The Associated Press just reported that Humberto Solas, one of the most esteemed and influential filmmakers in Cuban history, died of cancer in Havana on Wednesday. He was 66.

As a significant cultural figure not merely in the scope of Cuban cinema but worldwide, Solas broke new ground with such works as Manuela (1966), Cantata de Chile (1975) and Cecilia (1982). But it was his 1969 epic Lucia that truly pushed Solas to the fore of the international film community. This tripartite drama tells of three women, each named Lucia, at three different points in Cuban history: 1895 (during Cuba’s war of independence from Spain), 1933 (during Machado’s rule), and the very early 1960s, in the wake of Castro’s revolution; Solas dramatizes the sociopolitical radicalization of each woman, and films each episode in a unique visual style. The motion picture remains unequalled in form and content, and it deservedly won the Golden Prize in 1969 at the Moscow International Film Festival.

Significantly, Solas continued shooting features up through his death; his 2001 Honey for Oshun constitutes a gentle drama about an exiled Cuban man searching for his biological mother and his Cuban roots. It won favorable reviews worldwide. This anticipated the similarly favorable reaction to 2005’s Barrio Cuba, a tripartite, seriocomic tale of several individuals living on the margins of Cuban society.

Our warmest wishes go out to Humberto’s family and colleagues, and to the international film community during this difficult time. This marks a significant loss. On a note of sad irony, Solas has died less than a year after several of his works received their premier stateside DVD issues through the First Run Features label’s ‘Cuban Masterworks Collection,’ and thus brought him increased attention in the United States. Those unacquainted with his films should make a point of seeking them out.