THE ONES WHO STAY

SHORT DOCUMENTARY

OVERVIEW

The short documentary The Ones Who Stay was born in Havana while I was developing The New Cubans, my ongoing photography project and touring exhibition. That project set out to portray the real values and lived realities of Cuba’s younger generations, far from the postcard clichés of cigars, rum, and vintage cars. But as I worked within Havana’s artistic community, another story kept pushing itself into view—the mass migration crisis that has reshaped the island in recent years.

At first, I was in Cuba for another project entirely, but the migration crisis was impossible to ignore. Friends, collaborators, and loved ones were leaving—often suddenly, sometimes without notice. After a time, I realized that any honest attempt to document this generation could not avoid the reality of those departures. Alongside my co-director Olivier Côté, we began to capture this unfolding story not from the perspective of those who left, but of those who chose to remain.

Cuba is experiencing its worst socio-economic crisis since the communist revolution. This hardship coincides with the arrival of 3G internet on the island, offering young people unprecedented exposure to the world beyond their shores. The result has been a historic exodus—more than 10% of the population fleeing every two years, most of them from the younger generations. And yet, while so much attention is given to the departures, few stories capture those who stay behind.

The Ones Who Stay follows four young artists who continue to live, work, and create in Havana. Through them, the film became an intimate portrait of heartbreak, resilience, and quiet defiance—a generation caught between leaving and remaining in their homeland. As they watch friends and family depart one after another, a kind of numbness sets in, the crisis itself blending into the texture of daily life. And yet, within that uncertainty, these artists embody a flicker of hope. They continue to dream, to shape their cultural identity, and to claim space for creativity against the odds.

What began as a project rooted in photography naturally evolved into this short documentary: an ode to those who refuse to fade away, who continue to define what it means to be young and Cuban today.

The Ones Who Stay has been selected for the official competition at Festival du Nouveau Cinema / Montréal / Oct. 10-16, 2025

CREDITS

Written and directed by: Olivier Côté & Jean-François Bouchard
Featuring: Devon Ruiz, Israel Martín Rodríguez, Ronald O. Rodríguez Alfonso, Tomás Agüero
Director of Photography: Olivier Côté
Editing: Olivier Côté, Félix Bouffard-Dumas, Laura Bari
Sound Design: Christophe Voyer, Frédérick Takvorian, Jacob Marcoux
Music: Ludovic Rolland-Marcotte
Production: Olivier Côté (Roger Lee Productions)
Executive Production: Jean-François Bouchard
Distribution: La Distributrice de Films
📎 Film Sheet: https://www.ladistributrice.ca/films/la-retaguardia

THE NEW CUBANS

The New Cubans is a photography book published by PowerHouse Books (New York) and distributed globally by Simon & Schuster. Launched at the Perrotin Store in NYC, the project is also a touring exhibition presented in Canada, France, Korea, Cuba, and soon Mexico. It has received international press coverage, including in The Guardian, for its vivid portrayal of Cuba’s younger generations beyond clichés.