Miami Beach Cinematheque

The Crossover Cinema of Leon Ichaso From July 6th through Aug 2nd, 2007During the month of July and early August, the Miami Beach Cinematheque and Latin Cinema Showcase will host a retrospective of films by the award-winning, Cuban-born director Leon Ichaso. The film event, titled The Crossover Cinema of Leon Ichaso will be take place at Miami Beach Cinematheque in Miami Beach beginning July 7th and culminate with the Miami Premiere of his latest film, El Cantante, a dramatic-biography of Puerto Rican salsa pioneer Hector Lavoe, starring Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez. The screening of El Cantante will take place on August 2nd, 2007 at the Regal South Beach, just prior to its theatrical release by Picturehouse. Leon Ichaso is noted for films specializing in gritty urban realism. He first made his mark with the independently made Spanish-language feature, El Super (1979). Crossover Dreams (1985), a hard-hitting look at different but mixed US Latino communities, life in the barrio and the potent drive of salsa music, was his first shot at a more mainstream film. Other films of a similar nature followed including the award-winning Piñero a biopic about Puerto Rican author Miguel Piñero starring Benjamin Bratt, and Bitter Sugar Azucar Amarga (1996) a story of true love set against the volatile backdrop of modern-day Havana. Screenings Calendar: July 6th, 2007. 8:30 p.m. El Súper (1979) July 12th, 2007. 8:30 p.m. Crossover Dreams (1985) July 20th, 2007. 8:30 p.m. Bitter Sugar (Azucar Amarga) (1996) July 21st, 2007. 8:30 p.m. Piñero (2001) Aug 2nd, 2007. 8:00 p.m. El Cantante (2007) For more information, please call: 305.673.4567