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The Care and Feeding of the Hungry Mind. |
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Written by Fran Robbins
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Page 1 of 2 Fans of indie films in Los Angeles know to go to the Nuart. In New York, the Quad Cinema is the movie house for those with a taste for the unique. On Miami Beach, there is a theater dedicated to showing non-commercial movies and much more: the Miami Beach Cinematheque on South Beach. And it’s due to the determination and vision of one man: Dana Keith, the founder and director of the Cinematheque.
Keith happily recounts his love affair with cinema, which started when he was very young. Not only was he entranced by film, he was enamored of all things cinematic. A collection of souvenir programs, started when he was a child, eventually grew to be thousands of pieces that would cover the entire history of film. Encouraged by his father, Keith continued to study film from the inside out: He attended the University of California, Santa Barbara and did a double major in both fine art and cinema. A short stint later in film production at Paramount Studios was cut short by his desire to go to Europe as a model and a photographer.
Europe fired his ideas even further by nurturing film interests at virtually every turn. Keith once said that its influence was overwhelming. “I stayed 10 years...and all my spare time was spent in cinemas and film museums and archives and collector’s galleries and auctions and film festivals!”
His success in modeling brought him to Miami Beach, which impressed him with its myriad influences: South American, Caribbean, and European melding together to make a unique city. He immediately founded the Miami Beach Film Society, a “homeless” society with no specific address. The MBFS was the vehicle Keith used to create events that would foster awareness of films and other cultural events. Of particular interest were other film festivals and programs that showcased alternative and unique forms of cinema. Whatever was not being played by the major chains was what Keith sought.
The MBFS helms a number of different events to foster a cultural atmosphere similar to those art spaces Keith enjoyed so much in Europe. Performance art, live music, and dance programs are scheduled routinely. For example, the history of Miami Beach was shown through Vintage Films In Art Deco Spaces and The Esther Williams Film Festival at Miami Beach’s Swimming Pools. Other programs highlighted the Spanish experience with Café Con Cinema, Jewish history with Judaica On Film, and films of particular interest to South Florida’s gay community with A Nite OUT.
Miami can be a challenge, he says. It’s known, rightly or not, as Party Central for tourists and locals alike. People come to Miami to enjoy the weather, the beach, and the nightclubs - not for cultural events. But this challenge specifically enticed him: Put together a site for cultural affairs centered around film and those projects that bring film into their own environs.
To that end, Keith searched for permanent digs. Eventually, he found a home for the Film Society at the west end of Española Way, a Spanish-style street in the heart of South Beach. Española Way is a hideaway from the heat and noise of Ocean Drive and Lincoln Road. He calls it “my favorite little street, (with) an Andalusian feel.” At 512 Española Way, the MBC is in the storefront space of a Gothic-style building. His choice left him with no doubt that he’d made the right decision, but it came at a price. He and chairman Barbara Permagament had to get moving with serious restoration. The site Keith chose now houses the Society’s offices and the Cinematheque.
“The early challenge was to get the place open. We thought it would take a few months, but, in reality, to renovate a place from top to bottom required a year of permits, fundraising, contractors, etc. The place was falling apart, literally, and we restored it from top to bottom,” he says.
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