Perhaps not more than in other years, but certainly they were heavyweights: Cuban cinema today mourn the death of Daniel Diaz Torres who thickens the list of national cultural personalities who have passed away in this 2013.
A cancer took him in no time, and at 64 ceased to exist one of the most prolific, trenchant and committed filmmakers of his time, who could at least say goodbye with that public success “Ana’s film” one of preferred ones in the last Havana Film Festival.
Upon learning of the death, OnCuba contacted his colleague and friend Manolo Pérez Paredes, the most recent winner of the National Film Award: “We had a long friendship. He was my assistant director on El Hombre de Maisinicú and Rio Negro, and later, when he was director, we used to exchange scripts and opinions. I was with him for all the hype generated by Alicia en el Pueblo de las Maravilla, as well as the ICAIC creation groups “.
For a while people in the trade were commenting about his illness, long and painful as obituaries that are afraid of the word cancer, but still the reaction in the building of 23 and 12 has been pain.
Born on the last day of 1948, Daniel worked in a hundred Latin American ICAIC Newsreels between 1977 and 1981, and debuted as a feature film director with Jibaro (1982). However, his biggest fame came with the satire Alicia en el pueblo de Maravillas (1991), written by Eduardo del Llano, a regular contributor, as it was photo director Raúl Pérez Ureta.
Alicia … caused a national uproar. I still remember in my hometown Santa Clara, that my father had to see it as a task of the Party, like all members, because it was an extremely captivating movie, daring even by today’s standards, but certainly a very good story … It is said that cost Julio Garcia Espinosa his presidency of the Cuban Institute of Cinema, and prompted the return from France of Alfredo Guevara to calm down outraged national filmmakers …
Famous for his irreverent tone and always ready to break the mold of genres such as thriller, Daniel bequeathed other memorable parodies, as Kleines Tropicana (1997), Hacerse el sueco (2000) and Lisanka (2009). He used to say that more than a laugh; he was interested in getting bitter laughs…
“I cannot separate a cinema that can make people think, being as well entertaining … And for me the amenity has nothing to do with the superficial or frivolous things. On this subject it is worth discussing. Sure there may be lousy comedies, dramas and there are very bad too. And no one is exempt from that film that goes wrong. But that is not attributable to a genre, “he said in one of the last interviews he granted.
In the past Latin American Film Festival he premiered “Ana’s film “, a film with values, but arguably saved by a huge Laura de la Uz, whose performance earned her the Coral prize to the best female performer.
Daniel Diaz Torres was also a teacher at the International School of Film and was an active participant in the ongoing restructuring of Cuban cinema. His filmography was also a class, in addition to a joy that undoubtedly we will miss on the premises of 23 and 12.
