Miami Dade College’s Miami Film Festival recenty unveiled the lineup of its acclaimed Miami Film Festival GEMS event, announcing Colombia’s Oscar submission Birds of Passage (Pájaros de Verano) as the Opening Night selection and Spain’s Oscar submission and domestic box office sensation Champions (Campeones) as the Closing Night selection.
Miami Film Festival GEMS takes place Oct. 11-14, at MDC’s Tower Theater Miami. GEMS is the annual fall extension of the internationally renowned Miami Film Festival that celebrates its 36th edition Mar. 1-10, 2019. Many of the titles in GEMS will compete in the festival’s main awards categories culminating at the end of the 36th edition in March.
Bárbara Lennie, the acclaimed and much in-demand Goya-winning Spanish actress, will accept the festival’s Precious Gem Award prior to the presentation of her newest film, Petra, directed by Jaime Rosales. Lennie also joins Penélope Cruz, Javier Bardem and Ricardo Darín in Oscar-winner Asghar Farhadi’s Everybody Knows (Todos lo saben), which also will play at GEMS.
Lennie’s other recent roles are well-known to Miami Film Festival audiences — her 2018 film A Sort of Family won the festival’s Knight Competition Grand Prize, and her 2017 film Maria (And Everybody Else) won the festival’s HBO Ibero-American Feature Film Award.
Cinematographer Diego García, touted as a strong contender for his first Oscar nomination for shooting Paul Dano’s directorial debut, Wildlife, starring Cary Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhall, will receive the festival’s Art of Light Award and participate in a conversation about his craft prior to the Florida premiere of Wildlife.
Garcia’s previous credits include his Fenix Award-winning work on Gabriel Mascaro’s Neon Bull, and previous Miami Film Festival selections Cemetery of Splendor (2015) and The Darkness (2017). García additionally will lead a Master Class on cinematography for attending local industry members and film students.
Returning for a second consecutive year to Miami Film Festival GEMS is the virtual reality (VR) sidebar Virtual Escape, in partnership with MDC’s Miami Animation & Gaming International Complex (MAGIC). Festivalgoers will experience five projects of 360°, VR and Alternative Gaming available through the entire GEMS weekend.
This year’s edition of GEMS will feature two distinct sections. The Spotlight Stage will feature high-profile, major-interest films from internationally renowned directors, many of which are in strong contention for Academy Award nominations. The Discovery Stage will feature new filmmakers creating some of the year’s most interesting debut work, breaking out into international prominence.
Award categories:
The $30,000 Marimbas Award is Miami Film Festival’s top award, presenting $30,000 cash to the jury-selected feature film (60 minutes or longer) that best exemplifies richness and resonance for cinema’s future. The name of the award is inspired by the 2011 winner of the festival’s top award, Julio Hernandez Cordon’s Marimbas from Hell, which embodies the spirit of forward-looking cinema.
Jordan Ressler First Feature Award presents $10,000 cash to the filmmaker (director, or writer/director) of the jury-selected best film made by a filmmaker making his or her feature narrative (60 minutes or longer) film debut. The Award is courtesy of the South Florida family of the late Jordan Ressler, an aspiring screenwriter whose life was tragically cut short before he could realize his dream.
Ibero-American Feature Film Award presents $10,000 cash to the jury-selected best U.S. Hispanic or Ibero-American feature film (60 minutes or longer) in the Official Selection, awarded to the lead producer (production company).
Zeno Mountain Award presents $5,000 cash, courtesy of Fringe Partners, to the filmmaker of a jury-selected film of any genre and any length that best celebrates the diversity of abilities and disabilities and helps to break down barriers to our understanding of people living with disabilities. The award is named after Zeno Mountain Farm in Lincoln, VT, and inspired by the actors and filmmakers in the 2016 documentary film Becoming Bulletproof.
GEMS Audience Award — All films at GEMS are eligible for the audience-voted Favorite Film Award.
Tickets for Miami Film Festival GEMS are on sale — call 1-844-565-6433 (MIFF) or visit miamifilmfestival.com. Opening Night Film + Party are $50 for general public, $40 for Miami Film Society members. All other screenings are $13 adults, $12 seniors, $10 members, $10 students; seminars are $9 (MDC students are free with student ID). VR Escape tickets are $5. Check website for Soufra special event pricing. Group rates are available.
For membership opportunities or more information, visit miamifilmfestival.com or call 305-237-FILM (3456). Miami Film Festival is the only major film festival event housed within a college or university.
