Cuban Cassava, a 2021 short film by director Marcos Colón, recounts the love story of Atilano Santiesteban and Melba Barata alongside the story of how cassava flour is made in Damían, Cuba.

The film simultaneously unravels the ups and downs of Atilano and Melba’s relationship and the detailed process of making cassava flour.

Alberto Dieguez displays how to make cassava flour and shows the various steps involved in this operation. He emphasizes the manual labor involved in making this type of refined flour and the many days that the complete process takes.

Meanwhile, Melba engages in a meaningful conversation with the camera where she reveals that Atilano was seeing another woman for some time and that this put a strain on their relationship.

Set in Cuba, the film’s wonderful colors and natural landscapes bring the viewer into an intimate world where food and love become one. Just as the camera traces and examines the process of making cassava flour, the viewer is welcomed into the warm and lively home of Atilano and Melba whose love radiates on the screen.

Witnessing the complicated process of working with cassava to hearing the complications that married life can involve, the film is a portrayal of life as it is: a journey that can take quite some effort but is wonderfully worth it in the end.