I don't think that the reality of Cuba is perfect, but it doesn't cleave to the negativity, either, with which some people see it.

It's often pointed out that in Cuban cinema there are too many comedies, but a sense of humor is so much part of the Cuban idiosyncrasy. Curiously, the films that have been censored the most have been humorous.

The magic of film isn't just because of the big screen, or the acoustics, but the ineffable shared experience of going to the movies.

I think that this necessity to travel, to see, it's part of human nature.

In all of my movies I've tried to address the need for man - not just Cubans - to have a dream and to fight for that dream, even when he doesn't achieve it. It's a form of happiness.

Cubans joke and satirize everything that life gives them, and I think that's a positive characteristic.

Trips are part of humanity. Emigration is a part of humanity. And it's ever more dynamic due to globalization.