The documentary "Perseverance", a cinematic essay of 108 minutes dedicated to the life and work of the Cuban painter Tomás Sánchez, had its international premiere this Sunday at the Koubek Center Theater as part of the programming of the 43rd Miami Film International Festival.
The film, directed by the Mexican filmmaker Juan Carlos Martín, was shot in Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, Belgium, the Netherlands, and New York, and it amassed over three thousand hours of footage that were edited down to one hour and 48 minutes.
The demand exceeded expectations: the first show sold out quickly, prompting the festival to schedule a second screening for April 19 at Silverspot Cinema.
The project originated from a friendship of more than three decades between the filmmaker and the artist. "Juan Carlos Martín, his family, and I have been friends since 1990, when I arrived in Mexico. They have been like family to me in Mexico," Sánchez explained.
For years, Martín visited the painter's home in Tepoztlán. "He practically came to my house every week, and we talked about everything, philosophy, meditation, cinema, art. But I never thought that Juan Carlos would make a documentary about me," Sánchez recalled in an interview with Café Fuerte.
It was the director himself who took the initiative about two years ago. "About two years ago, Juan Carlos called me and said, 'Tomás, I want to make a documentary about your life and your painting.' It was something I had always desired, but I never thought it would come from him," the painter recounted.
The result, according to Sánchez, was a collaboration marked by harmony. "From that moment on, there was a perfect affinity. He knew how to guide the documentary, we had many common interests, especially philosophical ones, and everything flowed."
The documentary includes interviews with prominent figures in the art world based in Miami, among them the gallerist Ramón Cernuda, the artist José Bedia, Raúl Hernández, Julio Taquechel, the historian Carol Damian, and the gallerist Jorge Sorí.
Sánchez, considered the highest-valued living Cuban painter in the international art market, currently resides in Costa Rica.
"I chose to live in Costa Rica for the nature. I managed to acquire a piece of land, a mountain, restore a patch of forest, and enjoy wonderful views that nourish me all the time," she noted.
The artist has been away from Cuba for nine years.
"I stopped going in 2017 when I saw that the entire project proposed by Barack Obama was not taken into account. I had hopes that it could be accepted, that there could be a change in Cuba, that the country would open up to a market economy and that all the problems that have been plaguing us for so many years would be resolved, but that did not happen, and I decided not to return to Cuba."
He also hasn't returned to Miami in seven years, although the city holds a special place in his memory. "Miami is, even though it’s the United States, another part of Cuba. I am Cuban-American, I feel very proud to be Cuban and I also feel proud to be an American citizen," he stated.
"Perseverancia" had its world premiere at the 22nd Morelia International Film Festival in 2025 and arrived in Mexican theaters on November 6 of that same year.
The premiere in Miami represents their first international performance, featuring Sánchez and Martín for a dialogue with the audience.
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