The film stars in the fourth session of the ‘Diversity, equality and culture’ cycle dedicated to Pride Month
The work can be seen next week in Gran Canaria and Tenerife
Centuries ago it was unthinkable that a woman would dedicate herself to medicine. However, there was one who went down in history for breaking these rules. The name by which she was known, however, hides an important secret: she was called Enrique Faber. This true story is the central narrative of ‘Insumisas’, a film that adapts this unique experience and which stars in the fourth session of the ‘Diversity, equality and culture’ cycle that Filmoteca Canaria is showing for Pride Month. The film can be seen on Tuesday 2 at the Guiniguada Theatre and on Thursday 4 at the Espacio La Granja, both sessions at 7:00 p.m.
Set in the early 19th century, the film, directed by Fernando Pérez and Laura Cazador, depicts a large part of the life of Enriqueta Faber, a Swiss woman who pretends to be a man in order to study and practice medicine. Years later, in Cuba, she gets married in order to keep up appearances and carry out her work with confidence. However, her secret is discovered and she faces a situation that ended up going down in colonial history.
Enriqueta Faber thus became the first woman to practice medicine in Cuba. The character has inspired a multitude of literary works and biographies, as well as this film itself. She was, however, a pioneer in the position of women, their rights and, in part, of a proto-feminist struggle. An inspiring story of an extraordinary person suffocated by the times, but also about identity and social restrictions.
The film, in addition to the appeal of adapting this famous story, incorporates certain conventions of mystery and adventure films in what critics have considered a rigorous and accurate setting. In 2020, it won the Special Jury Prize at the 40th Festival of New Latin American Cinema in Havana thanks to its story and the projection it made of a singular character unfairly treated at the time.
About the cycle
In this way, ‘Insumisas’ becomes the fourth film in the ‘Diversity, equality and culture’ cycle. This programme, which Filmoteca Canaria is carrying out for the third consecutive year and organised in collaboration with the Diversity, Equality and Culture Unit of the Canary Institute for Cultural Development (ICDC), has included films about identity or sexuality, such as ‘Blue Jean’ or ‘Great Freedom’. The initiative will conclude with the next screening, ‘A Fantastic Woman’ (2017), by Sebastián Lelio, an Oscar-winning film that tells the story of a trans woman with overwhelming charisma. In short, a cycle dedicated to Pride Month that aims to make ignored groups visible and invites us to explore different realities, experiences and visions to recognise, value and respect diversity.
Tickets are available at linktr.ee/filmotecacanaria and, on screening days, at the Teatro Guiniguada, in Gran Canaria, and at the Espacio La Granja, in Tenerife, at a price of €2. As with the rest of the programming of both venues managed by the Government of the Canary Islands, there are discounts for different groups.
