While cycling past a train station in the town of Bauta, Cuba, Vancouver filmmaker Nisha Platzer was compelled to stop and talk to a young boy sitting near the tracks.   

She was in Cuba for her final year of study at La Escuela Internacional de Cine y Televisión de San Antonio de los Baños, and learned a powerful lesson through this boy’s love of trains.

“He knew everything about them. He would walk for an hour to get to the train station every day by himself, simply to be with them.” says Platzer of the boy named Nori.

“They bring me a comfort and sense of connection to the wider world, to travelers and seekers,” Platzer says of her shared fascination.

That’s how Nori, his life and imagination became the focus of Platzer’s short film, Vaivén. Through the sights and sounds of a rural Cuba train station, the 14-minute film explores themes of transition, transportation and adolescence. 

When the film was being made, Cuba was facing a devastating fuel shortage. Amid reduced transportation and electricity, daily power cuts, and water and food shortages, Platzer was inspired by how Cubans handled adversity.

“People had this really amazing spirit of being like, ‘Yup... We’ve done this before. We know how to do it. We’ll be okay.’”

Platzer credits the success of the film to her hard working crew—cinematographer María Grazia Goya, sound designer Nayuribe Montero Jeménez, and editor Angel Suárez.

The team of four navigated several challenges throughout production, including the sweltering Cuban heat, time and resource restrictions and generally trying to reach different locations during a fuel crisis. 

“I’m most proud of the team and how we supported each other. We were really faced with significant challenges and we were all focused on making the best possible film under the circumstances.”

Vaivén is currently showing at DOXA Documentary Film Festival online as part of the shorts program “In Flux.” Vaivén and many other films can be streamed for $8 ($6 for students and seniors!) between now and June 26th. 

To keep up to date with future screenings and projects, follow Platzer on Instagram @melodiousimagefilm.