A rare photo of Orson Welles strolling along the Miami Beach boardwalk in 1943 graces the poster of the 2015 Miami International Film Festival.
The 32nd MIFF will take place March 6-15 at Miami Dade College in Florida.
Welles was chosen for the poster because 2015 marks the 100th anniversary of the late filmmaker’s birth. Also, Chuck Workman’s documentary Magician: The Astonishing Life And Work of Orson Welles will be in wide release next year and Welles’ unfinished final film, The Other Side of the Wind, is slated to be completed and released theatrically in 2015.
According to MIFF organizers, the photographer of the 70-plus year old image of Welles in Miami is unknown.The festival is inviting the public to help solve the mystery.
“When we found this photograph of Orson, it was like multiple lightning bolts of yes; yes, let’s all bow to his mastery; yes, Miami’s allure has always attracted the famous; and yes, it would be an honor for the Festival to associate this vintage image with Miami’s passion for the arts and quality films,” said MIFF Executive Director Jaie Laplante.
Welles wears a suit and tie in the photograph. There is another photo of a casually dressed Welles with then-wife Rita Hayworth walking along the boardwalk while in town for a benefit for the Miami Beach Servicemen’s Pier (circa 1943-1944).
Tickets for the film festival will go on sale on February 13.
Miami International Film Festival had its beginnings as the main activity of the Film Society of Miami, Inc., which was founded in 1983.
Since its first edition, which took place on February 3, 1984, MIFF has continued to bring the finest in world cinema to South Florida.
The mission of Miami International Film Festival is to bridge cultural understanding and encourage artistic development and excellence by provoking thought through film.
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