ScreenHeatMiami

Max Wyler

Max Wyler is the Co-Founder and President of Accord Productions. Via Accord, Wyler has produced for TV, commercials and corporate productions. Credits include HGTV – “House Giveaway Key Largo”, Velocity Channel – “South Beach Classics”, HULU – scripted drama “South Beach”. Latest projects are for History Channel – “It’s How You get There” and “Volo, House of Cars." Max currently oversees a team of bilingual producers who oversee a wide array of productions from the creative through budgeting and more. Wyler's corporate clients have included NCL, Subway Restaurants, Royal Caribbean Cruise lines, General Electric and Mount Siani hospital/Miami Beach. Wyler's team also specializes in post-production, sound, new media, graphics and more. In 2008, Wyler lead a team to acquire The Beach Channel from OnBoard Media, a South Florida TV channel that is featured on AT&T U-verse and Atlantic Broadband Cable Networks. The Beach Channel is viewed in 450,000 households and in 13,000 hotel rooms throughout Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe Counties. Since acquiring the Beach Channel, Max and his team have expanded the audience from a little over 100,000 households and 8000 hotel rooms to 450,000 households and 13,000 hotel rooms. Max’s team has upgraded the programming and ad revenue has increased 20 fold. The channel is now one of the most popular local TV channels in the South Florida market. Other credits include "Jack of All Tastes" for Destination America, "It's How You Get There" and "Volvo, House of Cars" for History Channel, and "South Beach Classics" on Velocity.

Screen Heat Miami

Screen Heat Miami (SHM) is hosted by veteran Miami based producers Kevin Sharpley and JL Martinez and each week covers the latest trends in the film, tv, and entertainment industry, including interviews with global and local industry leaders, all told from a "Miami" point of view.

Screen Heat Miami

Screen Heat Miami (SHM) is hosted by veteran Miami based producers Kevin Sharpley and JL Martinez and each week covers the latest trends in the film, tv, and entertainment industry, including interviews with global and local industry leaders, all told from a "Miami" point of view.

Shona Tuckman

As founder of Kreate Films, Shona Tuckman wrote and produced their first feature, FINDING JOY, a romantic comedy-drama, which was released in theaters in 2013. She then produced the drama FAT, a touching, gut-wrenching story of a man battling food addictions. The film premiered at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival and is now in wide release on digital platforms. Her third film, WAR STORY (Catherine Keener, Ben Kingsley), a drama shot entirely in Sicily, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2014, and was released by IFC Films. Shona just completed post production on DR BIRD’S ADVICE FOR SAD POETS, an adaptation of the critically acclaimed YA novel, starring Lucas Jade Zumann (20th Century Women), Taylor Russell (Escape Room, Lost in Space), Lisa Edelstein (Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce, The Kominsky Method), Jason Isaacs (The OA, Harry Potter) and Oscar nominee Tom Wilkinson (Michael Clayton). On the slate for later this year are action-thriller, GRAVE, and MAGGIE, a thriller, which Shona wrote and will direct, with an A-list star attached to play the lead.

Screen Heat Miami

Screen Heat Miami (SHM) is hosted by veteran Miami based producers Kevin Sharpley and JL Martinez and each week covers the latest trends in the film, tv, and entertainment industry, including interviews with global and local industry leaders, all told from a "Miami" point of view.

Michael Arcos

Michael Arcos is a Miami-raised, Ecuadorian-American filmmaker who began his career as an adolescent editing on VHS. His work has been exhibited internationally since 2014. Arcos is currently based in New Orleans, Louisiana where he continues to create new work.

Screen Heat Miami

Screen Heat Miami (SHM) is hosted by veteran Miami based producers Kevin Sharpley and JL Martinez and each week covers the latest trends in the film, tv, and entertainment industry, including interviews with global and local industry leaders, all told from a "Miami" point of view.

Kevin Chinoy And Francesca Silvestriv

Chinoy and Silvestri are producers on Sean Baker’s The Florida Project, released in 2017 by A24 Films. The film is nominated for two Spirit Awards including Best Feature, and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor (Willem Dafoe). In addition, The Florida Project won Best Director and Best Supporting Actor accolades (Willem Dafoe) from New York Film Critics Circle, Best Supporting Actor and Best Picture (Runner-up) from Los Angeles Film Critics Circle and winning Top Ten Film and Best Supporting Actor from National Board of Review.

Chinoy and Silvestri also worked on Baker’s previous features Starlet and Tangerine, as well as dozens of other projects, including the directorial debuts of women filmmakers including Jennifer Aniston, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Hudson, Demi Moore, Courteney Cox, Rachel Weisz, Jessica Biel, Eva Mendes, Alicia Keys, Kirsten Dunst, Bryce Dallas Howard, Rita Wilson, Trudie Styler, Zoe Saldana, Olivia Wilde, Ashley Judd, Laura Dern, and Eva Longoria.

Kevin and Francesca’s association with Miami Dade College’s Miami Film Festival traces back a full decade, from their work to bring Kate Hudson to our 2008 Festival with her film Cutlass and Demi Moore in 2009withherfilmStreak. Theyarethebehind-the-scenesheroeswho we wish to put center stage and honor as the Precious Gems that they are – without their commitment and determination to bring original independent visions to realization, many of the films they have worked on might never have been made and enjoyed.

In this special edition we take an excerpt from an interview we did with Gregory Allen Howard, writer and one of the producers of the movie "Harriet" speaks about how the film was made after he wrote the screenplay 26 years ago and his predictions for the award season, Golden Globes and Academy Awards.

Gregory Allen Howard

Gregory Allen Howard is an award-winning screenwriter, producer, author, playwright, and essayist whose credits include, Remember The Titans, and Ali, and the stage play, Tinseltown Trilogy. Mr. Howard is the first and only African American screenwriter in the history of film to script a $100 million movie. He is a two-time NAACP Image Award Winner, winner of the prestigious Christopher Award, and the Howard University Paul Robeson Award for artistic excellence.

Mr. Howard, a Princeton graduate with a degree in American history, began his writing career twenty years ago in television on the TV show 21 Jump Street. After a fitful start, he transitioned into features. Mr. Howard’s specialty is true stories. He has taught a master level seminar, “True Story To Screen,” as a visiting professor at Howard University and at various film festivals.

Mr. Howard also was contributor to Taschen’s Muhammad Ali giant photo book, GOAT, Greatest of All Time. His essays include, Rumble in an Urban Jungle (the introduction), The Power of Dreams, and The Ali Kids.

As a writer/producer, Mr. Howard’s most recent projects include, Night Witches, the WWII story of the first and only female combat unit in history, Harriet, the Harriet Tubman story, and Misty, the story of American Ballet Theater ballerina, Misty Copeland.

Mr. Howard’s hobbies and interests include collecting wine and African art, ballet, opera, travel, and blogging on Huffington Post. His groundbreaking HuffPo essay, The Whitewashing of James Brown, ignited the firestorm that has led to more diversity and inclusion in Hollywood.

For more information visit www.gregoryallenhoward.com

Screen Heat Miami

Screen Heat Miami (SHM) is hosted by veteran Miami based producers Kevin Sharpley and JL Martinez and each week covers the latest trends in the film, tv, and entertainment industry, including interviews with global and local industry leaders, all told from a "Miami" point of view.

JOSE DANIEL FREIXAS

Jose Daniel Freixas is an, award winning writer/producer/director from Miami, Florida. He co-wrote and produced the feature film MAGIC CITY MEMOIRS, which was executive produced by Academy Award nominated actor Andy Garcia. The film was optioned by Fox TV Studios, and picked up for pilot by FOX Broadcast Channel. MAGIC CITY MEMOIRS, a coming of age drama about three best friends during their senior year of high school in Miami can currently be seen on Netflix.

In 2016, Freixas partnered with Paramount Pictures, and Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company Appian Way on a film entitled THE CORPORATION. The film is based on a book by New York Times Best Selling author T.J. English entitled "The Corporation: An Epic Story of the Cuban American Underworld.” Freixas and his partner Tony Gonzalez, who controlled the book rights, sold to Paramount at a record price after an intense bidding war erupted amongst all the major Hollywood studios and producers. Academy Award-winner Benicio del Toro will star as Cuban Mob boss, Jose Miguel Battle, while Academy Award Winner Leonardo DiCaprio will produce alongside Jennifer Davisson, Alex Heineman, Andrew Rona, Tony Gonzalez and Freixas.

Currently, Freixas is in post-production on a feature film entitled VANDAL. Inspired by true stories, VANDAL, an authentic drama about art, love, war, and the depths of the street graffiti game, was shot during the Fall of 2016 in Miami’s Wynwood, Little Havana, and Little Haiti neighborhoods. Freixas who co-wrote the screenplay, produced, as well as directed the project. VANDAL stars Daniel Zovatto, Otmara Marrero, Juan Pablo Raba, and Richard Schiff.

Most recently, Freixas has partnered with Cedar Park Entertainment, the independent studio founded by David Ayer and Chris Long, to develop THE EXILES, a scripted series that follows members of the CIA as well as the Cuban exiles they recruit to carry out clandestine operations, and the games of manipulation they play with one another in the interest of patriotism, the ongoing Cold War against Communism, and the relentless pursuit of revenge against Fidel Castro. The Series will be Executive produced by New York Times Best Selling author T.J. English, and will be written by Emmy Award winning writer/executive producer Cynthia Cidre.

Freixas is a Cuban-American filmmaker born and raised in Coral Gables, Florida. He is a graduate of the University of Miami Film School. His production company Exilium is based in Miami, Florida.

Screen Heat Miami

Screen Heat Miami (SHM) is hosted by veteran Miami based producers Kevin Sharpley and JL Martinez and each week covers the latest trends in the film, tv, and entertainment industry, including interviews with global and local industry leaders, all told from a "Miami" point of view.

JOSE DANIEL FREIXAS

Jose Daniel Freixas is an, award winning writer/producer/director from Miami, Florida. He co-wrote and produced the feature film MAGIC CITY MEMOIRS, which was executive produced by Academy Award nominated actor Andy Garcia. The film was optioned by Fox TV Studios, and picked up for pilot by FOX Broadcast Channel. MAGIC CITY MEMOIRS, a coming of age drama about three best friends during their senior year of high school in Miami can currently be seen on Netflix.

In 2016, Freixas partnered with Paramount Pictures, and Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company Appian Way on a film entitled THE CORPORATION. The film is based on a book by New York Times Best Selling author T.J. English entitled "The Corporation: An Epic Story of the Cuban American Underworld.” Freixas and his partner Tony Gonzalez, who controlled the book rights, sold to Paramount at a record price after an intense bidding war erupted amongst all the major Hollywood studios and producers. Academy Award-winner Benicio del Toro will star as Cuban Mob boss, Jose Miguel Battle, while Academy Award Winner Leonardo DiCaprio will produce alongside Jennifer Davisson, Alex Heineman, Andrew Rona, Tony Gonzalez and Freixas.

Currently, Freixas is in post-production on a feature film entitled VANDAL. Inspired by true stories, VANDAL, an authentic drama about art, love, war, and the depths of the street graffiti game, was shot during the Fall of 2016 in Miami’s Wynwood, Little Havana, and Little Haiti neighborhoods. Freixas who co-wrote the screenplay, produced, as well as directed the project. VANDAL stars Daniel Zovatto, Otmara Marrero, Juan Pablo Raba, and Richard Schiff.

Most recently, Freixas has partnered with Cedar Park Entertainment, the independent studio founded by David Ayer and Chris Long, to develop THE EXILES, a scripted series that follows members of the CIA as well as the Cuban exiles they recruit to carry out clandestine operations, and the games of manipulation they play with one another in the interest of patriotism, the ongoing Cold War against Communism, and the relentless pursuit of revenge against Fidel Castro. The Series will be Executive produced by New York Times Best Selling author T.J. English, and will be written by Emmy Award winning writer/executive producer Cynthia Cidre.

Freixas is a Cuban-American filmmaker born and raised in Coral Gables, Florida. He is a graduate of the University of Miami Film School. His production company Exilium is based in Miami, Florida.

Screen Heat Miami

Screen Heat Miami (SHM) is hosted by veteran Miami based producers Kevin Sharpley and JL Martinez and each week covers the latest trends in the film, tv, and entertainment industry, including interviews with global and local industry leaders, all told from a "Miami" point of view.

Gregory Allen Howard

Gregory Allen Howard is an award-winning screenwriter, producer, author, playwright, and essayist whose credits include, Remember The Titans, and Ali, and the stage play, Tinseltown Trilogy. Mr. Howard is the first and only African American screenwriter in the history of film to script a $100 million movie. He is a two-time NAACP Image Award Winner, winner of the prestigious Christopher Award, and the Howard University Paul Robeson Award for artistic excellence.

Mr. Howard, a Princeton graduate with a degree in American history, began his writing career twenty years ago in television on the TV show 21 Jump Street. After a fitful start, he transitioned into features. Mr. Howard’s specialty is true stories. He has taught a master level seminar, “True Story To Screen,” as a visiting professor at Howard University and at various film festivals.

Mr. Howard also was contributor to Taschen’s Muhammad Ali giant photo book, GOAT, Greatest of All Time. His essays include, Rumble in an Urban Jungle (the introduction), The Power of Dreams, and The Ali Kids.

As a writer/producer, Mr. Howard’s most recent projects include, Night Witches, the WWII story of the first and only female combat unit in history, Harriet, the Harriet Tubman story, and Misty, the story of American Ballet Theater ballerina, Misty Copeland.

Mr. Howard’s hobbies and interests include collecting wine and African art, ballet, opera, travel, and blogging on Huffington Post. His groundbreaking HuffPo essay, The Whitewashing of James Brown, ignited the firestorm that has led to more diversity and inclusion in Hollywood.

For more information visit www.gregoryallenhoward.com

Screen Heat Miami

Screen Heat Miami (SHM) is hosted by veteran Miami based producers Kevin Sharpley and JL Martinez and each week covers the latest trends in the film, tv, and entertainment industry, including interviews with global and local industry leaders, all told from a "Miami" point of view.

Join co-host JL Martinez and his two little screen heaters, Sophia and Layla "The Podkids" in this special "minnie" interview with their take on the streaming wars, particularly "Disney+ vs Netflix." Plus co-host Kevin Sharpley joins the intro / outdo. It is going to be fun.

Jaie Laplante

Since 2010, Jaie Laplante has led MDC’s Miami Film Festival and Tower Theater Miami as Executive Director & Director of Programming, growing the Festival’s international influence and the Tower as one of the USA’s most celebrated independent art cinemas.

In 2018, Mr. Laplante received the decoration Knight’s Cross of the Order of Isabel la Católica from Felipe VI, King of Spain, for his career work in bringing contemporary Spanish cinema to the state of Florida. In 2017, he was named one of 25 Knight Champions, honoring passionate individuals in Miami who love the arts, by The John S. & James L. Knight Foundation.

Mr. Laplante has served on numerous international juries and film panels, and written over 400 pieces of analysis and criticism on cinema. In Toronto and Los Angeles in the 1990s, Laplante worked on numerous independent productions and developed screenplays, and received an Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television nomination for co-writing the made-in-Toronto film Sugar.

Screen Heat Miami

Screen Heat Miami (SHM) is hosted by veteran Miami based producers Kevin Sharpley and JL Martinez and each week covers the latest trends in the film, tv, and entertainment industry, including interviews with global and local industry leaders, all told from a "Miami" point of view.