BOXERS AND BALLERINAS

A classically trained ballerina waits for an overseas dance tour. Another one helps her mother?s penniless dance company. A boxer wins 120 fights and world respect as a champion. Another one lives with his mother and is 3-1, waiting to collect enough money to fight again. Which ballerina and which boxer live in Cuba? Which two live in Miami? You will be surprised at the many revelations in this vivid, offbeat documentary that shows Cuba?s youth to be its greatest resource, and sometimes, its greatest export. The lives of four young athletes are a lens through which the filmmakers view U.S.-Cuban relations and the often conflicting point of view in Miami's Little Havana. Full of jump cuts that fuse boxing and ballet into one passionate endeavor, the film travels between Havana and Miami, raising the specter of the controversial crash of Cubana 455 in 1976, revealing images of the many people who have tried escape by boat, and the ever-present possibility of defection among athletes and artists. Studded with visual effects and an omniscient point of view, the film shoots from the street up.