mexican and North American ones, which had so far dominated the Cuban film climate. Furthermore, it was deemed highly important that the Cuban film would obtain its own position internationally. To achieve this, it had to meet the criteria of the realistic cinema, which was in growing demand at the time. The crew visited a number of places in Cuba to find a suitable location. They selected the mud-plain El Mégano, partly because of the reception by the villagers. Although this short film - which the makers considered a try-out - has some productional flaws, it manages to get across the standpoints of its makers.