Thomas Miller - Producer / Director

Tom was born and raised in Miami, and witnessed the migration of Cubans to South Florida first-hand. After working on a Steven Spielberg project called Survivors of the Shoah, Tom began to truly appreciate the value of personal testimonies as a documentary story-telling device. He went back to his Cuban friends and family and started asking the questions he never asked growing up. Their astounding stories led to more stories and more research, and eventually to this documentary. Tom has been in documentary film and television production since he graduated from University of Florida’s School of Journalism in 1988. His first project was the 13-part PBS documentary series On the Waterways with Jason Robards. Since then, Tom has worked on many award-winning productions for National Geographic, Discovery, ESPN, HBO Sports, Dateline NBC, and others. He's also produced projects for non-profits, NGO's, and businesses of all sizes. Tom is the founder and producer at Big Pictures Media. He lives with his family near Denver, Colorado.

Andy Garcia - Narrator

Andy Garcia was born Andrés Arturo Garcia Menéndez in Havana, Cuba. At age five, he and his family fled in exile to Miami Beach, Florida as a result of Fidel Castro's takeover of his homeland. He has established himself as one of today's most talented and versatile actors - working in films such as The Untouchables, Oceans Eleven, and Godfather III, where he was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. Garcia received an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe nomination for his starring role as the legendary Cuban trumpeter Arturo Sandovol in HBO's biopic For love of Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story. 

María Cristina García - Consultant

María Cristina García is a first generation Cuban American who came to the United States with her family in 1961. She received her B.A. from Georgetown University and her M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in the American Studies Program. She is currently a Professor of History at Cornell University and a 2016 Andrew Carnegie Fellow who studies refugees, immigrants, and exiles. Her first book, Havana USA, examined the migration of Cubans to the United States after the Castro revolution.  The book explores how these Cold war migrants-became a powerful economic and political presence in the United States, influencing foreign policy and electoral outcomes, reshaping the cultural landscape of the South, and ultimately reinterpreting what it means to assimilate. Professor García has been a Fulbright Lecturer in the United Kingdom. She has also lectured in the Netherlands, Spain, the Czech Republic, Sweden, and Cuba. 

Interview Subjects:

Carlos Eire
Luis Orlando Rodriguez
Georgie Brooks
Tony Batista

Production Credits:

Written and Directed by
Thomas W. Miller

Associate Producer
Teri K. Miler

Camera Crews
Drew Levinson
Steve Roseboom
Teri K. Miller

Post Production Supervisor
Robin Schmactenberger

Colorist
Bob Maple

Audio Mixing & Sound Design
Kirk Clausen

Narration Recording Mixer
Marilyn Morris

Preview Trailer
David Emrich 

Archival Film Researcher
Bonnie Rowan

Music Provided By
DeWolf Music

Archival Dubs
Colorlab

Archival Footage
Miami Dade College’s Wolfson Archives
National Archives and Records Administration

Graphic Artist
Lori Garcia

Academic Advisors
Holly Ackerman
Michael J. Bustamante, University of Miami
María Cristina García
Victor Triay
Maria Werlau