Uncategorized
Miami Film Festival Kicks-Off March 6
Sweet Micky For President Wins 2 Top Awards (audience and jury) at the 21st Annual Slamdance Film Festival will have its Florida premiere at O Cinema Miami Beach, Friday, March 13, 2015 @ 9:30 pm. Directed by Ben Patterson
The Miami International Film Festival announced its line up for its 32nd edition, which will run March 6–15 featuring 125 films from 40 countries, including 14 world premieres.
The festival will take place at its traditional venue, the historic Olympia Theater at the Gusman Center, plus six additional cinemas scattered across Miami.
“Today’s film festival experience has become a major platform for thought-provoking subjects and has truly transcended into a powerful educational vehicle,” said María Muñoz-Blanco, Miami Dade College’s MD Culture executive director.
Curated by executive director Jaie Laplante and a team formed by Thom Powers, Andres Castillo, Orlando Rojas, Carol Coombes and culinary cinema specialist Lee Brian Schrager, the festival will open on the March 6 with a gala screening of Damian Szifron’s Oscar nominated comedy Wild Tales, while Álvaro Fernández Armero’s Sidetracked, starring Inma Cuesta and Raúl Arévalo will close the festival on the March 14.
This year’s recipient of the Festival’s Artist Tribute Award was presented as The Independent Cuban Filmmaker, which translates into a collective homage to independent cinema in Cuba. The section comes right after the US announced the reopening of diplomatic relations and trade between the country and the USA after 53 years –a challenge for the isolated Cuban filmmaking scene.
The tribute program will include the North American premiere of The Project of the Century, presented by Cuban filmmaker Carlos Machado Quintela, and the Emerging Cuban Independent Film & Video Artists Program, presented by The Related Group. The film professionals selected by the program are Machado Quintela, producer Claudia Calviño (Juan of the Dead) and directors Jessica Rodriguez (Dark Glasses) and Marcel Beltrán. The four latter will have retrospective screenings of their earlier works in the week preceding the Festival.
The full line-up of Miami fest’s Knight Competition, which grants a $40,000 cash prize, is:
– Aurora (Chile – Rodrigo Sepúlveda)
– Blue Blood (Brazil – Lírio Ferreira)
– Butterfly (Argentina – Marco Berger)
– Invasion (Panama – Abner Benahim)
– Life is Sacred (Denmark / Ireland / Norway / Colombia – Andreas Dalsgaard, Viviana Gómez, and Nicolás Servide)
– Los Hongos (Colombia / France – Oscar Ruiz Navia)
– The Obscure Spring (Mexico – Ernesto Contreras)
– The Project of the Century (Cuba / Argentina / Germany – Carlos Machado Quintela)
– The Strongest Man (USA – Kenny Riches)
– Sunstrokes (Argentina – Gustavo Taretto)
– Voice Over (Chile – Cristián Jiménez)
The documentary competition, presented by The James L. & John S. Knight Foundation, will give a $10,000 cash award to one of the following nominees:
– 13 Million Voices (USA, directed by Janelle Gueits)
– Being Evel (USA, directed by Daniel Junge)
– Before We are Forgotten (Mexico, directed by Matías Gueilburt)
– Best of Enemies (USA, directed by Robert Gordon & Morgan Neville)
– City of Gold (USA, directed by Laura Gabbert)
– Dawg Fight (USA, directed by Billy Corben)
– Finding Gastón (Peru, directed by Patricia Perez)
– The Holders (USA, directed by Carla Forte)
– Hot Girls Wanted (USA, directed by Jill Bauer, Ronna Gradus)
– Invasion (Panama, Argentina, directed by Abner Benahim)
– Iris (USA, directed by Albert Maysles)
– Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck (USA, directed by Brett Morgan)
– The Land of Many Palaces (China, UK, directed by Ting Song, Adam James Smith)
– Life is Sacred (Denmark, Ireland, Norway, Colombia, directed by Andreas Dalsgaard, Viviana Gomez, Nicolas Servide)
– The Lost Aviator (Australia, directed by Andrew Lancaster)
– The Muses of Bashevis Singer (Israel, directed by Shaul Betser, Asaf Galay)
– Paco de Lucía: A Journey (Spain, directed by Curro Sánchez Varela)
– Playing Lecuona (Spain, Colombia, directed by Pavel Giroud, Juan Manuel Villar)
– The Record Man (USA, directed by Mark Moorman)
– The Salt of the Earth (Brazil / Italy / France, directed by Juliano Ribeiro Salgado & Wim Wenders)
– Sweet Micky for President (USA, Haiti, Canada, directed by Ben Patterson)
– Tea Time (Chile, USA, directed by Maite Alberdi)
– This Is My Land (France, Israel, Palestine, Poland, directed by Tamara Erde)
– This Is What It Is (France, directed by Léa Rinaldi)
The Lexus Ibero-American Opera Prima Competition will give a $10,000 cash award presented to one of the following directorial debuts:
– 3 Beauties (Venezuela, directed by Carlos Caridad Montero)
– Easy Sex, Sad Movies (Argentina / Spain, directed by Alejo Flah)
– In the Grayscale (Chile, directed by Claudio Marcone)
– On the Road, Somewhere (Dominican Republic, directed by Guillermo Zouain)
– They are All Dead (Spain, Germany, Mexico, directed by Beatriz Sanchís)
Florida
Advocates Oppose Florida Medicaid Work Reporting Bill, Cite “Deathbed Exemption” and Coverage Gap Risks
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FNN) — Senator LaVon Bracy Davis and Representative Mitch Rosenwald have filed legislation aimed at expanding access to the My Safe Florida Home Program by allowing homeowners to reapply when applications were previously deemed abandoned or withdrawn due to errors or omissions.
The measure, SB 1148/HB 1045, would modify program rules to permit subsequent applications when the original filing was rejected because of compliance-related mistakes, provided there is good cause and the applicant corrects the issue in a timely manner.
Expanding Access to Homeowner Assistance
The My Safe Florida Home Program is a state initiative that provides eligible Florida homeowners with inspections and grant funding to help strengthen their homes against storms while reducing insurance costs. The program is administered by the Florida Department of Financial Services.
Current rules allow for reapplication if an application was denied or withdrawn due to errors or omissions. However, the proposed legislation would also allow reapplication when an application was deemed abandoned or withdrawn because of similar compliance-related issues.
Addressing Bureaucratic Barriers
“At a time when Florida’s families are struggling with rising insurance costs, we cannot allow bureaucratic technicalities to block access to affordability tools,” said Bracy Davis, a Democrat from Ocoee.
The bill responds to concerns from homeowners who were unable to submit a new application after their original submission was closed due to misunderstandings or reasonable mistakes regarding program requirements.
Focus on Seniors and Low-Income Homeowners
Rosenwald, a Democrat from Oakland Park, said the legislation is intended to help vulnerable homeowners who rely on the program for financial relief.
“This program can be a lifeline for seniors and low-income homeowners,” Rosenwald said. “In response to Floridians reporting that they were blocked from submitting a new application because of a misunderstanding or reasonable mistake concerning program compliance, I filed this glitch bill.”
If approved, the legislation would ensure more homeowners have access to financial assistance aimed at strengthening homes and improving insurance affordability across Florida.
