Day 8: All 1,567 seats were filled at last night’s enormously successful gala screening of the first Cuban zombie comedy, Juan of the Dead (Juan de los muertos), by Alejandro Brugués, at Olympia Theater’s Gusman Center for the Performing Arts. The brilliantly conceived satirical look at present-day life under the controversial regime took eight weeks to shoot with a budget of $3 million. The entire process took just over a year, with post-production completed in Spain.
Since the film was shot entirely in Cuba, and recently screened at the Havana Film Festival, Brugués was asked about the degree of censorship he endured. Interestingly, Brugués was told by Cuban authorities, “we have better things to do than watch a film about zombies”. The director went on to say “I always get the censorship question when I come to Miami; either the censorship is not as hard as it seems, or I’m very good at avoiding it”. When asked about a sequel, he replied “Sequel? The next one will not be a sequel, but if there were to be a sequel, the zombies would be underwater and will come to Miami”.
Immediately following the hit screening, the JW Marriott Marquis hosted a zombie-free party in honor of the film. Miami Film Society members, Juan of the Dead cast and crew and VIPs enjoyed delectable bites from the Marquis’ first-rate kitchen, a variety of wines and spirits from AOC French Wines and Herradura Tequila. The party took place in the Marquis’ 19th floor ‘Game’ Room, complete with virtual bowling, billiards and a truly spectacular screening room, looming above beautiful downtown Miami.
In other news, Outsider Pictures recently announced the acquisition of this international comedic hit by Mexico-based LATINOFUSION, the international film sales and distribution company, for US theatrical distribution. Juan of the Dead has its U.S. theatrical debut at Miami Dade College’s Tower Theater beginning Tuesday, March 13. If you missed last night’s screening, be sure to buy your tickets in advance!
Spotlight on Québec: Philippe Falardeau’s beloved Monsieur Lazhar took the Genie Awards by storm last night, winning six of its nine nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor for its French-Algerian star Fellag. The film’s Genie triumph crowns a string of honors including an Oscar nomination, the best Canadian feature prize at TIFF, and the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award from the Toronto Film Critics Association.
Tower Power: Award-winning Chinese director Xiaolu Guo flew in from London to present the US Premiere of her latest film, UFO In Her Eyes, her fifth feature film. This is Guo’s first visit to the United States, although not her first film screening in Miami. Her documentary, Once Upon a Time Proletarian, was featured at the 2010 MIFF. Ms. Guo won the prestigious Golden Leopard award for her film, She, a Chinese, at the 2009 Locarno Film Festival.
Regal news: Andrés Wood’s latest feature, Violeta Went to Heaven (Violeta se fue a los cielos), portrait of famed Chilean singer, folklorist and multi-faceted artist Violeta Parra stirred audiences at Regal South Beach Cinemas with her music and reflections, creating countless new fans of the cherished artist. Wood later spoke with the audience about his muse, with tremendous warmth and admiration.
Director Anthony Baxter presented his first documentary feature, You’ve Been Trumped, to another packed house at the Regal Theater last night. During the lively Q&A, comparisons were made about Trump’s behavior in the film, with scenes of his clashes with locals over a Scottish golf course, to his latest purchase of Miami’s Doral Golf Resort for $150 million. Plans include a more than $200 million investment to revamp the Blue Monster championship course in true Trump style… stopping at nothing to make Doral the ultimate golf destination.
At the O: Director Alison Klayman presented her documentary, Ai WeiWei: Never Sorry, of China’s renown, unconventional artist Ai WeiWei, along with producer Colin Jones to yet another packed house at O Cinema. Klayman encouraged audience members to tweet about the film and include Ai Weiwei’s twitter handle @aiww, as he frequently responds to tweets.