Running for the Revolution + Q&A with Mark Craig

Juantorena gold medal success at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games catapulted him onto the world stage and made him an international sporting icon - to the delight of Cuba's charismatic but controversial leader Fidel Castro.

Granting exceptional access, Juantorena shares the highs and lows of his sporting career and provides fresh insight into his unique country, its revolution and its complex, uneasy relationship with America. Along the way, he is reunited with US Olympian Fred Newhouse, a man born in a segregated America but who saw the 400m gold medal as his destiny.

Juantorena also recounts his intense 800m duel in 1977 with ace Kenyan runner Mike Boit who, along with other African nations, sacrificed his Olympic dream by standing up to apartheid in a boycott of the 1976 Games. Filmed over five years, Juantorena's story unfolds against a backdrop of tumultuous political events.

Mark Craig I UK-Cuba 2021 I 1h21m I Doc I N/C PG

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Running for the Revolution cuenta la historia de Alberto Juantorena, el mejor atleta olímpico de Cuba. Tras ganar la medalla de oro en los Juegos Olímpicos de Montreal en 1976, Juantorena se convirtió en un icono deportivo en el escenario mundial, para el deleite del líder carismático pero polémico cubano, Fidel Castro.

Concediéndonos un acceso excepcional, Juantorena comparte los altibajos de su carrera como deportista y proporciona una nueva visión de su país, la revolución, y la relación compleja e intranquila con los Estados Unidos. En el camino, se reúne con el Olímpico estadounidense Fred Newhouse, un hombre nacido en los Estados Unidos en la época de la segregación pero que vio en la medalla de oro de los 400 metros su destino.

Juantorena también describe su duelo intenso de los 800 metros en 1977 con el deportista keniano Mike Boit que, junto con otras naciones africanas, sacrificó su sueño olímpico cuando se opuso al apartheid al boicotear los juegos del 1976. Grabada a lo largo de cinco años, la historia de Juantorena se desarrolla en un contexto de acontecimientos políticos agitados.

Havana Glasgow Film Festival

Celebrating Cuban film and culture in Havana’s twin city of Glasgow

Our seventh edition focuses on the resourcefulness and extraordinariness of Cuba during one of the toughest points in its history in a hybrid Festival of online and live screenings.

Highlights include a Friday evening programme of films and discussion relating to Cuba’s unique approach to sustainability. Rebecca Heidenberg, Director of Queens of the Revolution will join us for a live streamed Q&A on Sunday night to discuss her portrait of a cultural centre that paved the road for LGBTQ+ rights in Cuba. Our featured director this year is acclaimed filmmaker Arturo Sotto and we will screen four of his films including the film noir Nido de Mantes / Mantis Nest.

Online Festival Passes, costing £15 / £7.50 allow access to all our online films, with an additional cost of £0/£2/£4/£6/£8 for live events at CCA on a pay-what-you-can basis.

For full programme details, visit our website www.hgfilmfest.com

Venue Guidance

CCA is currently operating with increased requirements due to Coronavirus. Masks and hand-sanitising are required throughout the building, and queueing for events will take place outside, so please dress for the weather. We ask that people attending events take a lateral flow test before visiting CCA. For more information, please see Venue Guidance.