Miami Film Festival Gets Underway; Almost 200 Films Slated, From ‘Pythons’ To ‘Barbarians’

deadline.com:

For the next 10 days, Miami will be known for sun, sea – and cinema. The 42nd annual Miami Film Festival got underway Thursday night and before it wraps on Sunday, April 13, it will have presented almost 200 narrative, documentary and short films, hailing from 45 countries.

The program includes 35 world premieres. The festival kicked off with the Florida premiere of Meet the Barbarians (Les Barbares), the latest film directed by Julie Delpy.

The French actor-filmmaker was expected to be on hand for the event – as well as for a 30th anniversary screening of Before Sunrise today – but as Deadline reported, she was just cast in Ruben Östlund’s upcoming movie The Entertainment System Is Down. “We’re obviously very sad that [Julie] can’t join us tonight,” MFF Director of Programming Lauren Cohen told the audience at the Olympia Theater. “She really, really wanted to be here… She was so, so sad to miss it because the festival means a lot to her, this film means a lot to her.” Delpy’s comedy is set in a town in France’s Brittany region that is expecting to receive a group of Ukrainian refugees.

The plot thickens when Syrian migrants show up instead. In his opening remarks Thursday night, festival executive director James Woolley highlighted work from a bit closer to home. “We also want to showcase as much South Florida content as possible on the big screen,” he said. “Miami has so many different characters, so many big characters who deserve to be on screens.