Documentary Follows 4 Young Cuban Artists Who Stay as 2.75 Million Leave

1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 26

Four young Havana artists — Devon, Tomás, Elephanto and Israa — are the focus of “La Retaguardia,” a short documentary about Cubans choosing to remain rather than join the migration wave.
About 2.75 million people have left Cuba since 2020, turning the film’s central question into whether young, ambitious Cubans can build lives at home amid constant departure.
The filmmakers began meeting the artists in 2022 and, as trust deepened, documented how migration was reshaping their work, relationships and sense of future.
Cuba’s severe economic, social and political crisis — compounded by tighter U.S. embargo pressure — forms the backdrop, with the film aiming to show the less-seen experience of those left behind.