During the gathering filmmakers from Cuba and Mexico shared experiences on how to bring audiovisual works to life with minimal or no budgets, utilizing alternative tools such as mobile technology.

  Sergio Benvenuto Solas, president of the event’s organizing committee, highlighted the value of new generations of creators who champion auteur cinema in the face of economic constraints, thereby upholding the festival’s founding principles after more than two decades of existence.

  For their part, filmmakers such as Rolando Almirante—director of the documentary *Mijain*—and Mexican director Pablo A. Tonatiuh—director of *La llamada*—agreed that a work’s conceptualization and social commitment should take precedence over the industry’s material limitations.

  Furthermore, participants emphasized the importance of collaborative solidarity and support from academic institutions—such as the Faculty of Audiovisual Media Arts and the International Film and Television School of San Antonio de los Banos—in fostering the development of independent cinema in the region.

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