CONTINUATION OF RFI FILM FESTIVAL INTERVIEW COMMENTS.

Regarding Olga

Olga is more than a hero; she is the heart and soul of the entire story. From the start Olga was always my favorite main character. Without her I could never have been drawn from the original stage play into a tv series concept or the more comprehensive book manuscript.

As to other Russian Characters

MY ANSWER: I think and hope those days are gone. But, if you read my book manuscript, you’ll notice quickly that those ‘blunt, cruel, and stupid characters’ (that you speak of) though rare are at least well distributed between both the US and Russian characters. And please remember, I was very influenced by the James Bourne trilogy of films having a variety of ‘blunt and cruel’ Americans portrayed. In any case, we have come a long way since the early James Bond days and Goldfinger.

AUTHOR CONTINUES as to actors in a potential film being Russian.Yet the British do it successfully all the time. But it depends. I would dream of Olga as being only a Russian actress. But I could be wrong. And remember, dancing is so important in this story. Therefore, I would love Natalia and Demitri to be from Russia or thereabouts. Interestingly, Canada has a lot of talented film people with a real love, respect and understanding of Cuba and its people. Oh, and I also would hope some Cuban actors could be involved.