Shorts & Beats: Venezuela

Venezuelan stories, landscapes and musical traditions come together through short film and live performance at Deering Estate. Presented in partnership with the Miami short Film Festival, Shorts & Beats: Venezuela begins with a cocktail reception followed by a screening of six Venezuelan shorts spanning fiction and documentary. The evening concludes with Venezuelan Sounds, a live performance by vocalist Susana Behar and guest musicians.

The film program includes:

• La Soja, directed by Gabriel Eduardo Lacruz Salas, follows a pregnant woman who leaves her troubled marriage and sets out with her children.
• Guárdame Puesto, directed by Alfredo Hueck, turns the everyday struggle to find parking in Caracas into a test of a couple’s relationship.
• Caracoles y Calabeles, directed by Gustavo Rondón, centers on a fisherman trying to teach his young son the family trade while the boy fears something hidden near their home.
• Caracas en Moto, directed by Daniel Ruiz Hueck, documents the stress and hazards of navigating the Venezuelan capital’s traffic.
• Centripeta, directed by Alex Mendez, follows a couple who encounter what appears to be a crime scene on a deserted highway during a nighttime storm.
• Ley Orgánica 1/92, directed by Juan Luis Fermín, examines abuse of authority through the story of two women attempting to report a rape at a police station.

Following the screenings, Behar performs with Saul Vera on cuatro, bandola llanera and mandolin, Adolfo Herrera on percussion and vocals and Elvis Martinez on guitar and bass. Together, the musicians draw on Venezuelan sounds and instrumentation to extend the evening’s cultural focus from film into live music.

The cocktail reception begins at 7 p.m., with the screening at 8 p.m. Tickets are $45 and are available online through the Miami short Film Festival. Free parking is available at Deering Estate.