Motion Pictures

The 2019 ’Canes Film Showcase will highlight student work

Six short films created by University of Miami film students will be screened in Los Angeles this week. Miguel Angel Tamayo, a University of Miami rising senior, has always been in love with film. For many years, he watched a film a day. When he saw Carlos Saura’s "Cria Cuervos," the 1976 Spanish drama of loss and loneliness, he was smitten. It inspired him to create his own short film called “Raising Ants,” a 19-minute drama of a young girl who loses her mother to cancer and is sent, along [...]

Happy to be Nappy Wins CinemaSlam Award

Happy to be Nappy, a music video created by a class of University of Miami School of Communication graduate students, is exactly what it sounds like. It’s uplifting. It’s empowering. It’s a piece of film that embraces, with open and grooving arms, black culture—and specifically black hair. When Ed Talavera, associate professor in the Department of Cinema and Interactive Media, assigned a project to his students, neither him nor his class could have foreseen its success. “First-year graduate students must make a music video with a local Miami music group [...]

2019-12-17T19:19:17-05:00April 9, 2019|Motion Pictures|

The Block Film Competition

Filmmakers, ready your cameras. This spring, Oolite Arts, an organization that advocates for the visual arts and hosts events like exhibits and arts residencies, will partner with the University of Miami to put on the ultimate film contest—The Block. Miamians across the city are invited to pitch ideas for a documentary portraying the history and culture of one of the many eclectic neighborhoods here. Heading the partnership with Oolite at UM is Ed Talavera, an associate professor in the Department of Cinema and Interactive Media. “As the premier film school in [...]

SwampScapes Selected for Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival

SwampScapes celebrates continued success in bringing much-needed attention to the vital importance of the endangered Florida Everglades. The 360º film is an official selection for the 2019 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, the largest documentary festival in North America. University of Miami School of Communication Associate Professor Kim Grinfeder, former Visiting Knight Chair Liz Miller, and Miami-based filmmaker and artist Juan Carlos Zaldivar co-directed the swamp-conscious film. “We are pushing the film across many fronts and a festival like Hot Docs will helps us attract attention from educators and programmers who [...]

2019-12-16T18:31:47-05:00March 26, 2019|Interactive Media, Motion Pictures|

Hollywood Duo Entertain Questions from UM students

Following an advance screening of “Alita: Battle Angel,” film producer Jon Landau and director Robert Rodriguez engaged with UM students. University of Miami students got the chance to watch a special advance 3-D screening of “Alita: Battle Angel” at AMC in Sunset Place Monday afternoon, days before its national theatrical release.  But the real highlight came after the show.  Following the movie, world-renowned director Robert Rodriguez (“Sin City” and “Spy Kids”) and producer Jon Landau, known for producing the two largest grossing films of all time (“Titanic” and “Avatar”), held [...]

April Dobbins, M.F.A. Motion Pictures Student, Receives Recognition from Sundance Institute

April Dobbins’ documentary, Alabamaland, is certain to open thought-provoking discussion and provide important on-screen representation – and the Sundance Institute agrees. The part-time University of Miami graduate student, full-time UM Director of Prestigious Awards and Fellowships in the Office of Academic Enhancement, and UM adjunct faculty can add Sundance Institute Documentary Fund Grantee to her remarkable list of accolades. “Having all these responsibilities has taught me a great deal about time and project management,” said Dobbins. “My time at UM has taught me to pivot when necessary and the entire [...]

2019-12-17T19:21:21-05:00December 6, 2018|Motion Pictures|

SwampScapes: A Journey Through the Everglades

As South Floridians, we boast beautiful beaches and tropical temperatures, but often fail to acknowledge the sweeping beauty of the Florida Everglades. As the earth undergoes accelerated change, understanding the landscape’s function in human and ecologic survival is essential. Former Visiting Knight Chair Liz Miller, University of Miami School of Communication Associate Professor Kim Grinfeder and Miami-based filmmaker and artist Juan Carlos Zaldivar co-directed an immersive four-platform project designed to reconnect users with the importance of the swampland. Graduate and undergraduate SoC students enrolled in Miller’s and Grinfeder’s classes also [...]

2019-12-16T18:32:31-05:00November 15, 2018|Interactive Media, Motion Pictures|

Q&A with Disney Animator Jorge E. Ruiz Cano

Join Jorge E. Ruiz Cano, a character animator at Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS), on Monday, Nov. 12 at Shoma Hall, CIB 3053, for a Q&A starting at 12:20 p.m. Ruiz Cano's credits include the studio’s first-ever VR short, Cycles, the Academy Award®-winning features Frozen, Big Hero 6, and Zootopia, in addition to Moana, the short films Feast, Frozen Fever, and Inner Workings, and the holiday featurette Olaf’s Frozen Adventure. Ruiz Cano has been a part of the faculty at the California Institute of the Arts for the last five [...]

Award-Winning Director and SoC Alumnus Working on Latest Project

Farbod Ardebili, B.S.C. '18, director of the award-winning film Bats and Jokes, recently began working with Orange Umbrella, the School of Communication’s student-run consultancy, on his new project, The Fallers. Ardebili has been working closely with Orange Umbrella to help further his personal brand and message. OU has assisted Ardebili with establishing his target audience, marketing and promoting his project, as well as creating original content about his latest film. The Fallers is supported by professional film organizations such as the Sundance Film Intensive and is categorized as a Cyberpunk Noir [...]

Crafting Movie Magic

Although her position is regularly behind the scenes, University of Miami School of Communication alumna Rachel Schreibman, B.S.C. '10, is certainly one to watch.  Since settling in California, Schreibman has contributed to highly notable films. Her latest Hollywood credits include The Jungle Book, Transformers: The Last Knight and Star Trek: Beyond. As an assistant editor, Schreibman’s specialty is ensuring a fluid filming and editing process. Ultimately, this talented ‘Cane is responsible for conjuring cinematic magic. “University of Miami gave me the tools I needed to hone my craft and learn [...]