Day 2 of the Festival kicked off the first full day of screenings, beginning with the US Premiere of HBO’S Chilean thriller Prófugos (Fugitives) with director Pablo Larraín at Regal South Beach Cinemas. MIFF presented the first two chapters of this 13-episode series about a drug operation gone wrong, resulting in a frenzied pursuit of four men by the mafia and federal authorities, forcing a desperate escape through the vast regions of the Chilean landscape.
On the historical front, if one thinks of the Cuban Revolution as an unfinished project, an apt symbol would be the country’s National Art Schools. The film, Unfinished Spaces, 10 years in the making, became part of an international initiative to rehabilitate the buildings now overrun by vegetation. Directors Alysa Nahmias and Ben Murray were on hand at the Coral Gables Art Cinema, along with architect Roberto Gottardi, to present the film followed by an after-party at Books & Books. A Master Class Seminar: Architecture of the Art Schools: Time and Passion will be held today at the MDC Freedom Tower, at 4:00 PM.
On stage at the Gusman Center, Actress Priscilla Lopez, actor EJ Bonilla and actress Laverne Cox received a standing ovation following the screening of Musical Chairs, Susan Seidelman’s dramatic dance romance feature set in the Bronx’s fiercely intense world of competition ballroom dancing. Her customary blend of wit and warmth was evident in every frame, including what may well be the silver screen’s first transgendered paraplegic.