Oceans Are The Real Continents

Los oceanos son los verdaderos continentes

64th TIFF: Greek Premiere

Somewhere in Cuba, a country trapped in the paradox of blending beauty with decadence, three generations serve as indelible symbols of the past, present, and future, each profoundly marked by the dream of emigration and the burdens of exile. An elderly woman reads letters from her late husband written during his time serving in the war in Angola in the 1980s. A couple that is deeply in love finds themselves at a crossroads when the woman secures a work visa for Europe. Meanwhile, two inseparable nine-year-old friends dream of playing together for the New York Yankees. With the iconic Soy Cuba as its reference point, the poetic potency of a beautifully framed black-and-white canvas, and amateur actors who have never appeared in a film before, debutant Italian director Tommaso Santambrogio deftly avoids the trap of exoticism. Instead, he delivers a human-centric portrait of contemporary Cuba that feels both timeless and eternal.

Screening Schedule

No physical screenings scheduled.

Direction: Tommaso Santambrogio

Script: Tommaso Santambrogio

Cinematography: Lorenzo Casadio Vannucci

Editing: Matteo Faccenda

Sound: Tommaso Barbaro

Actors: Alexander Diego, Edith Ybarra Clara, Frank Ernesto Lam, Alain Alain Alfonso González, Milagros Llanes Martínez

Production: Rosamont, Rai Cinema

Producers: Marica Stocchi, Gianluca Arcopinto

Co-production: Cacha Films

Co-producers: Claudia Calviño

Costumes: Anisleidys Boza

Production Design: Alexis Álvarez Armas

Format: DCP

Color: B/W

Production Country: Cuba, Italy

Production Year: 2023

Duration: 119'

Contact: Fandango

Tommaso Santambrogio

Tommaso Santambrogio is a young Italian director; he has lived between Milan, Paris, Rome, Florence, and Havana, and has collaborated with several internationally renowned filmmakers, such as Werner Herzog and Lav Diaz. His first short films (Escena Final and Los Océanos Son Los Verdaderos Continentes) were both screened in 2019 at the Venice Film Festival and were then selected in many festivals around the world. L’Ultimo Spegne la Luce (2021), his latest short film, was screened in official competition at the 36th Venice Film Festival's Settimana della Critica, and then made it into the shortlist at the 2022 David di Donatello Awards. Taxibol (2023), his latest docu-film, recently premiered at Visions du Réel. Oceans Are the Real Continents is his first feature film and will have its world premiere in competition at Venice Days during the 80th Venice Film Festival.