We are all different, and that is beautiful: A message from ‘Campeonex’
The Latin American premiere of the acclaimed Spanish film was attended by actress Gloria Ramos in Havana
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At the entrance of the Yara cinema, a young man hands out awareness-raising leaflets about autism and intellectual disabilities to everyone who approaches him. He smiles, handing out valuable information again and again to those who come to the cultural centre to enjoy a film premiering at the 44th New Latin American Film Festival in Havana.
He is 36 years old and one of the many young people in Cuba who live with intellectual disabilities. At his side, his mother, Idalmis Jiménez, accompanies him in handing out materials, but Marcos - that is his name - is more lively, quicker. In his T-shirt, you can read: “I choose not to put DIS to my ABILITY.”
Both came to the screening of ‘Campeonex’, a Spanish film directed by Javier Fesser, which is also the long-awaited sequel to the successful film ‘Campeones’, also by the same director.
The screening of the film motivated UNICEF Cuba – together with the Cuban Association of People with Intellectual Disabilities (ACPDI), the Ministry of Education and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, as part of the ‘Think in Colours’ Campaign – to bring together dozens of children, adolescents and young people to raise awareness about respect for diversity.
The premiere also features Spanish actress Gloria Ramos, known for her role as Collantes in ‘Campeones’ (2018). Her performance earned her a Goya Award nomination for Best New Actress in 2018, making her the first actress with an intellectual disability to be nominated for a Goya.
‘It doesn't matter if we have disabilities or Down's Syndrome, this film is about helping us as a team. I want people to applaud non-stop’, said the actress minutes before the premiere.
It’s the first time Gloria is in Cuba. Accompanied by her mother and sister, the young actress arrived at the Caribbean nation's biggest film festival with a clear call for equal rights and opportunities for all people, specifically those with intellectual disabilities. She shared this message in the exchanges she had with various initiatives in Cuba committed to inclusion.
Her successful performance in film and television series proves that the representation of people with disabilities in the film and television industry is possible and that stories that project difference and not the usual standards are applauded and necessary.
“It’s been a lot of fun making the film and it’s not easy to learn a script, but you can do it. You're going to enjoy it a lot,” said the actress.
“These are kids who have a lot of potential that people don't know about and underestimate. Children and young people with intellectual disabilities have equal rights and opportunities and are capable of doing many things that society ignores,” said Idalmis Jiménez.
As the mother of a young man with Down’s Syndrome, she considers ‘Campeonex’ to be a good pretext to bring a much-needed topic into the public debate at such a busy event as the New Latin American Film Festival in Havana.
‘Campeonex’ continues to tackle the theme of its predecessor, showing the daily routines of people with disabilities in different scenarios and exploring themes such as romantic relationships, family conflicts and social barriers.
Through poignant and humorous situations, the film seeks to promote social inclusion and equal opportunities for people with disabilities. It does so with a powerful message: The beauty of difference and the importance of accepting and valuing diversity in society, emphasising characters’ humanity of over their individual characteristics.
‘Azul’(Blue), another call for inclusion
With the same purpose of the film – to change society’s perception of disability and promote inclusion – the space was accompanied by the photographic exhibition ‘Azul’ by Yailén Ruz Velázquez.
The exhibition is the result of the Social Inclusion project for children, adolescents and youth with autism through Sports, an initiative developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Education (MINED), the National Institute of Sports and Physical Education and Recreation (Inder), UNICEF Cuba and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA).
The ‘Azul’ photo exhibition captures these children’s journey, showing how they face new challenges and develop unique skills. The colour blue, which symbolizes autism, stands out in the photographs taken mainly while training swimming in a pool, says the author of the more than 30 images that make up the photo essay.
The travelling exhibition opened on Monday, December 11, at the national headquarters of the Cuban Association of People with Intellectual Disabilities (ACPDI, according to its Spanish initials), located at 5ta avenida e/36 y 38, Playa, Havana, where it will be on display until the beginning of January. The exhibition will then travel to various locations to raise awareness about the inclusion of children with autism.
The project that inspired the photos – which ran from September to November 2023 – sought to build the capacity of physical education and recreation teachers working with children with autism. Expressly, theoretical and practical training was provided in two key sports disciplines: athletics and swimming. Around fifty teachers from special and regular schools, including children with autism, received this training.
In addition, approximately 35 families were also trained to develop practices, games and sports activities related to athletics and swimming in order to promote the well-being and better physical conditions of the children under their care. These practices were also used to promote healthy and nutritious habits.
The initiative was instrumental in integrating around 35 students with autism. They participated in a dozen swimming and athletic sports practices, which were conducted at the Manuel Fajardo University of Sports Sciences and at the Cesario Fernández School.
These sports activities not only strengthened teachers’ skills to include children with autism in sports and promote healthy practices, but also became a tool to transform society and promote the inclusion of all people, especially those children with autism who face difficulties in social interactions and communication due to their neurodevelopmental condition.
In addition, sports practices gave children with autism the opportunity to develop socialisation and communication skills, and to strengthen relationships between teachers, their families and families of other children without autism.
