Documentaries

In 1990 when I was invited to photograph at the International Ballet Festival of Havana, I had no idea what a large role Cuba would play in my life. I was immediately captivated by the island and its people. Dance is like another language in Cuba, through which people express themselves, often using it to convey what they cannot say because of political restrictions. Dance is an escape from the harsh everyday conditions into a world inspired by music, movement, the ability to tell a story. The passion to jump higher, spin faster, float on air, leads them to a prowess which is inspirational. Cuban dance has a special kind of energy and inspiration that is recognized worldwide.

I was so impressed by Alicia Alonso’s life story, and by the Ballet Nacional de Cuba dancers, that I decided to make a film that would share the story of how ballet came to Cuba, and how the dance company became one of the top 5 in the world. Over the course of 6 visits to Cuba, I collected 3 decades-worth of exclusive material through my close and trusted association with the BNC.

Fire Under Our Feet follows an unstoppable Cuban trio – a blind ballerina, her mad scientist husband and his football player brother – as they dare disrupt a centuries-old white-centric tradition. Ballet pioneers in the U.S., they return to Cuba to transform it into the “world’s dance miracle of the 20th century”. Their epic mission unfolds during Castro’s Revolution through today.