30th Miami International Film Festival, produced and presented by Miami Dade College, Celebrates Indie Actor Brady Corbet and Special Screenings of Classic Films such as “El Super”

30th Miami International Film Festival, produced and presented by Miami Dade College, Celebrates Indie Actor Brady Corbet and Special Screenings of Classic Films such as “El Super”
Miami, FL — Miami International Film Festival (MIFF), produced and presented by Miami Dade College and celebrating its 30th anniversary March 1 – 10, will showcase six cherished classic films in special screenings. This year’s highlights include a special presentation by acclaimed independent actor Brady Corbet, and a newly digitized print of the seminal 1979 Cuban-American film El Super.

On Friday, March 8th at 7:15pm, Corbet will introduce a rare, 35mm screening of Robert Bresson’s 1966 classic Au Hasard Balthazar.   Corbet has made a strong impression starring in impressively-reviewed independent films such as Gregg Araki’s Mysterious Skin, Alistar Banks Griffin’s Two Gates of Sleep, Sean Durkin’s Martha Marcy May Marlene, and Antonio Campos’ forthcoming Simon Killer, as well as directing his own Sundance Film Festival winning short, “Protect You + Me” (which screened at MIFF 2009).   Corbet will discuss the significance of Bresson’s classic, and its impact on his own artistry

“Au Hasard Balthazar is a masterpiece,” Corbet says.   “It is remarkable for its harshness, as well as its technical and spiritual luminosity.”   Corbet will also be in Miami to host a special invite-only VIP party celebrating American independent cinema for MIFF at Nikki Beach.

Also on Friday, March 8th at 9:15pm, immediately following the Bresson screening, the Festival will showcase a special presentation of the newly digital restoration of the 1979 film El Super, by directors Leon Ichaso and Orlando Jimenez-Leal.  A homesick Cuban exile living in wintery New York departs for a new life in Miami, in this film that writer Fabiola Santiago has called “the quintessential film about the Cuban exile experience”.   El Superplayed numerous major international film festivals in its initial release and screened to sold-out houses throughout the United States during its commercial release.

“All of them (Cubans) crying, screaming and laughing,” directors Ichaso and Jimenez-Leal told MIFF programmer Orlando Rojas.   “It was the first time we saw ourselves on the big screen.  It was like looking in the mirror.”

Two other classic special presentations in the From The Vault category will take place at the Coral Gables Art Cinema.   On Sunday, March 3rd at 4:30pm, the 1918 silent classic The Yellow Ticket will be screened with a special live music score, presented in partnership with Next@19th.   The first film to explore anti-Semitism in Imperial Russian, the MIFF/Next at 19th concert/screening will feature an original score performed by klezmer violinist Alicia Svigals alongside Canadian virtuosos pianist Marilyn Lerner.   Tickets for this special one-of-a-kind presentation are specially priced at $25, or $20 for Miami Film Society members.
“The Yellow Ticket is a remarkably progressive film, both in its representation of a single woman studying to be a doctor in 1918 and the difficult social issues addressed: anti-Semitism, poverty, prostitution and suicide,” said Next@19th Executive Director Jenni Person. “Bringing it to life through an original score performed live at the Festival is a wonderful, multi-disciplinary and multi-sensory experience that Next@19th is proud to bring to Miami audiences.”

The other special presentation at Coral Gables Art Cinema is Frederick Wiseman’s 1993 documentary Zoo, a fascinating study of the operations of Miami’s Zoo from a variety of aspects, spanning entertainment, ethics, finance and research.  Celebrating its 20th anniversary with a MIFF screening on Thursday, March 7th at 6:30pm with a very rare 16mm screening, the film will be introduced by Miami wildlife expert, photographer and current Zoo Miami director of communications Ron Magill.   Magill will also discuss various aspects of the Zoo when the film was shot, and what has changed or evolved at the Zoo 20 years later.

Two other classic films connected to MIFF’s Career Achievement Tribute Awards will also screen during the 30th annual Festival.   Director Lasse Hallström will be present for a screening of his classic Oscar-nominated film My Life as a Dog (which had its US premiere at MIFF 1987) on Saturday March 2nd at 4pm at MDC’s Tower Theater.     Director Fernando Trueba will be present for a screening of his classic Oscar-winning film Belle Epoque (1993) on Saturday March 9th at 3:30pm at MDC’s Tower Theater.

Each of these six dynamic films will take Festival patrons back in time to eras familiar and some not so familiar.  Media attendance and event listing coverage is invited.

The 30th edition of Miami International Film Festival, produced and presented by Miami Dade College, runs March 1-10, 2013. For tickets and more information, please visit www.miff2020.wpengine.com or call 305-405-MIFF (6433). The Festival is the only major film festival event housed within a college or university.
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Miami International Film Festival (MIFF), celebrating its 30th anniversary March 1 – 10, 2013, is considered the preeminent film festival for showcasing Ibero-American cinema in the U.S., and a major launch pad for all international and documentary cinema. The annual Festival, produced and presented by Miami Dade College, attracts more than 70,000 audience members and more than 400 filmmakers, producers, talent and industry professionals. It is the only major festival housed within a college or university. In the last five years, the Festival has screened films from more than 60 countries, including 300 World, International, North American, U.S. and East Coast Premieres. MIFF’s special focus on Ibero-American cinema has made the Festival a natural gateway for the discovery of new talent from this diverse territory.  The Festival also offers unparalleled educational opportunities to film students and the community at large. Major sponsors of the 2013 Festival include Knight Foundation, Lexus and Miami-Dade County. For more, visit miff2020.wpengine.com or call 305-237-MIFF (3456).

Miami Dade College has a long and rich history of involvement in the cultural arts, providing South Florida with a vast array of artistic and literary offerings including the Miami Book Fair International, the Center @ MDC, the Miami International Film Festival, the MDC Live Arts Performing Arts Series, the Cuban Cinema Series, the Miami Leadership Roundtable speakers’ series, numerous renowned campus art galleries and theaters, and the nationally recognized School of Entertainment and Design Technology. With an enrollment of more than 174,000 students, MDC is the largest institution of higher education in the country and is a national model for many of its programs. The college’s eight campuses and outreach centers offer more than 300 distinct degree programs including baccalaureate, associate in arts and science degrees and numerous career training certificates leading to in-demand jobs. MDC has served nearly 2,000,000 students since it opened its doors in 1960.

MIFF Contacts:
Jessica Wade Pfeffer, Jessica Wade Inc., +1 305-804-8424, jessica@jessicawadeinc.com

Janice Roland, Falco Ink,  +1 212-445-7100,  janiceroland@falcoink.com
Shannon Treusch, Falco Ink, +1 212-445-7100,  shannontreusch@falcoink.com

MDC Contacts:

Juan Mendieta, +1 305-237-7611,  jmendiet@mdc.edu

Sue Arrowsmith +1 305-237-3710,  sue.arrowsmith@mdc.edu

Alejandro Rios  +1 305-237-7482,  arios1@mdc.edu