Chico and Rita

A gorgeous and sexy animated film aimed at an adult audience, “Chico and Rita” is set in pre-revolution Cuba, circa 1948, and chronicles the tempestuous love affair between a young piano player with big dreams and a beautiful singer with an extraordinary voice. Music and romantic desire unite Chico and Rita, but their journey – from Havana to New York, Paris, Hollywood, and Las Vegas – brings heartache and torment. Using the couple’s turbulent romance as backdrop, “Chico and Rita” also offers an enlightening brief history of Cuban and jazz music. A delight for both eye and ear, the film is co-directed by famed artist and designer Javier Mariscal and features an original soundtrack by Bebo Valdés and music by jazz legends Woody Herman, Tito Puente, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Charlie Parker. Co-director Fernando Trueba won the Oscar® for Best Foreign-Language Film for the live-action “Belle Epoque,” which played SLIFF in 1992.