Parsley by José María Cabral
The 39th annual edition of the Miami Film Festival, taking place in a hybrid model between March 4-13, will present a spotlight on Dominican cinema showcasing five new feature films from the Caribbean Island with the filmmakers in attendance.
The spotlight, titled ‘Quinteto Dominicano’ will host the world premiere of Parsley / Perejil, the most recent film by José María Cabral; the North American premieres of A Film about Couples / Una película sobre parejas by Natalia Cabral and Oriol Estrada, The Lost Children of Jarabacoa / Dossier de ausencias by Rolando Díaz, and Carajita by Argentine directors Silvina Schnicer and Ulises Porra Guardiola; plus U.S. premiere of Candela by Andrés Farías Cintrón.
Set in 1937, near the border between the Dominican Republic and Haiti, Parsley follows a young Haitian woman named Marie is expecting her first child with Frank, her doting Dominican husband. After her mother's burial, she is awakened in the middle of the night by distant screams. The immediate execution of all Haitians on Dominican soil has been ordered—the so-called “Cut”—and what seals a victim’s fate is whether or not they can pronounce "perejil" (parsley). Marie takes off to find Frank in the next town over, with nothing but the clothes on her back.
In A Film about Couples, Natalia and Oriol are a couple of filmmakers (played by the directors themselves) in their thirties who have a little daughter named Lia. One day, they receive an offer to direct a documentary and they decide to make a film about couples in love. Natalia and Oriol interview many couples, always wanting to know how they get along and what their most typical problems are. But as filming progresses, wounds from their own relationship begin to open up, fights and doubts seem to be endless. But finishing the film will be their opportunity to reformulate their love for each other and their love for cinema.
Carajita by Silvina Schnicer and Ulises Porra Guardiola
In The Lost Children of Jarabacoa, a young journalist searches for a woman, Moraima (now 36), who was given up for adoption when she was two years old and whose family has known nothing about her since. In the process of investigating in a remote area of the Dominican Republic where children being put up for adoption is common, she finds other cases that plunge her into a roller coaster of emotions. The long and complicated investigation leads her to a town, El Seybo, where she will make many discoveries.
Carajita tells the story of Sara and her nanny Yarisa, who have a relationship that transcends class and race differences: it can best be described as a mother-daughter relationship; but an accident will test their intimate loyalty, and the innocent illusion that they will never separate.
Played on the backdrop of Hurricane Gustaff, Candela is a murder mystery that intertwines all sectors of the bustling Caribbean city of Santo Domingo. The film follows Sera Penablanca, a girl from Dominican high society who crosses over to the slums every night to interact with strangers; Lieutenant Perez, a corrupt policeman who investigates a case in an attempt to repair a broken relationship with his daughter; and Candela, a Drag Queen from a poor cabaret who seeks justice. All are united by the mysterious death of Renato Castrate, a poet and drug dealer.
For more information visit: www.miamifilmfestival2022.eventive.org
