Director Luis Mandoki (When a Man Loves a Woman) has signed on to helm Mankind Entertainment’s feature length film Castro’s Daughter. Mandoki has redeveloped the material and is co-producing with Mankind’s John Martinez O’Felan and Joe Lamy. The producers have also sealed production funding from various sources, including the most recent equity investment from Austin-Texas based commercial real estate investor, Peter Lamy. The film will be co-financed through tax incentives in Latin America and the studio system.
The production is taking advantage of the recent removal of the embargo on Cuba and hope to be one of the first production to film on Cuban ground.
Mandoki trajectory in Hollywood began in his native country of Mexico when he directed his first film Gaby a True Story (1987). The critically acclaimed feature starred Liv Ullman, Robert Loggia, Robert Beltran and Academy Award nominee Norma Aleandro.
The film received an Oscar nomination and two Golden Globe awards. Mandoki later went on to direct Touchstone Pictures’s When a ManLoves a Woman and Warner Bros’s Message in a Bottle. He is one of the film industry’s most versatile directors in his homeland of Mexico, the U.S and world-wide; and has directed many major names in the entertainment business.
Having travelled to Cuba and having personally met Fidel Castro during an entertainment festival in Havana, Mandoki brings a firsthand understanding of the Cuban setting and culture.
Castro’s Daughter is based on the coming-of-age, true life story of Alina Fernandez, who was the result of a love affair between Fidel Castro and Naty Revuelta; a wealthy socialite who sold her belongings to sponsor and co-finance his army and allowed her home to be used as a headquarters for planning his coming to power.
Fernandez, a child of the revolution, was kept secret throughout her childhood and later escaped Cuba in disguise shortly after the fall of the Soviet Union; she now lives in America.
The film was written by Oscar and BAFTA winner Bobby Moresco (Crash); and acclaimed Cuban playwright crossover and Pulitzer prize winner, Nilo Cruz (Anna in the Tropics), who himself escaped Cuba as a child.
“The spirit of Castro’s Daughter is more than just a movie it’s a voice that will provide perspective to this true story,” says O’Felan, the lead developer and producer. “Luis is the perfect filmmaker to direct the film.”
With the historic renewal of the Cuba/U.S.A. relations this is a perfect time for the story to be told. Fernandez has been back to Cuba several times; most recently attending her mother’s funeral in March of 2015. With cooling conditions between two rivaling countries, the production hopes to film some scenes in Cuba.
About Mankind Entertainment:
Mankind Entertainment is an entity formed for the development, packaging and production of feature films. The company was formed by Austin-based producers John Martinez O’Felan, and Joe Lamy, and focuses primarily on the financing, development and production of award-driven, specialty films.
Mankind is working on the upcoming adaptation of Anna in the Tropics which is written by Nilo Cruz, with Academy award nominee Lee Daniels (Precious) who is helping with the adaptation.
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