Film in the Community – Cuba’s Forgotten Jewels
Rocky Mountain Women’s Film in partnership with Temple Beit Torah are proud to present January’s Film in the Community event where we will welcome filmmakers Robin Truesdale and Judy Kreith who will join us in conversation after watching their award-winning documentary, CUBA’S FORGOTTEN JEWELS – A HAVEN IN HAVANA.
Through Film in the Community, films are screened throughout the year – free of charge – at diverse venues throughout Colorado Springs and in collaboration with community partners.
All seating for Film in the Community events are first come, first served . Please let us know you are coming, so we can plan for this event. Arrive 10-15 minutes before the screening to secure your seat.
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CUBA’S FORGOTTEN JEWELS – A HAVEN IN HAVANA
Directed by Robin Truesdale & Judy Kreith
The darkness of war, the luck of escape, and a journey by ship to a Caribbean island full of light, color and music – this was the experience of young Marion Finkels and others who found safe haven in Cuba from the extermination of Jews during WWII. Marion remembers the exotic food, rhythms, and language of this new land combined with the tropical heat and arduous work in a refugee-established diamond polishing factory. Along with other survivor accounts, Marion’s tale conjures a dramatic view of 1940s Havana – an era at once tumultuous, heartbreaking, and intoxicating – to reveal an immigration success story
Attending Filmmakers
JUDY KREITH Co-Director, Writer: Judy Kreith is a professional dance educator and choreographer. She received her MA Degree from Stanford University. Her mother, Marion Finkels Kreith, is the key inspiration for this film. Judy has extensively studied Cuban dance and while in Cuba, began research into the Jewish refugees’ diamond polishing industry that flourished in Havana during the Second World War, working on-site with Cuban historians. Judy contributes her research and knowledge, along with her personal connection and passion for this project and its potential impact. She has spoken on this topic to many groups, including a conference at the University of Antwerp, Belgium. Judy and her mother Marion reside in Colorado.
ROBIN TRUESDALE Co-Director, Cinematographer, Editor: Robin Truesdale is a documentary filmmaker and the founder of Two Hands Films. She brings her storytelling abilities and craft to this project as the cinematographer, editor, and technical director. Robin began her career as a news editor for a Denver, Colorado television station. After years of constructing news and educational stories through video, she was introduced to documentary film’s powerful potential to communicate deeper stories about people, cultures, and issues of the times. Her work deals primarily with social justice, cultural, and humanitarian issues. Robin received her BS and MS Degrees in Journalism from the University of Colorado.
