Orlando MORA CABRERA

Filmmaker Orlando Mora Cabrera was detained by three State Security agents on 21 December 2024; he was released the same day. Before his arrest, Mora Cabrera had premiered the short film Matar a un hombre (To Kill a Man) (2024) in a number of alternative spaces, one of them the Ludwig Foundation and the Norwegian Embassy in Cuba, after its screening was postponed and cancelled at the 45th Havana Film Festival. To Kill a Man tells the story of Javi, an erotic dancer, who is presenting his show for the last time in a nightclub.  

The authorities said that the cancellations were related to supposed power cuts, as happened with the first two official screenings, and the attempt to reschedule was cancelled at the last minute. From then on, the programmers requested the slots, but the screening was never approved. 

The filmmaker has stated that his film was censored at the festival for homophobic reasons and for its criticism of violence and domination in Cuban society. The film was excluded from the official programme after a series of cancellations attributed to alleged ‘electrical issues’, despite having been selected for the short and medium-length film competition. 

Filmmaker Orlando Mora Cabrera, born 15 October 1994 in Havana, is a graduate of the University of the Arts of Cuba. He attended the special programme Documentary Video Production in Havana, at New York University - TISCH School of the Arts. He graduated in film studies at the International Film and Television School of San Antonio de los Baños (EICTV) in Cuba, where he currently coordinates the film direction department. His films include Gemini, 2022; Brujo amor (Sorcerous Love), 2023; and Cagüeira (in distribution), 2025. His work has been selected for international festivals and film markets in Cuba, the USA, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, Spain, France, Australia, among others.