Miami International Film Festival

Miami International Film Festival Announces New Competition Section

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 20:48:58 GMT

The 29th Miami International Film Festival will run March 2-11 and will include a new competitive category, the Lexus Ibero-American Opera Prima Competition, featuring six Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American films by first-time feature filmmakers.

The films included are (descriptions courtesy of the festival):

Las Acacias (Argentina/Spain, directed by Pablo Giorgelli): Already a winner of major prizes at this year’s Cannes Film Festival (Camera d’Or for Best First Film) and the Latin Horizons prize at the San Sebastian Film Festival, Giorgelli’s road movie unfolds along the highway linking Asunción to Buenos Aires, which trucker Rubén is accustomed to traveling solo. This time, however, he’s got a passenger, Jacinta, and a road full of revelations on the horizon. East Coast Premiere

Expiration Date (Fecha de caducidad) (Mexico, directed by Kenya Márquez): After the tragic loss of her son, Ramona (Ana Ofelia Murguía) becomes convinced local handyman Genaro (Damián Alcázar) is responsible for the death. Becoming increasingly obsessed and paranoid, she enlists the help of neighbor to avenge his death. East Coast Premiere

Vaquero (Argentina, directed by Juan Minujín): Actor-turned-filmmaker Minujín’s profoundly revealing film follows mid-level Buenos Aires actor Julian Lamaz on a darkly comic quest for a leading role in a Hollywood movie. Through an amusing voice-over, the actor endures endless patronizing advice from fellow actors, casting agents and even his family. Minujín’s experience in the Buenos Aires film and theatre community gives the narrative multiple layers of self-referential resonance. U.S. Premiere

The Student (El estudiante) (Argentina, directed by Santiago Mitre): College student Roque (Esteban Lamothe) navigates the murky world of university politics, while seducing assistant professor and activist (Romina Paula), in Santiago Mitre’s briskly paced debut. A microcosm for the world at large, the film brilliantly exposes the backroom dealings and negotiations of student politics. Florida Premiere

Speechless (Sin palabras) (Colombia, directed by Ana Sofía Osorio Ruiz and Diego Bustamante): After helping a disoriented Chinese immigrant find her way, Raul (Javier Ortíz) can’t help but fall slowly in love with the exotic beauty. Osorio Ruiz and Bustamante prove the language of the heart is the most universal of all in this touching romance. International Premiere

Distancia (Guatemala, directed by Sergio Ramírez): Tomás Choc travels 150 kilometers to be reunited with his only daughter, kidnapped 20 years ago during the Guatemalan civil war. In order to keep his memories of her alive, Tomas has kept a journal of his daily struggles, which he plans to give her when they meet in Ramirez’s heart wrenching drama. U.S. Premiere

The Festival also announced the return of its University of Miami Grand Jury Award for Best Short Film, which will feature the following films:

The Beach Chronicles (USA, directed by Kevin Sharpley) – World premiere

Catharis (France, directed by Cédric Prévost) – US premiere

Cell Phone Zombies (Cel Zombies) (Ecuador, directed by Jorge Luis Miranda) – World premiere

The Dancer (USA, directed by Seth Stark) – Florida premiere

Grandmothers (Abuelas) (United Kingdom, directed by Afarin Eghbal) – Florida premiere

Immune (USA, directed by Andrew Lathorp) – Florida premiere

Shift (USA, directed by Juan Carlos Zaldívar) – World premiere

The Trip (A Viagem) (Portugal/USA, directed by Simao Cayatte) – Florida premiere

10 Films Set for Miami Festival's Ibero-American Competition

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 17:25:00 GMT

The Miami International Film Festival unveiled the first of its competition lineups Friday, with four North American premieres and two U.S. premieres among those competing in the festival's signature MIFF Knight Ibero-American Competition. Ten features will compete in the section, which spotlights feature films by directors from Spain, Portugal and Latin America.

Competing films are eligible for a $30,000 USD Knight Grand Jury Prize that will be split between the filmmaker and the U.S. distributor of the film (funds will be awarded to the U.S. distributor on the condition of a minimum one-week commercial theatrical engagement in Miami-Dade County before March 11, 2013). If no U.S. distributor is secured before April 12, 2012, then the full award will be made to the filmmaker. The Grand Jury, in its own discretion, will also award up to a total of $10,000 additional funds to two other films.

"The Ibero-American films submitted to our competition this year are of exceptional quality," commented MIFF's executive director Jaie Laplante in a statement. "With an intriguing mix of thrillers, dramas, romances and cutting-edge work, the competing films are rich, impactful and brilliantly engaging."

The 29th Miami International Film Festival, produced by Miami Dade College, takes place March 2 - 11.

2012 MIFF Knight Ibero-American Competition films with descriptions and credits provided by the festival:

"The Porcelain Horse" (Mejor no hablar de ciertas cosas), Ecuador, directed by Javier Andrade
In Javier Andrade’s startling debut, two brothers steal a porcelain horse from their parent’s home in order to buy drugs, leading to a fight that will haunt the family for the rest of their lives. North American Premiere

"I'd Receive the Worst News From Your Beautiful Lips" (Eu Receberia As Piores Notícias De Seus Lindos Lábios), Brazil, directed by Beto Brant and Renato Ciasca
Set against a steamy Amazonian backdrop, a sensual melodrama of a beautiful woman caught in an unstable situation between two men. North American Premiere

"Blood of My Blood" (Sangue do Meu Sangue), Portugal, directed by João Canijo
Two adult sisters struggle fiercely to hold their family together in the harsh world of a Lisbon slum, but the ticking time bomb of the situation is in grave danger of exploding. East Coast Premiere

"Pescador" (Ecuador/Colombia, directed by Sebastián Cordero)
After a drug shipment miraculously washes up on a beach, Blanquito (Andrés Crespo) has the opportunity to finally leave his small fishing village and go to the big city, in this major tonal new direction for acclaimed director Cordero. North American Premiere

"Bonsái" (Chile/Argentina/Portugal/France), directed by Cristián Jiménez
Based on the seminal novel by Chilean author Alejandro Zambra. Julio, a struggling writer, pens a book about his first experience with love, in order to keep up a lie he’s told his lover. Bonsai marks director’s Cristián Jiménez second appearance in MIFF’s Iberoamerican competition. Florida Premiere

"Zoo" (Zoológico), Chile, directed by Rodrigo Marín
Set in an affluent Santiago suburb, a social commentary on today’s youth follows three teens (Alicia Rodríguez, Luis Balmaceda and Santiago de Aguirre) consumed in Americanized customs: malls, the Internet, pornography, skateboarding and angst. North American Premiere

"The Cat Vanishes" (El gato desaparece), Argentina, directed by Carlos Sorin
When Beatriz (Beatriz Spelzini) picks up her husband Luis (Luis Luque) from the sanatorium, she doesn’t quite believe the psychiatrist’s pronouncement that he is cured. But after the family cat vanishes, she questions her sanity as well as her husband’s in Sorin’s unsettling psychological mystery. U.S. Premiere

"Madrid," 1987 (Spain, directed by David Trueba)
The balance of power and desire shift during the meeting of an older journalist (José Sacristán) and a young student (María Valverde) in a beautifully-written, dusk-to-dawn meditation on youth, age and the music of the spheres. East Coast Premiere

"Violeta Went to Heaven" (Violeta se fue a los cielos), Chile, directed by Andrés Wood
Portrait of famed Chilean singer, folklorist and multifaceted artist Violeta Parra (Francisca Gavilán) filled with her musical work, her memories, her loves and her hopes. East Coast Premiere

"The Sleeping Voice" (La voz dormida), Spain, directed by Benito Zambrano
In Benito Zambrano’s portrayal of the dark days following the Spanish Civil War, two sisters (Maria Leon and Inma Cuesta) find themselves caught up in the frightening politics of the divided country. U.S. Premiere

The Innovative O Cinema Wants to Redefine Moviegoing In Miami

Wed, 16 Mar 2011 08:56:29 GMT

O Cinema opened February 24 in downtown Miami's Wynwood Arts District with the intent of offering a whole new way of exhibiting media. The brainchild of Vivian Marthell and Kareem Tabsch, co-directors of Living Arts Trust, it's the result a $400,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to establish the cinema’s presence in the South Florida.

Like many arthouses, it specializes in first-run independent, foreign and other niche market films. However, it also sublets three artist studios, and includes a gallery that shows new works every 6-8 weeks. In the works is Monitoring Art, a dedicated video art gallery and a courtyard for live music and other gatherings. They also plan to expand the 50-seat stadium-style theater to seat 130.

Tabsch and Marthell, both veterans of the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, spent about three years bringing their vision to fruition.

"Our taste and aesthetic are generally polar opposites, but we have an appreciation and respect for each other's opposing likes," said Tabsch. However, the well-traveled Miami natives lamented the fact that while many elements of arts and culture had come a long way in their hometown, film wasn't one of them.

"The Miami Film Festival was a great event and had done a lot to bring good films to the city, but that was just 10 days out of the whole year and there was no real place to regularly see the wide variety of great movies that would play at places like the Quad, Film Forum, Angelika, the Cumberland, Kabuki, or any of the other haunts we'd pop into in the cities we'd frequent," Tabsch said. "We were determined to find a way and change that."

So when the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation announced their $40 million investment into Miami's arts community in early 2008, Marthell and Tabsch responded to an open call for Miami residents to propose ideas that would help transform the city's cultural landscape.

The scene inside the O Cinema.

"The submission process was easy -- just 150 words to sum up our concept, click submit and wait," Marthell said. "We were thrilled to be invited to submit a more hashed-out proposal, then called back again for more pointed questions, facts and figures, and ultimately a third time around where we presented our concept, our numbers and our goals for the cinema. We were awarded funding in December of 2008."

It turned out getting the grant was the easier part. As a matching grant, Marthell and Tabsch had to raise the equivalent themselves in a now-melting economy. They also had to find a location that would work as a cinema in their target neighborhood of the Wynwood Art District on Miami's Upper East Side, which repurposed industrial spaces into artistic environments.

Thanks to the Knight Foundation, they were allowed to match the grant in portions (so far they've raised about a quarter). And after they finally found their site in July 2010, across from the Rubell Family Collection, O Cinema opened seven months later.

Since then, Marthell and Tabsch have showcased titles like "Mississippi Damned," "Four Lions," "A Somewhat Gentle Man" and 'Tiny Furniture." They're also developing series that target Miami's LGBT, Jewish, African-American and Latino communities as well as partnering with local institutions like indie music store Sweat Records and the Borscht Film Festival.

"People are really excited about what we're doing," Marthell said. "We've started out slowly, opening quietly to work the kinks out, but the feedback has been great and people who come into the space comment that they've never been in a place, let alone a cinema, like this. We don't want kids who grow up in Miami to feel like they need to flock to New York or to Los Angeles to get that cinematic fix that feeds your soul. We've had those same pangs, too, and we want to make it better for everyone else."

For more information, check out O Cinema's website.

Miami International Film Festival Turns 28 Amidst Transition

Mon, 14 Mar 2011 12:26:08 GMT

The 2011 Miami International Film Festival wrapped this weekend, concluding nine days of over 100 films from 30 countries screening across Miami-Dade county. Denis Villeneuve's Oscar-nominated "Incendies" helped do so on Saturday night, screening as the festival's "Awards Night Centerpiece" following a ceremony that handed out various prizes to films at the fest.

Among the winners was "Marimbas From Hell" (Las marimbas del infierno), directed by Julio Hernández Cordón, which took the top juried prize for Ibero-American Competition. The Guatemala/France/Mexico co-production had premiered at last year's San Sebastian Film Festival and was billed in Miami as "surely the world's first Guatemalan heavy-metal marimbas movie." It tells the story of Don Alfonso, a deliveryman who also plays marimbas, the traditional Guatemalan instrument. Don ends up approaching an underground heavy-metal legend, Blacko, suggesting the two fuse their styles. What results is a distinct Guatemalan story that represents one of the things that the Miami International Film Festival clearly does best: showcase great Latin American cinema.

"Over the years, you always program what the best films are no matter where they come from," Miami International Film Festival Executive Director Jaie Laplante told indieWIRE. "Some years are stronger for Latin films than others, but I was very fortunate that this year was such an extraordinary year. I was really able to infuse the festival with films from nearly every country in the Latin America diaspora."

Another highlight was Spanish-Cuban co-production "Half of Oscar," which won a special jury prize, and Haitian-set "Jean Genti," written and directed by the husband-and-wife team of Israel Cárdenas and Laura Amelia, which won the Screenwriting Award.

“Incendies” director Denis Villeneuve joined Miami International Film Festival Executive Director Jaie Laplante as his film closed the 28th edition of the Miami International Film Festival last night at the Gusman Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Miami. Photo by Peter Knegt.

Other juried prize winners included Zhang Meng's "The Piano in a Factory," which won the top prize in the World Competition, and Nir Bergman's "Intimate Grammer," which won a special jury prize (indieWIRE profiled the film from the fest). The documentary section saw Steve James' widely acclaimed "The Interrupters" - which tackles a year in the life of three Violence Interrupters who try to protect their Chicago communities from the violence they once employed - take the top juried prize, while Marshall Curry's "If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front" won a special jury prize.

"The Interrupters" and "If a Tree Falls" were two of the films that came out of a revamped documentary section that was just one of the many elements of the this year's festival that represented considerable transition for the 28-year-old festival, which just under half a year ago hired a new executive director in Laplante, a former co-director of the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival and current director of the South Beach Food & Wine Festival.

"I'm very gratified from the response to the festival, both from the filmmakers and the audience," Laplante told indieWIRE Saturday. "I received a lot of great warmth from our audience. I came on board late in the timeline this year - just four months before the festival started. But I've lived here for 12 years, and I've seem the festival go through a lot of incarnations, so I came in with a lot of ideas that I wanted to implement. I put of a few of them forward this year, and I think they worked out for the most part really beautifully. But I look forward to continuing to develop the future of the festival."

Among those changes was a general audience award that applied to all films (whereas previously there were separate audience awards for each competition section); experimenting with new venues and parties, including a Paella Party that evolved from Laplante's experiences running the South Beach Wine & Food Festival; as well as bringing in Toronto International Film Festival doc programmer Thom Powers to revitalize MIFF's documentary programs. Laplante and Powers together came up with "Doc-You-Up," an initative that expanded beyond the competition to highlight all the films they felt were "bracing and original visions." Films in the program included recent fest favorites like Janus Metz's "Armadillo," Morgan Spurlock's "The Greatest Movie Ever Sold," Steve James' "The Interrupters," Marshall Curry's "If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front," David Weissman's "We Were Here," and James Marsh's "Project Nim."

“The Interrupters” director Steve James (left) and Miami International Film Festival doc programmer Thom Powers celebrated at the closing night party of the festival. James’s film won the best documentary prize at the fest earlier that night. Photo by Peter Knegt.

"I'm grateful to Jaie Laplante for creating MIFF's new Doc-You-Up section and supporting my efforts to expand the documentary audience," Thom Powers told indieWIRE. "For me, the highlights include screening 'The Sound of Mumbai: A Musical' on the outdoor wall of Frank Gehry's New World Symphony building; hosting Morgan Spurlock with 'The Greatest Movie Ever Sold'; reviving the cinema verite classic 'Mooney vs. Fowle' on its 50th anniversary; and giving Steve James' 'The Interrupters' its first jury prize. Jaie has only been in his job for half a year, but he's already shown the potential for MIFF to rank among Miami's other great festivals such as the Book Fair, Food & Wine and Art Basel."

Going forward, Laplante is very optimistic about the potential the festival has.

"Miami Beach is a gorgeous location and this is a gorgeous time of year," Laplante said. "So celebrating our location and celebrating this as a beautiful place to come and see extraordinary films is something that I would like MIFF to become known for. I really feel like there's a lot of similarities between this city and its venues with Cannes. We don't have the Palais here, but we do have the beautiful beaches and the extraordinary weather and the glamour that is there. So I'd like to utilize that in our own unique way... A smaller, Latin way..."

"Chico & Rita" to Open Internationally-Oriented 2011 Miami Film Festival

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 16:40:59 GMT

Fernando Trueba's animated musical "Chico & Rita" will open the 28th Miami International Film Festival. This year's festival will have four world and international premieres along with fifteen North American and U.S. Premieres.The films are all divided across MIFF's three principal categories: the Ibero-American competition, the "Doc-You-Up" Program and the DOX Competition and the World Competition.

Highlights from the competition include a strong core of documentary films. Oscar winners James Marsh ("Man on Wire") and Alex Gibney ("Taxi to the Dark Side") will present their respective new films, "Project Nim" and "Magic Trip." Miami audiences will also get a chance to see new work from Oscar-nominees Steve James ("Hoop Dreams") and Marshall Curry ("If a Tree Falls"). James's "The Interrupters" and Curry's "If a Tree Falls" add to the strength of a documentary section that will also offer a seminar from filmmaker Morgan Spurlock.

Fiction films will also have a strong representation at the Festival. MIFF's internationally-focused programming is apparent with the inclusion of Zhang Meng's "The Piano in a Factory," Sebastian Hiriart's "A Stone's Throw Away," and "Jean Gentil" from filmmakers Laura Amelia Guzman and Israel Cardenas.

Danish director Sussane Bier will be receiving the Festival's Career Achievement Tribute on March 6. Bier's latest film, "In a Better World," won the award for the Best Foreign Film at this year's Golden Globes.

"Dreams are a key theme of MIFF 2011, starting with our 2011 official image from photographer Stian Roenning," said MIFF Executive Director Jaie Laplante. "The directors of these films are a true 'dream team' of cinematic artists. Their works will bestow a wizardly enchantment on this year's Miami Film Society members and MIFF ticket buyers."

27th Miami International Film Festival Unveils Its Lineup

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 12:55:27 GMT

With a roster of 115 films, the Miami International Film Festival revealed its 27th edition line up, which includes five world premieres as well as 22 North American and 14 U.S. debuts from 45 countries. The festival, taking place March 5 - 14, is produced and hosted by Miami Dade College.

Kicking off the festival on March 5 is Ken Loach's latest "Looking for Eric," starring Manchester United football player Eric Cantona. Closing night will feature a screening of Argentina's official Oscar's Best Foreign-Language Film entry, "The Secret In Their Eyes." Other highlights include "City Island" starring Andy Garcia and recent Golden Globe Winner Julianna Margulies (TV's "The Good Wife"); "Please Give" starring Amanda Peet and Catherine Keener; and the U.S. premiere of the documentary "Hugh Hefner: Playboy, Activist and Rebel" by Academy Award-winning director Brigitte Berman. Sweden's acclaimed "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" based the on the international best-selling novel of the same name will also make its way to the festival, following its box-office success in Europe.

Competition categories for this year's festival include Ibero-American, World, DOX, Cutting the Edge and Shorts. Florence Jaugey's "La Yuma," which will screen as part of the Ibero-American competition, is the first feature film shot in Nicaragua in 20 years. Cinema 360,' a special section unique to MIFF that showcases emerging independent filmmakers, will feature the international premiere of "Children of God" by Kareem Mortimer. The full-length feature opened the Bahamas International Film Festival and explores the widespread homophobia in the Bahamas. Also screening as part of Cinema 360' will be the U.S. premiere of what may be the last film from Haiti for years to come, "Moloch Tropical."

In addition to the screenings, MIFF will present their annual Career Achievement award to revered German director Margarethe Von Trotta, most recognized for her films "Sheer Madness," "Rosa Luxemberg," and "Rosentrasse." Following the awards ceremony, MIFF will show her latest film "Vision," starring Barbara Sukowa, which made a splash at last year's Toronto International Film Festival.

This year marks Artistic Director Tiziani Finzi's second year at MIFF. A 21-year film festival programming veteran, she has previously programmed the Locarno, Cannes and Venice festivals.

"Attending a film festival is not like going to the regular cinema," said Finzi in an official statement. "It is important to create an experience where you take your time, have a journey around the world and see films that, often times, have little chance to be distributed in mainstream U.S. theaters."

[For more information, visit the MIFF website]