Miami International Film Festival, Produced and Presented by Miami Dade College, Celebrates its 30th Edition with a “Countdown Retrospective” Showcasing its Eclectic History

Miami, FL — As Miami International Film Festival (MIFF), produced and presented by Miami Dade College, approaches its 30-year anniversary (March 1-10, 2013) it will commemorate this milestone year with a 29-day retrospective counting down one film from each year of the Festival’s fascinating history.

The showcase will kick off on January 26, 2013 at MDC’s Tower Theater with a rare 35mm screening of Dark Habits (Entre tinieblas), directed by Spain’s legendary director Pedro Almodóvar.  MIFF’s inaugural festival, which opened February 3, 1984 at the Gusman Center for the Performing Arts, was the first film festival to introduce Almodóvar to North American audiences, a feat that has been repeated dozens of times with numerous other internationally acclaimed filmmakers in subsequent editions of MIFF.

“I love milestones!” declared MIFF’s executive director Jaie Laplante.  “What a treat it has been to look through our back catalogues, reliving the excitement of MIFF’s great moments, and recharting the growth from the early triumphs of our founding fathers to the new era of our modern festival with a firmly established reputation as a key launch pad for Ibero-American and international films in the United States.”

MIFF’s Countdown Retrospective will consist of a screening of one film representing each Festival year, screening on consecutive nights at MDC’s Tower Theater, beginning with the 1984 Festival and ending with the 2012 Festival.   As part of the spirit of going back in time, admission prices for MIFF’s Miami Film Society members will match that of the 1984 Festival, at $4 per film.  (Non-members will be charged regular MDC Tower Theater prices.)

The Countdown Retrospective will feature a rich variety of special events and screenings including an appearance by director David Frankel (The Devil Wears Prada, Hope Springs), who is scheduled to attend and answer questions from the audience on Friday, February 8 for the screening of his film Miami Rhapsody, the romantic comedy starring Sarah Jessica Parker, Mia Farrow and Antonio Banderas, which was MIFF’s opening night film in 1995.

Preeminent photographer and filmmaker Bruce Weber is scheduled to attend the screening of the acclaimed documentary Let’s Get Lost, and is scheduled to attend and participate in an intro and Q&A on Friday, February 1. This Oscar-nominated documentary and Venice Film Festival Cinecritica award-winner about the life of legendary jazz trumpeter-singer Chet Baker will represent the 1989 Festival.

The Sunday, February 24th screening of Venice Film Festival award winner Machan, by Uberto Pasolini,representing the 2009 Festival, has been selected by Miami’s Consulate General of Italy’s, 2013 Anno Della Cultura Italiana (Year of Italian Culture) to be included in the official program of cultural events serving to emphasize the importance of films as “cultural ambassadors” of Italian tradition and values. Pasolini’s film is based on a true story about a group of desperate slum dwellers, living on the margins of society under impossible pressures, who find an invitation to a handball tournament in Bavaria to be the answer to their prayers — a one-way ticket to the West and the wealth that will solve all their problems.

Goya Award-winner Chico & Rita, directed by Fernando Trueba, Javier Mariscal, and Tono Errando marked the first animated Opening Night Film in MIFF’s history in 2011, and features a sensual collision of color, passion and music from what has been described as the greatest period of creativity in Cuban-American jazz. This crowd pleaser makes its triumphant return to Miami on Tuesday, February 26.

The full line-up of films screening at MDC’s Tower Theater leading up to MIFF 2013’s Opening Night on March 1, 2013 are listed below.  All show times are at 7pm.

1. Dark Habits (Entre tinieblas) by Pedro Almodóvar (Spain, MIFF 1984) on Saturday, January 26
2. Blood Simple by Joel Coen (USA, MIFF 1985) on Sunday, January 27
3. Happily Ever After (Além da Paixão) by Bruno Barreto (Brazil, MIFF 1986) on Tuesday, January 29
4. A King and His Movie (La película del rey) by Carlos Sorin (Argentina, MIFF 1987) on Wednesday, January 30
5. Babette’s Feast (Babettes gæstebud) by Gabriel Axel (Denmark, MIFF 1988) on Thursday, January 31
6. Let’s Get Lost by Bruce Weber (USA, MIFF 1989) on Friday, February 1
7. Landscape in the Mist (Topio stin omichli) by Theo Angelopoulos (Greece/Italy/France, MIFF 1990) on Saturday, February 2
8. A Tale of Springtime (Conte de printemps) by Eric Rohmer (France, MIFF1991) on Sunday, February 3
9. Toto the Hero (Toto le héros) by Jaco van Dormael (Belgium/France/Germany, MIFF 1992) on Tuesday, February 5
10. El Mariachi by Robert Rodriguez (USA, MIFF 1993) on Wednesday, February 6
11. Suture by Scott McGehee and David Siegel (USA, MIFF 1994) on Thursday, February 7
12. Miami Rhapsody by David Frankel (USA, MIFF 1995) on Friday, February 8
13. Someone Else’s America by Golan Paskaljevic (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, UK, France, Germany, Greece),  MIFF 1996) on Saturday, February 9
14. La Promesse by Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne (Belgium/France/Luxembourg, MIFF 1997) on Sunday, February 10
15. Funny Games by Michael Haneke (Austria, MIFF 1998) on Tuesday, February 12
16. Buena Vista Social Club by Wim Wenders (Germany/USA/UK/France/Cuba, MIFF 1999) on Wednesday, February 13
17. East-West (Est – Ouest) by Régis Wargnier (France/Bulgaria/Russia/Spain/Ukraine, MIFF 2000) on Thursday, February 14
18. Our Lady of the Assassins (La virgin de los sicarios) by Barbet Schroeder (Spain/France/Colombia, MIFF 2001) on Friday, February 15
19. Audition by Miike Takashi (Japan, MIFF 2002) on Saturday, February 16
20. Irreversible (Irréversible) by Gaspar Noé (France, MIFF 2003) on Sunday, February 17
21. Broken Wings (Knafayim Shvurot) by Nir Bergman (Israel, MIFF 2004) on Tuesday, February 19
22. The Perfect Crime (El crimen ferpecto) by Álex de la Iglesia (Spain, MIFF 2005) on Wednesday, February 20
23. Madeinusa by Claudia Llosa (Peru/Spain, MIFF 2006) on Thursday, February 21
24. The Violin (El violin) by Francisco Vargas (Mexico, MIFF 2007) on Friday, February 22
25. XXY by Lucía Puenzo (Argentina/Spain/France, MIFF 2008) on Saturday, February 23
26. Machan by Uberto Pasolini (Sri Lanka/Italy/Germany, MIFF 2009) on Sunday, February 24
27. Optical Illusions (Ilusiones ópticas) by Cristián Jiménez (Chile/France/Portugal, MIFF 2010) on Tuesday, February 26
28. Chico & Rita (Chico y Rita) by Fernando Trueba, Javier Mariscal, Tono Errando (Spain/UK, MIFF 2011) on Wednesday, February 27
29. Mariachi Gringo by Tom Gustafson (Mexico/USA, MIFF 2012) on Thursday, February 28

Miami International Film Festival (MIFF), celebrating its 30th anniversary March 1 – 10, 2013, is considered the preeminent Ibero-American film festival in the U.S. 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 and Lexus. 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 Florida Center for the Literary Arts, the MDC Live! performance series, The MDC Tower Theater Cinema Series, nine visual arts galleries including The Freedom Tower at Miami Dade College and the School of Entertainment and Design Technology, in addition to the renowned Miami International Film Festival. MDC is the largest institution of higher education in the country and is nationally recognized for many of its academic and cultural programs. With an enrollment of more than 174,000 students, MDC is the nation’s top producer of degrees. The college’s eight campuses and outreach centers offer nearly 300 distinct degree programs including several baccalaureate degrees. mdc.edu

MIFF Contacts:
Tatyana Chiocchetti 786-390-4874  tatyana@miamifilmfestival.com

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

MDC Contacts:

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

Tere Estorino  305-237-3949  testorin@mdc.edu

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

Alejandro Rios  305-237-7482  arios1@mdc.edu.
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