A family story originally brought us to Cuba, where Ken’s dad was given shelter as a refugee child from Nazi Germany, two years before the U.S. opened its doors to him. Our first Cuban film, HAVANA CURVEBALL, follows the humbling lessons our son learned in his efforts to thank Cuba 60 years later by sending baseball gear to kids who share his love of the game.

Since the diplomatic shift in December 2014, we’ve seen things begin to change. More American tourists. More money. Wi-fi. There was a palpable sense of possibility—and concern that core Cuban values would be threatened. When we toured Cuba with HAVANA CURVEBALL in the spring of 2015, we were concerned about how Cubans would respond to this story of an idealistic and perhaps naive middle-class teen from the U.S.

Criss-crossing the island for two weeks on a bus of Cuban artists, thought leaders, and pop stars, we found instead open hearts, open minds, and the building of deep friendships with a broad range of Cubans. A year later, the death of Fidel and the ascent of Donald Trump changed the landscape of US-Cuba relations, and the prospects for the brothers.

Today it is harder than ever for Cubans and Americans to cross borders. Americans still know little of one of their closest neighbors, seeing Cuba as either island paradise or socialist prison. We rarely hear the perspectives of Cubans themselves. The Cubans we know are deeply proud of their values, their artistic achievements, their way of life. They want change—and self-determination. They have generously shared their stories with us. We are committed to bringing them to you.

You can follow the making-of story on our blog.