At the age of 92, the prominent cameraman and documentary filmmaker Héctor Ochoa Carrillo, who has just been awarded the José Martí National Journalism Award for the Work of Life, passed away this Wednesday, March 15.
Ochoa, journalist and filmmaker, worked from the age of 12 as an illuminator for his father, who was head of lighting at the National Film Studios.
His first steps in the world of audiovisuals date back to the 1940s when he began working as a lighting assistant for movie cameramen, shooting live news at the Estrella and Plascencia studios. He later began as a cameraman at the National Television News, when it was founded in 1961.
In his homeland service record, he highlights having been a combatant in the clandestine struggle against the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista.
Through the lens of his camera, Ochoa recounted the events at Playa Girón and the tragedy of Cyclone Flora. It is said that he arrived at the place hanging from a helicopter from which he ended up falling, an anecdote that is nothing more than a reflection of protecting reality with the clarity and lucidity that the facts demand.
A prodigal story treasures in the world of documentary. Among his works are inscribed The Grapefruit Festival, 1962; The Caster1965; vanguards of the steering wheel, of the Cinematographic Studies of Cuban Television that competes at the Leipzig Festival in November 1968 and the truth of a storyin 2014, awarded by the Caribbean Broadcasting Union and the UNEAC Caracol Festival.
As a cameraman, he shot outdoor scenes for the adventure television space.
For his brilliance as a lens professional, he received the Juan Gualberto Gómez Annual Award for Journalism in 2002, in the film category, and four years later he embraced the National Television Award.
In recognition of his work, this year he was awarded the José Martí National Journalism Award for his life’s work.
The presidency of the Union of Cuban Journalists extends its condolences to family and friends for this unfortunate loss.