Cuba Premieres Its Film "Neurótica Anónima," Goya Ibero-American Nominee Hopeful
The Cuban film "Neurótica Anónima," a hopeful for a nomination for the Goya Award for Best Ibero-American Film, was dedicated to the island's audience by its director, also an actor, Jorge Perugorría, during its premiere this Friday on the island.
"This film is for you, for the Cuban public," said Perugorría, one of the country's most international film figures, before a large audience that gathered on a rainy afternoon at the central Yara cinema in Havana for the presentation of the film.
Screenings will extend throughout the weekend in the capital before touring other cities in the country.
"Neurótica Anónima" is based on the play of the same name written by actress Mirtha Ibarra, who took on the screenplay together with Perugorría and also played the leading role of Iluminada, who has a refuge of mental peace in the Havana cinema where she has worked as an usher for several decades, under threat of being demolished due to structural problems.
Iluminada suffers from neurosis due to frustrations such as having wanted to be an actress, but she decides to film a documentary with her co-workers to confront the possible closure of the movie theater.
Alongside Ibarra, a series of renowned Cuban actors participated in the film, including Roberto Perdomo, Osvaldo and Andrea Doimeadiós, Fernando Hechavarría, Néstor Jiménez, Vladimir Cruz, Tahimí Alvariño, and Hilario Peña, Carmen Ruiz, as well as Puerto Rican Benicio del Toro, who has a brief presence.
The late artists Mario Limonta and Paula Alí were also especially remembered at the event.
Perugorría thanked the "great cast" of actors who "with so much passion gave themselves to the work, sometimes making an appearance only to accompany me in this dream of making this film, and to be part of this fight to defend cinema and the magic of movie theaters," where "a film is so enjoyed."
"We will keep making cinema under any circumstance," affirmed the actor who rose to international fame after his portrayal of the homosexual character Diego in the acclaimed film "Strawberry and Chocolate" (1993), the only Cuban film that has been nominated for a Hollywood Oscar.
"Neurótica Anónima" is a co-production of the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry (ICAIC) with the Mexican studios Ítaca Films and An Ag Company.
This fiction feature has been shown at international festivals such as Málaga 2026, the Havana Film Festival in New York, Biarritz América Latina, and recently at "Oberá en Cortos," held in the province of Misiones, Argentina.
Earlier this week, ICAIC reported that the film, proposed by that institution's Committee of Experts, is among the 19 Ibero-American productions that will compete for a nomination at the 41st Goya Awards, to be held at the Navarra Arena in Pamplona, northern Spain, on February 6, 2027.