![OMNI CRA MEC - EUE rendering2[1]](http://www.communitynewspapers.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/OMNI-CRA-MEC-EUE-rendering21.jpg)
Experts to discuss studio’s impact on Miami entertainment industry at CAMACOL’s 35th Hemispheric Conference of Latin Chambers of Commerce
The Miami Entertainment Complex (MEC) at 50 NW 14th Street and its owner, the Miami OMNI Community Redevelopment Agency, will get prominent billing at the June 2-5 Hemispheric Conference at the Biltmore Hotel Coral Gables.
CAMACOL will present its 35th Hemispheric Congress of Latin Chambers of Commerce and Industry jointly with the Fourth Annual Miami Media and Film Market (http://miamimediafilmmarket.com) at the hotel at 1200 Anastasia Avenue. More than 23 nations will be represented at this year’s Congress.
On Tuesday, June 3 at noon there will be a panel discussion on the impact of the MEC on the film and television industry in Miami. Panelists will include Miami OMNI Executive Director Pieter A. Bockweg, EUE/Screen Gems CEO Chris Cooney, and South Florida film producers Eugene Rodriguez and Sam Tedesco.
The MEC is scheduled to break ground this summer and open in August 2015. EUE/Screen Gems Studios, will build out and operate the facility, with 50-foot ceiling heights, and approximately 70,000 SF of studio space including two fully operational film sound stages of 15,000 SF, and 12,000 SF of office, editing suites, and accessory rooms to accommodate a wide variety of productions. EUE/Screen Gems will lease the property from the CRA for 10 years with an option for nine more.
“This long-term agreement is a big step to raise Miami’s prominence as a film destination,” said Miami Omni CRA Chairman and City of Miami Commissioner Marc D. Sarnoff.”
“The MEC is vital part of the dramatic revitalization you are starting to see along 14th Street west of the Adrienne Arsht Center. It will soon be a 24/7 destination,” said Pieter A. Bockweg, the OMNI CRA’s executive director, who led the team negotiating the lease with the studio.
On the evening of Wednesday, June 4, the sponsoring Chinese Delegation will present the Golden Orange Innovation Award, honoring the MEC, to City of Miami Commissioners Marc D. Sarnoff, the Miami OMNI CRA chair, and Wifredo (Willy) Gort, chair of the Hemispheric Congress. At this red carpet reception and awards ceremony, the delegation will also honor American and Chinese actors and actresses: Stephen Baldwin, Wang Luoyong, Mao Weitao and Ana Villafañe.
“The members of the Chinese delegation are very enthused about the MEC project and how it came into fruition,” said Patricia Arias, CAMACOL managing director and MMFM founder. “They are also very interested in establishing a presence in Miami. Both Commissioners Sarnoff and Gort have been instrumental in bringing the MEC to fruition and in advancing Miami’s status as a film destination.”
