Miami International Film Festival Kicks-Off On March 4
The College’s 33rd annual Miami International Film Festival will take place at more than nine venues throughout Miami from March 4 to 13.
This year’s Film Festival will include screenings of 129 films from 40 countries, featuring dozens of international and domestic premieres, including various award winners.
Guests include Gavin Hood, an Academy Award winning South African filmmaker, Iciar Bollaí a double Goya award-winning Spanish actress/director, Monica Bellucci, an Italian actress and fashion model, and Deepa Mehta, an academy award- nominated indo-Canadian filmmaker who will pay tribute to the new Marquee Series. The series will present on-stage conversations with major filmmakers sharing their new work.
The festival both produced and presented by Miami Dade College attracts more than 60,000 filmgoers and more than 400 filmmakers each year.
“We are so excited for the Miami International Film Festival. This year we are providing top films and having award-winning films like The Wait, said Margie Sernik, account executive at Jessica Wade Inc.
The Wait (L’Attesa) is a Florida premiere about a woman who travels back to reunite with her beloved after his mysterious absence, hoping the truth will surface.
The festival will kick off with an Opening Night film and Gala on March 4 at 7 p.m. at the Olympia Theater, 174 E. Flagler St. with Álex de la Iglesia premiering My Big Night starring Spanish recording legend Raphael. The movie is a pop comedy about an unusual New Year’s Eve variety show. The Opening Night party will include music, cocktails and dancing. The tickets for the film cost $30.
Projecting Light In The Magic City is the theme of the Festival this year. The CINEDWNTWN Galas will present different North American premieres on March 5, 10, and 11. The Miami Downtown Development Authority will host Award Nights featuring the film The Steps, a comedy directed by Andrew Currie, on March 12 at 7 p.m. The awards night party follows at 9 p.m. where attendees can mingle with award-winning filmmakers.
“This year’s lineup is like a prism that invites Miami to see the world with an illumination that only the cinema, and the artists that create the work, can provide,” Jaie Laplante, the festival’s Executive Director and Director of Programming said in a press release. “The programmers have populated the program with films and events that are essential to the complex, dynamic, ever-changing Miami of the now.”
The Soiree Series will present The Rebound, a world premiere about the loss of national championships of local wheelchair basketball team Miami Heat Wheels, making an inspiring documentary debut that focuses on men who find hope for a sport on March 5 at 5:30 p.m.
The series will also cover projects such as I’ve Never Not Been From Miami, The Idol and Tale of Tales.
Festival competitions such as The Knight Competition, Knight Documentary Achievement Award, Lexus Ibero-American Feature film competition are just some of the categories that could possibly receive achievement awards.
General admission for regular screenings is $13. Tickets for Miami Film Society members are $10, seniors $12 and students $10. General admission tickets are $10. All tickets require an additional $1 processing fee. The cost for CINEDWNTWN Galas are $16 for general admission, $12 for Miami Film Society members, seniors $14 and students $12. Venues vary by program.
For more information, about the Miami International Film Festival, visit: www.miamifilmfestival.com or call 305-237-3456.
