The Noticiero ICAIC Latinoamericano is a unique collection of extraordinary historical, artistic and cultural value. Its history is intertwined with the fate of the Cuban Revolution.
The Noticiero’s first edition dates back to June 6, 1960, about a year after the ICAIC was founded. This date marks the beginning of a series that would be produced for over three decades.
Under the direction of Alfredo Guevara during its early years and later under Santiago Alvarez, the Cuban newsreels were widely popular, reaching a vast area not limited to Cuba but all over Latin America. It covered Cuban and world politics, culture, technology, science, sports and daily life.
In the 1990s, the economic crisis that gripped the country brought the production to an end. After the last broadcast, July 19, 1990, the collection – 1493 units, corresponding to 250 hours of filmed material – was stored at the Cinemateca de Cuba.
In 2009, the Noticiero ICAIC was declared national cultural heritage of Cuba and was included in Unesco’s Memory of the World Register, which was a decisive step in preserving Noticiero. The INA in France later showed a keen interest in the collection and, three years later, signed a unique cultural cooperation agreement with the ICAIC for the Noticiero’s restoration, HD digitization and distribution.

Maria Giovanna Vagenas