If this year’s Miami Film Festival (MFF) seems bigger and better than usual, it’s because it’s also later. Ordinarily happening in March, the 41st edition of the festival will run between Friday, April 5, and Sunday, April 14. More than 165 films from 31-plus countries will screen at venues across the city, with many competing for cash prizes.
“It was a big change ... we’ve been in March for many, many years,” said Lauren Cohen, MFF director of programming. “But I think part of the idea for this year was that we were going to make a lot of big changes.”
One of those changes is the addition of a new venue, the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts’ Knight Concert Hall, which will host marquee screenings – including opening night film “Thelma,” about a 93-year-old who gets scammed out of $10,000 but doesn’t take it lying down.
(Courtesy of Miami Film Festival)
A still from the animated feature “The Concierge,” directed by Yoshimi Itazu.
Pushing the festival to April also meant that Cohen and the team at MFF, formerly known as the Miami International Film Festival, were able to source films premiering at two prestigious early-year festivals: Sundance (like “Thelma”) and South by Southwest (SXSW). The former, which happens every January in Park City, Utah, is especially considered a major launchpad for important films.
Plenty of Sundance premieres have gone on to win Oscars, such as “Coda” (best picture, 2022) and “20 Days in Mariupol” (best documentary feature, 2024). MFF was able to acquire “Thelma,” an action-comedy starring June Squib, the Anne Hathaway-starring rom-com “The Idea of You” and prize-winning films like “Daughters” and “Sujo.”
(Courtesy of Miami Film Festival)
Robert de Niro, Bobby Cannavale and William A. Fitzgerald in “Ezra,” directed by Tony Goldwyn.
“Previously, we would have had the film festival lineup locked before Sundance even started, which meant that getting Sundance films was very, very difficult, if near impossible most of the time,” said Cohen. “So, this year, just moving our dates to April meant we had so much more time to get those Sundance films, and I think the lineup speaks for itself.”
Local films very much remain a focus, however. Dozens of local filmmakers will screen their movies at the festival, including Monica Sorelle. Her film, “Mountains,” which explores gentrification in Little Haiti and received funding from local nonprofit Oolite Arts, recently won a Film Independent Spirit Award.
“It was surreal,” said Sorelle of the experience. “It was a dream come true to be in the company of industry giants just casually roaming around me, and to be recognized on such a grand stage.”
If the massive MFF lineup seems daunting, don’t worry – we’ve chosen 12 of the most exciting films for you. Find complete listings and information about tickets, venues, screening times and more at MiamiFilmFestival.com.
'Resident Orca'
(Courtesy of Miami Film Festival)
“Resident Orca,” directed by Sarah Sharkey Pearce and Simon Schneider, tells the story of Lolita, the Miami Seaquarium’s captive orca whale.
April 6, 3:30 p.m. | Silverspot Cinema 13
As the scandal surrounding the Miami Seaquarium’s decline continues, this ripped-from-the-headlines documentary tells the story of its largest former resident, the orca whale Lolita, who died last year. A localized answer to 2013’s “Blackfish,” the film should strike a chord with anyone who grew up watching Lolita’s show, not knowing they were witnessing a tragedy in progress. It’s directed by Sarah Sharkey Pearce and Simon Schneider. A second showing is scheduled for April 9 at 7:30 p.m. at Regal South Beach.
'Copa 71'
April 6, Noon | Koubek Center
Women’s soccer has consistently gained popularity since the first FIFA Women’s World Cup in 1991 – or was it the first? Way before FIFA finally realized girls can also kick butt at footy, an independent women’s world cup was held in Mexico. Documentarian James Erskine tells the story of this long-lost sporting landmark. A second showing takes place April 13 at 3:45 p.m. at Silverspot Cinema 12.
'32 Sounds'
April 6, 1 & 3:30 p.m. | PAMM
This is less a film and more of an immersive audiovisual experience. Viewers will wear headphones in order to fully immerse themselves in director Sam Green’s exploration of the art and science of sound. It weaves together 32 audio experiences, crafting a cinematic poem as a meditation on the power of sound to bend time, cross borders and profoundly shape our perception of the world around us.
'Mountains'
(Courtesy of Miami Film Festival)
A scene from “Mountains,” directed by Miami-based director Monica Sorelle.
April 7, 7 p.m. | Arsht Center
We’ll let director Monica Sorelle explain this intensely local story herself: “It follows a Haitian family in Little Haiti while they’re dealing with their interpersonal relationships and the decision to climb up the rungs of the American dream. The patriarch, who’s a demolition worker, starts realizing his demolition sites are creeping in closer and closer to the neighborhood.”
'Sing Sing'
April 7, 7:30 p.m. | Coral Gables Art Cinema
Colman Domingo may have lost the Oscar last month, but he’s likely to land another nomination thanks to a searing performance in this A24-distributed drama. Based on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts program at the infamous Sing Sing prison, director Greg Kwedar films Domingo and a cast composed of actual alumni from the program in a beautiful, cinematic story inspired by vintage documentary film.
'The Asylum'
April 7, 3 p.m. | Arsht Center
If basketball is at the heart of life in Miami, it’s not because of the Heat, according to director Jaime Gutierrez. A documentary six years in the making, “The Asylum” tells the thoroughly 305 story of the Miami Senior High School Stingarees and their legendary, multiple championship-winning run of the late 1980s and early ’90s that generated the likes of Udonis Haslem and others.
'The Idea of You'
(Courtesy of Miami Film Festival)
A scene from “The Idea of You,” starring Anne Hathaway and directed by Michael Showalter.
April 8, 7:30 p.m. | Regal South Beach
Anne Hathaway, playing a 40-year-old flirty divorcée, falls for a younger rock star (Nicholas Galitzine, “Bottoms” and “Red, White & Royal Blue”) she meets at Coachella in this guilty pleasure romantic comedy. This is “The Big Sick” director Michael Showalter’s comeback after his last film, “The Lovebirds,” went straight to Netflix during the pandemic.
'Mumble: Fate of a Lost Icon'
April 8, 7:30 p.m. | Silverspot Cinema 13
Making his directorial debut, Carol City native Frankie Midnight, a local musician, made this stylish black-and-white film for an astonishingly low budget of $200. Turning his eye to the mid-2010’s “mumble rap” scene that sparked Lil Pump and Kodak Black, he tells the story of Young Guttah Nuts, the lost icon who “invented” the style.
'Close Your Eyes' ('Cerrar los ojos')
(Courtesy of Miami Film Festival)
“Close Your Eyes” is the first new film from Spanish auteur Víctor Erice in 30 years.
April 11, 6:45 p.m. | Silverspot Cinema 13
Revered for his films “El Sur” and “The Spirit of the Beehive,” Spanish director Víctor Erice returns with his first film in 30 years, about the unsolved disappearance of an actor and its repercussions years into the future. This is a must-see for any self-respecting cinephile.
'The Concierge'
April 12, 7 p.m. | Silverspot Cinema 11
This anime film about a human working in a department store for animals is great for the kids, but it also boasts a pretty insane pedigree for animation nerds. Director Yoshimi Itazu worked on Satoshi Kon’s “Paprika” and Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Wind Rises,” while legendary animation studio Production I.G is known for its work on “Ghost in the Shell,” “Patlabor 2,” “Haikyuu!!” and the upcoming “Kaiju No. 8.”
'Dear Jassi'
(Courtesy of Miami Film Festival)
“Dear Jassi” director Tarsem Singh will be present for the film’s premiere at the Miami Film Festival.
April 12, 7 p.m. | Coral Gables Art Cinema
Best known for his hallucinatory odyssey “The Fall,” Tarsem Singh returned to his native India to direct this heart-wrenching film about a forbidden romance between an Indian Canadian girl and a working-class rickshaw driver. Singh himself will be in attendance for a post-film Q&A, which will be followed by a separately ticketed screening of his 2000 film “The Cell,” starring Jennifer Lopez.
'Black Box Diaries'
April 12, 7 p.m. | O Cinema
Journalist Shiori Ito became the face of the #MeToo movement in Japan after accusing the prime minister’s biographer of raping her. Directed by Ito herself, the documentary follows her search for justice in a patriarchal society where women are discouraged from speaking out against sexual violence.
If you’re into big-name stars, MFF’s April 13 closing night film features Robert De Niro in “Ezra” at the Arsht, but the real star is young actor William A. Fitzgerald as the title character, a boy on the autism spectrum. The final day of the festival, April 14, features a string of afternoon films worth a look.