Lights, Camera, Action: The Aventura International Film Series Premiers In October

Admired film expert Shelly Isaacs will once again curate the series and host each film with an introduction and a post-screening discussion. Isaacs is known for his Cafe Cinematheque programs at many venues throughout South Florida. He enjoyed a 30-plus year career as a creative director/writer specializing in creating print ads, commercials and trailers for feature films, TV and radio studios. He teaches foreign-language film appreciation in the Life Long Learning Society at FAU and FIU. In 2009, Isaacs launched Cinematheque at Sea and served as the film expert for Celebrity Cruise Lines at The Cannes International Film Festival.

The Aventura International Film Series opens with Official Competition from Spain on Tuesday, October 11 at 7:30 p.m. Penélope Cruz and Antonio Banderas star as two egomaniacs commissioned by a millionaire to make a movie together in this sharp comedy skewering wealth, art and pride. The Washington Post reported “The ridiculous yet often revered art of make-believe peculiar to the business of moviemaking is somehow simultaneously skewered and held up in admiring regard in Official Competition, a sly satire of cinema that also manages to be a showcase for the comedic chops of its stars.” Not rated, this film is shown in Spanish with English subtitles.

From France comes the movie Rolling Stone declared to be “the most urgent movie of 2022” that “has gone from international sensation to a call to arms,” when Happening is shown on Tuesday, November 1 at 7:30 p.m. A bright young Parisian college student in 1963 becomes pregnant and sees the opportunity to finish her studies and escape the constraints of her social background disappearing. With her final exams fast approaching and her belly growing, she resolves to act, even if she has to confront shame and pain and risk prison to do so. Rated R, the film is shown in French with English subtitles.

Panah Panahi makes a striking feature debut with this charming, sharp-witted and deeply moving comic drama Hit the Road on Tuesday, December 13 at 7:30 p.m. The film takes the tradition of the Iranian road-trip movie and adds unexpected twists and turns as it follows a family of four driving across the Iranian countryside. Over the course of the trip, they bond over memories of the past, grapple with fears of the unknown, and fuss over their sick dog. Unspoken tensions arise and the film builds emotional momentum as it slowly reveals the furtive purpose for their journey. The New York Times reported “In real life, you might not want to be stuffed into a car with these people — and let’s not forget their dog, Jesse — on a dusty stretch of Iranian highway, but from the first jokey moments of Hit the Road until its heartbreaking end you will not want to be anywhere else.” Not rated, the film is shown in Persian with English subtitles.

The Aventura International Film Series presents Lost Illusions on Tuesday, January 10 at 7:30 p.m. Lucien de Rubempré (Benjamin Voisin) is an ambitious and unknown aspiring poet in 19th century France. He leaves his provincial town, arriving in Paris on the arm of his admirer, Louise de Bargeton (Cécile de France). Lucien soon discovers that the written word can be an instrument of both beauty and deceit when another young writer, Etienne Lousteau (Vincent Lacoste), introduces him to the business of journalism where a salon of wordsmiths and wunderkinds make or break the reputations of actors and artists with insouciant impunity. The New York Times reported, “Lost Illusions, Honoré de Balzac’s novel of Parisian literary life, stands as a stellar example in its period and now, thanks to Xavier Giannoli’s invigorating screen adaptation, in ours as well…Balzac was a prodigious coffee drinker, and the movie, though its characters run on champagne and schadenfreude, is nothing if not caffeinated.” Not rated, the film is shown in French with English subtitles.

Céline Sciamma continues to prove herself as one of the most accomplished and unpredictable contemporary French filmmakers with her follow up to Portrait of a Lady On Fire, the uniquely emotional Petite Maman will be screened on February 7 at 7:30 p.m. Following the death of her beloved grandmother, 8-year-old Nelly accompanies her parents to her mother's childhood home to begin the difficult process of cleaning out its contents. As Nelly explores the house and nearby woods, she is immediately drawn to a neighbor her own age building a treehouse. What follows is a tender tale of childhood grief, memory and connection. NPR reported “Petite Maman is the best — and most surreal — family movie you'll see in a while… It's funny, sad, full of enchanting possibilities and over far too soon — sort of like childhood itself.” Rated PG, this film is shown in French with English subtitles.

Three more acclaimed films will be added to the series which continues with 7:30 p.m. screenings on: Tuesday, March 7; Tuesday, April 4; and Tuesday, May 16. Screenings are general admission with the lobby doors opening at 6:30 p.m. and the auditorium at 7 p.m.

Tickets to individual films in the series are $12 or subscribers save 10% per ticket when purchasing the eight-film series. Ticketmaster is the only official ticketing service of the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center. Buy tickets online at aventuracenter.org, by phone at 877.311.7469 or 954.462.0222 or in person at the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center box office Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. and 90 minutes prior to each performance. For Group Sales, please call 954.660.6307.

The Aventura Arts & Cultural Center is located at 3385 N.E. 188 Street in Aventura. Join the conversation, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram @aventuracenter or #aventuracenter.