Women's International Film & Arts Festival

The Women's International Film and Arts Festival (WIFF) will took place on March 20-24 in 2013. This Miami festival celebrates films by, for and about women from all over the world. Screenings of the 50 films chosen for the festival this year will take place in Wynwood at the Women's International Film warehouse, as well as various area restaurants and party venues in the Wynwood neighborhood in Miami.

This year Jada Pinkett Smith opened the 8th annual festival. Held during women's history month, this festival celebrates the contributions women make to the world of film. The Women's International Film and Arts Festival, was founded in response to the sobering statistic that only 7% of films are directed by women. WIFF hopes to help correct that deficiency by celebrating and promoting films that are directed by women. The festival has also become one of the premier film festivals in Miami and won the best film festival award from the Miami New Times.

WIFF is located in the Wynwood neighborhood in Miami, north of downtown Miami, which is home to some of the best party venues Miami has to offer. Soho Studios in Wynwood is proud to offer quality the event space Miami residents and visitors are clamoring to get into. The Women's International Film and Arts Festival is one of many high quality events held in this up and coming neighborhood that is home to artists, musicians, filmmakers and others.

The Wynwood Arts District is a sub-district of Wynwood and is located in the northern part of Wynwood. Once a run-down neighborhood over run with gangs and drugs, in recent years the neighborhood has pushed towards gentrification, and has become a world class arts district. It is also home to Wynwood Walls, an outdoor exhibit of world renowned street artists and is the location of Art Basel Wynwood. It is also home to over 70 galleries, including some the best photography studio Miami has to offer.

The Wynwood District draws in comic book culture

Miami might be best known for sun, sand, bikini clad girls on roller skates and retirees, but comic book culture is making an inroad as well. Geeks and nerds have moved out of the basements and dark corners of the urban landscape and into the world of mainstream pop culture and art. Comic art and comic influenced art has infiltrated the Wynwood district and its galleries and cinemas. What was once a marginalized style has overflowed with talent in recent years and gained ground as a legitimate form of visual and narrative expression.

O’Cinema serves as a sometimes hub for comic book movies and culture and has shown an extensive line-up of documentaries exploring the rise of the geeks and nerds and super hero movies. Among them is Morgan Spurlock's (Super Size Me) look at the San Diego Comic Con. This Mecca for geeks and nerds has turned the underground world of slightly obsessive interest into a festival and commercial proposition. A culture previously viewed as nearly exclusively male now encompasses an entire industry of attractive Cos-Play models making their living dressing up in the often ludicrously skimpy costumes of their ink and paper heroines and loving it. For a deeper look, check out this article. The galleries in the area hosts relevant art, including some from local Marvel artist David Sexton.

That the Wynwood District and Miami in general, should attract such attention from comic book culture is little surprise to those who pay attention. Nestled on Bird Road is A&M Comics, one of the nation's oldest comic book shops. It's the archetypal shop full of boxes, clutter, and a proprietor who knows where everything is with near supernatural accuracy. The owner, Jorge Perez, has gained quite the reputation for being able to find anything that his patrons want.

As nerds, geeks and comic book culture spread into the mainstream and the high class art world the show is sure to be interesting. The Wynwood District is looking like a fine vantage point to take it all in.

Many that visit Soho Studios have commented that the red building in the middle of the industrial area has a comic book pop to it. The fact is that Soho Studios in many respects is an important character in the Wynwood Miami arts and studio scene. Since it's one of the largest under air studio spaces in Miami, Soho certainly gains the attention and it's well deserved.