by Raimundo Urrechaga

HAVANA, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- For four decades Havana's International Festival of New Latin American Cinema has marked the history of filmmaking in the continent by becoming an alternative event of profound and committed cultural dialogue.

"Festivals must exist as long as they make sense. If major film exhibition circuits don't display the type of movies that for 40 years we have shown, then the Havana Festival of New Latin American Cinema will continue to be essential," said Ivan Giroud, president of the event.

In an interview with Xinhua, the prominent Cuban film promoter said one of the keys to the longevity of the festival, which began its 40th edition on Thursday and runs until Dec. 16, is its constant renovation.

"It is a true achievement to reach four decades as a festival that is constantly discovering new talents and welcoming back all those that previously passed by. The key is to build this dialogue among all generations and work on the consolidation of a different type of regional cinema," he said.

That is the "challenge and meaning" of an event which Latin American filmmakers can't miss each year as they see the continent's realities, aspirations, dreams and frustrations displayed on the big screen.

It's a moment to show movies, documentaries and other visual works which look to tell a story instead of producing big amounts of money worldwide, he added.

"One of our biggest challenges is to defend cinematic proposals which have something smart to say or show, we want to continue building an audience that goes to the theaters interested in unique motion pictures," said Giroud.

This has been the recurrent commitment of the Havana festival since its foundation in 1979 by late Cuban leader Fidel Castro and Colombian writer and Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

It was a dream assumed and shared by a group of important Latin American filmmakers and academics, led by renowned Caribbean intellectual Alfredo Guevara, the festival's president until his death in 2013.

Together they founded an event capable of bringing together creators from the continent and all over the world to provide them with a spot to exchange and exhibit their work.

During all these years, stated Giroud, the contest has helped to recognize and disseminate visual pieces that contribute, from their social and artistic values, to the enrichment and endorsement of Latin American and Caribbean cultural identity.

"There are hundreds of thousands of spectators who follow Latin American cinema and that is in part due to Cuba's festival. Even in the most difficult situations we haven't doubted a second about the importance of this event and that is why it continues to exist," he added.

In this year's edition in competition, there are 20 fiction movies, 22 short and medium-length films, 25 documentaries and 26 animated motion pictures, among other categories.

The countries most represented in the event are Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Brazil, the United States and Cuba.

However, this year due to fewer theaters to project films and technological limitations, the organizers chose to rearrange the program to show fewer motion pictures compared to previous editions.

On this occasion, 373 films from 40 countries were programmed, half of them coming from Latin America and the Caribbean.

"We are living a very disturbing moment not only in Latin America, but in other parts of the world. Committed filmmakers will need to design a very fast response to prevent that trend from moving forward," he sentenced.