Alice de Andrade

In September 1992, at the height of the Special Period in Cuba, forty young couples on the verge of marriage participated in the casting selection for director Alice de Andrade’s first documentary Luna de miel (Honeymoon), about wedding rituals in a socialist context. Twentyyears later, she revisits three of these couples to see how the country’s economic and social transformations have impacted their lives. Twenty Years is a fascinating glimpse into the recent history of Cuba through the intimate lives of three divergent couples.

Through the files of Cuban cinema news program Noticieros ICAIC Latinoamericanos, the documentary shows the most relevant events of the second half of the 20th century as seen by the documentary filmmakers of the island. During three decades and under the general direction of Santiago Álvarez, these moviemakers witnessed almost everything: from the shivers of the Cold War to Bola de Nieve's piano solos; from the discovery of the killing fields in Cambodia to the Carnation Revolution in Portugal. In 2009, the original negatives of Noticieros ICAIC Latinoamericanos were declared part of the "world memory" by UNESCO.

Four people with different values and standards meet in the urban chaos of Copacabana. Rita and Waldick come from the country, and befriend two Rio de Janeiro native guys, upon arrival: the playboy and surfer Paulo Roberto and a pimp called Tim.