Miami Film Festival Opens Tomorrow

The 26th annual Miami International Film Festival opens tomorrow, Friday, 6 March, and runs through the 15th. During that time, 137 films from 43 countries will screen.


The overall program will basically be the same as in previous years with the usual array of panels, documentaries and feature films. However there is a new spice this year, a new festival director Tiziana Finzi, who wants to bring an "Art Basel" flavor to South Florida's biggest film festival.



Tiziana Finzi
Friday's opening-night film is VALENTINO: THE LAST EMPEROR, a documentary about the famed fashion icon that includes a look at his often turbulent personal and professional relationship with partner Giancarlo Giammetti. (Guzman Center, 7:00 p.m.). Opening Night Celebration, Freedom Tower at Miami Dade College, 600 Biscayne Blvd., Downtown Miami, follows.

Among the other docs on the slate are 9 TO 5: DAYS IN PORN, which follows 10 adult-film stars over the course of a year; and CACHAO: UNO MÁS, in which Andy Garcia hosts a 2005 performance of one of Cuba's most legendary musicians, Israel "Cachao" López.

This year's Career Achievement Tribute will go to director Abel Ferrara, whose films — such as KING OF NEW YORK and BAD LIEUTENANT are tough and as honest as movies can be. The tribute will be followed by a screening of Ferrara's latest film, CHELSEA ON THE ROCKS, a documentary about the artists and personalities who've resided in New York City's famed Chelsea Hotel.

Among the feature films on the schedule are THREE MONKEYS, about the complicated cover-up of a hit-and-run accident; MACHAN, a comedy about a ragtag group from Sri Lanka who form a phony handball team in order to get invited to Europe; and DAD'S GIRLFRIEND, Italy, that follows a widowed father as he travels to Miami to meet the mother of his son's child.

The REEL Education Seminar Series includes workshops and panel discussions on breaking into the film industry, while Florida's homegrown talent will be on display in the Florida Focus screenings. There is a shorts competition, and the Preservation Screening Room is featuring films from renowned director John Cassavetes.

The festival's awards-night closing film is EL NIDO VACÍO (Empty Nest). The Argentine comedy follows a middle-aged couple as they adapt to life after their youngest son moves out of the house. Screening followed by Wrap Party, Everglades on the Bay, 244 Biscayne Blvd., Downtown Miami.

Screening Locations:

Gusman Center for the Performing Arts, 174 E. Flagler St., Miami

Miami Beach Cinematheque, 512 Española Way

Regal Cinemas South Beach 18, 1100 Lincoln Road

Colony Theatre, 1040 Lincoln Road, Miami Beach

Tower Theatre, 1508 SW Eighth St., Miami

Bill Cosford Cinema, in the Memorial Building on the University of Miami campus in Coral Gables.

Tickets: $12 general admission, $10 for Miami Film Society members, $11 for seniors, $7 for students. Special event rates vary. Special Ticket Packages available for a limited time (call).

For more information, go to miamifilmfestival.com or call 305-405-6433.

Here Comes Cannes 2008

Harrison Ford in Indy4

The Riviera resort of Cannes prepares to welcome the who's who of filmdom Wednesday. That's the opening day of the 61st Cannes International Film Festival, which means the festival is much older than the majority of the potential attendees.

One of the biggest premieres at the festival will surely be INDIANA JONES and the KINGDOM of the CRYSTAL SCULL, or Indy4 for short. It is screening out of competition. Of course, it would be unlikely to win the Golden Palm (Palme d'Or), anyway. But, it will generate a lot of excitement.

One of the longest features, Steven Soderberg's CHE (a.k.a., GUERRILLA - USA, France, Spain), a two-part, four-and-a-half-hour epic on Argentine revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara, will premiere in competition. Benicio del Toro stars as the charismatic Guevara.

These are only two top motion pictures in the 12-day movie marathon, which will command world attention while cinephiles watch for the two, or three, break-out feature films that will make cinematic history in 2008. Then, the question becomes, "Will any one of the favorites at Cannes claim the biggest prize of all, the Oscar® for Best Motion Picture of 2008?"

You can read about Cannes, and 18 other major and/or popular festivals already completed this year, on my Film Festivals Page. This year, I am dividing the festivals into three sections. Every year, I add more, and every year I write more, so it was the only sensible thing to do. Cannes completes Part I for 2008, which began with Palm Springs in January.

Part II is now online. It begins with Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in June, and ends with the New York Film Festival, opening in late September.

Next up will be Part III, beginning with the International Film Festival of Catalonia (Sitges, Spain) the first week in October, and probably ending with the Dubai Festival in mid-December. I can't say for sure yet because the Dubai dates run very close to the New Latin American Festival in Havana, Cuba.

Part III should be online by the last of August. By the end of October the action will shift to my Awards Page, which is the time the Oscar race really shifts into high gear, but there will still be some interesting film festivals to follow until Christmas. Then, my Film Festivals Page for 2009 begins.

I think you will find my Festivals Page handy. I try to note interesting tidbits, sometimes from my personal experience, and I always include handy links to help viewers quickly find the information in which they may be most interested. You can access the page by clicking the title of this post, or the permanent link on the right sidebar. Hope you enjoy!

My Film Festival Page News

Counted today and found there is information and links for 34 film festivals so far this year on my Film Festival Page, including some that are difficult to find information about such as the Festival of New Latin American Cinema held each December in Havana, Cuba. Ten are upcoming, or going on now, with the rest already completed this year. Altogether, there's a wealth of info. Here is the list of the 34:

AFIFEST, Berlin, Boston, Times BFI London, Canadian Hot Docs, Cannes, Deauville, Edinburgh, Guadalajara, Huelva, Havana, Jackson Hole, Los Angeles Independents, Memphis, Miami, Montreal, New York, Palm Sprngs, Puerto Valarta, River Run, Rome, San Diego, San Sebatian, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Sarajevo, Sitges, Sundance, SXSW, Telluride, Toronto, Tribeca, Vancouver, and Venice.

This weekend, I installed quick links to help you find the festivals in which you are interested. Just find the name of the festival you want, click, and you are there. Click the title of this post, which will take you to my Film Festival Page, and near the top you will find the links for the festivals going on now, or upcoming through December, including the one in Havana. There is a separate set of links for those already completed. Remember, there is always a link to my Film Festival Page on the right sidebar of this blog as well.

George Clooney and Jerry Weintraub at a recent Boston Film Festival gala.