The Companion

(El Acompañante)

Pavel Giroud / Cuba / 2016 / 104 min
The Companion_Cuban Film The Companion_Cuban Film The Companion_Cuban Film The Companion_Cuban Film

  • Cuba’s official entry to the Academy Awards

    Best Foreign Film

  • Miami International Film Festival

    Audience Award

  • Málaga International Film Festival

    Audience Award

  • Transdiaspora Network, NY

    Changemaker Award to Pavel Giroud

  • Cinélatino: Rencontres de Toulouse

    Audience Award, Centre communal d’action social Award

  • Cuba’s official entry to the Goya Awards

    Best Foreign Film

  • Havana Film Festival in NY

    Best Screenplay

  • Chicago International Film Festival

  • Busan International Film Festival

Related Films
Everybody KnowsEverybody Knows(Todos lo saben)Asghar FarhadiPenélope Cruz, Javier Bardem, and Ricardo Darín star in the new psychological thriller from Academy Award®-winning  director Asghar Farhadi (A ...Un TraductorUn Traductor(Un Traductor)Rodrigo Barriuso, Sebastián BarriusoBased on the little-known true story of how twenty thousand Chernobyl victims were eventually treated in Cuba, Un Traductor unfolds as a tale at once ...I GirlI Girl(Yo niña)Natural ArpajouBased on the director’s autobiographical experiences, I Girl tells the story of Armonía, a little girl who lives with Pablo and Julia, who seem to be ...Camila’s AwakeningCamila’s Awakening(El Despertar de Camila)Rosario Jiménez GiliWhat would you do with a second chance? At seventeen, Camila got too used to win. Smart and beautiful, she has managed to achieve every goal. She loves ...Ruben Blades is not my NameRuben Blades is not my Name(Yo no me llamo Ruben Blades)Abner BenaimACADEMY AWARD® PANAMA’S SUBMISSION FOR BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM. Latin American icon Ruben Blades, whose “thinking man’s ...Birds of PassageBirds of Passage(Pajaros de verano)Ciro Guerra, Cristina GallegoACADEMY AWARD® COLOMBIA’S SUBMISSION FOR BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra, the creative team behind ...Urgent LoveUrgent Love(Amor Urgente)Diego LublinskyFresh and endearing, Urgent Love uses highly original photography and exceptional artwork to create the playful world where Agustina and Pedro fall in ...Liquid TruthLiquid Truth(AOS TEUS OLHOS)Carolina JaborWhat if the only evidence of a crime is the testimony of a parent interpreting the unclear words of her child? Alex is a young boy on the swimming team. ...Summer 1993Summer 1993(Estiu 1993)Carla SimónFilmmaker may be available for a Q&A via Skype. Speaker fee: $300. Inquire at FILMCLUB@PRAGDA.COM. SPAIN’S OFFICIAL ENTRY TO THE ACADEMY AWARDS ® ...The CandidateThe Candidate(El Candidato)Daniel HendlerIn this wry and timely political comedy of manners, Martín Marchand, the son of a wealthy businessman, retreats to his lavish, secluded family estate ...The TerritoriesThe Territories(Los Territorios)Iván GranovskyThe desire to bear witness to the world’s great tragedies is addressed playfully by Iván Granovsky in humorous The Territories. It’s a miracle ...On The RoofOn The Roof(El Techo)Patricia RamosIn this feel-good ensemble dramedy, a flat rooftop in an old Havana neighborhood is the natural habitat for three friends who spend their days and nights ...TempestTempest(TEMPESTAD)Tatiana HuezoStudy Guide available. A poignant doc by celebrated filmmaker Tatiana Huezo, Tempest narrates the parallel journey of two women. Mirror-like, it reflects ...Spider ThievesSpider Thieves(Niñas Araña)Guillermo HeloInspired by actual events, this teenage thriller is a unique social commentary on dreams, class, and unfulfilled expectations in contemporary Chile. ...7 Weeks7 Weeks(7 Semanas)Constanza FigariCamila is a young dance student. She has a committed boyfriend and supporting family, but when she discovers she is pregnant, all that love and ...
Spanish Film Club
Order your 5 film program now!Add to Cart
Related Subjects
Promo Materials

Spanish with English subtitles

With Yotuel Romero, Armando Miguel Gómez, Camila Arteche, Yailene Sierra, Jazz Vilá, Jorge Molina

Study Guide Available.

CUBA’S OFFICIAL ENTRY TO THE ACADEMY AWARDS®

Set in 1988 Cuba as the government dispatched HIV patients to AIDS centers under military rule, The Companion narrates the unlikely friendship between a boxing champion and a conflictive patient.

After failing a doping test, Horacio Romero has no other choice but to serve a sentence. His fate is in Los Cocos, a sanatorium under military rule where HIV patients are compulsorily confined, with the exception of a weekly pass to visit their families under the supervision of personal wardens called “companions.”

As a “companion,” Horacio is supposed to keep an eye on Daniel -the most conflictive patient in the ward- and get him to comply to the regulations. Their interests immediately collide as Daniel is set to spend his last days in freedom and is ready to do anything to make this happen.

Horacio, on the other hand, dreams about boxing again to get his champion’s status back. For that to happen, however, he must first win this battle out of the ring…

Filmmaker may be available for a Q&A via Skype. Speaker fee: $300. Inquire at FILMCLUB@PRAGDA.COM.

About the Director
Pavel Giroud was born in Havana. He graduated from Cuba’s High Institute of Design. His first feature The Silly Age (2006) was selected Best Cuban Film of the Year by the Cuban Critics Association. Other credits include Three Times Two (2004) and The Companion (2016), which won the Best Project Award at San Sebastian’s Europe-Latin America Co-Production Forum for its screenplay.
Press

“One of the darkest episodes of the Cuban Revolution.” – EL CAIMAN CUADERNOS DE CINE

“The Companion proves once again that the arts can be a great cultural ally in the prevention strategy of HIV/AIDS and can help us to improve our culturally-oriented conversation with communities highly impacted by the virus in New York City.” – Transdiaspora Network, NY

“A universal tale of struggles against adversities.” – The Hollywood Reporter

“Giroud’s lush cinematography and refreshingly spirited look at one of the darker periods in recent history marks The Companion as an importante film to watch...A masterclass in balanced filmmaking.” – Flickering Myth

“Giroud is mining new ground.” – Remezcla

“A reality blow.” – Diario Sur

“A subject hardly explored by Cuban art.” – Diario Las Americas

Notes on Film

The achievements in Public Health and Sports are two of the crowning achievements of the Cuban Revolution. They have been a symbol of purity and honor, something the Cuban people are proud of, to justify and compensate for many of the shortages the nation dealt with for more than half a century.

The Companion is not a very complacent film in this sense. It does not pretend to showcase either medical achievements nor sporting feats. The story deliberately enters into an ethical gray area to examine human condition when faced with extreme situations. It focuses on two fallen heroes connected by the same goal: to get back on their feet after a hard fall.

To go back to the past to shed light on the present is becoming a constant of my work. This film is no exception. Many facts that took place in the 1980s were simply buried or forgotten because they never managed to make the big news corporate headlines. Today keeping a secret is much more difficult since the leak can spring by a blogger in seconds. To retrieve those facts, in particular those that happened in a country like Cuba, is a strong creative motivation of mine.

In spite of the fight scenes and the fact that one of the main characters is a boxer, The Companion is not a boxing movie. It is not a prison film either, although action takes place in among armed guards, doctors that wear military uniforms under their white coats and characters who are constantly plotting escape plans. It is based on historical facts: Cuba was indeed the only nation in the world that mandated universal HIV testing and enforced isolation of all HIV carriers. It is not, however, a historical drama.

My intention was to make a humanistic and moving film that will most likely not force you to grab a handkerchief to dry your tears, but that will make you feel like reaching for the hand of whomever is beside you at the movie theatre and just hold their hand with all your heart.

Pavel Giroud