The Louies to bring South Florida’s rich history and diverse stories to the big screen
MIAMI (Sept. 18, 2024) – The Miami Film Festival, presented by Miami Dade College (MDC), announces the launch of The Louies, an initiative sponsored by the Lynn & Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation to fund new projects that celebrate South Florida’s vibrant history, heritage and culture through film. The initiative will award six Miami-based filmmakers a total of $100,000 and their films will be screened at the 2025 Miami Film Festival. Applications are being accepted now through Nov. 3, 2024.
“Miami is a city brimming with unique stories and cultural richness,” said James Woolley, Miami Film Festival’s Executive Director. “The Louies will play a crucial role in amplifying local voices, providing the resources and platform necessary for our local filmmakers to tell the stories that make South Florida special.”
The Louies will be awarded to Miami-based filmmakers in one of three categories:
- Feature-length documentary: One filmmaker will receive $50,000 to create a documentary of 50 minutes or more.
- Short documentaries: Three filmmakers will receive $10,000 each to create a short film of eight to 12 minutes.
- Finishing funds: Two filmmakers will receive $10,000 each to complete a feature-length documentary in the post-production phase.
Applicants must be permanent residents of Miami-Dade County, 18 years of age or older and either U.S. citizens or permanent U.S. residents. Feature documentary applicants must have previously completed a short documentary, while short documentary applicants may be first-time directors, but must have prior experience working on a short film and received film credit.
The Louies are being launched by the Miami Film Festival and the Lynn & Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation, founded by the Wolfson family, who also established Miami’s first TV station, WTVJ. Louis Wolfson II led the TV and cable division of Wometco Enterprises, a company started by his father, Col. Mitchell Wolfson Sr., after returning from World War II, where he witnessed the destructive power of mass propaganda in Nazi Germany.
After Louis Wolfson II’s death, his wife, Lynn, sought to preserve Miami’s history from WTVJ’s inventory and worked with Miami Dade College to create the Lynn & Louis Wolfson II Florida Moving Image Archives. TV stations across South Florida and Fort Myers have donated footage, enriching the collection. In its 35,000 hours of history and 23 million feet of film, the archives record the history and culture of Florida, from the bathing beauties of the 1920s to the expansion and civil rights crusaders of the 1950s, Cuban exiles arriving in the 1960s, disco dancers of the 1970s and much more.
Selected filmmakers will have access to the Lynn & Louis Wolfson II Florida Moving Image Archives at no cost, and the jury will consider the archive’s use as a factor in the selection process. The Archives’ state-of-the-art, 10,000-square-foot facility at MDC Wolfson Campus is equipped with an air evacuation system and maintained at 50 degrees to preserve the footage, which has been digitized to protect these valuable resources.
“We are thrilled to continue my family’s legacy of education and preservation of history,” said Randi Wolfson, trustee of the Lynn & Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation. “It was vital to my grandmother that we keep and maintain the archives and remember our past to educate future generations. Otherwise, we’re doomed to repeat things in history that aren’t worth repeating. The Louies will ensure that South Florida’s stories are told, remembered and cherished.”
Initially launched in 1989 as an award to a Florida filmmaking project using the Archives, The Louies have been completely reimagined and are now dedicated to supporting documentary filmmakers, ensuring South Florida’s stories continue to be told.
To apply and for more information, please visit www.miamifilmfestival.com/thelouies. Winners will be announced in January 2025.
About Miami Dade College’s Miami Film Festival
Celebrating cinema in two annual events, Miami Film Festival and GEMS, Miami Dade College’s Miami Film Festival is considered the preeminent film festival for showcasing Ibero-American cinema in the U.S., and a major launch pad for all international and documentary cinema. The annual Festival welcomes more than 45,000 audience members and more than 400 filmmakers, producers, talent and industry professionals. It is the only major festival housed within a college or university. In the last five years, the Festival has screened films from more than 60 countries, including 300 World, International, North American, U.S. and East Coast Premieres. The Festival also offers unparalleled educational opportunities to film students and the community at large. For more information, visit www.miamifilmfestival.com or call 305-237-FILM (3456).
About Lynn & Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation
Established by Lynn Wolfson in 2014, the Lynn & Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation’s two-part mission provides support for education that furthers vocations in film, video, and broadcasting, as well as funds the arts in South Florida. The founding family’s success in media propelled interest in supporting education for the betterment of all related industries. Louis Wolfson II served as senior vice president of Wometco Enterprises, a paragon of the business community and media industry in South Florida and nationally until his passing. Lynn Wolfson initiated the Wolfson Florida Moving Image Archives now housed at Miami Dade College and supported all forms of arts in South Florida. Now guided by the next generations of the Wolfson family, the foundation is pleased to partner with the Miami Film Festival on The Louies.