28 June 18–24, 2026 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES June 18–24, 2026 miaminewtimes.com MIAMI NEW TIMES BEST ºf MIAMI ® 2026 ’67,” her portrayal of Chelle made you want to step in and take some of the weight off her overburdened shoulders. As the very preg- nant Charlene in M Ensemble’s “Searching for Willie Lynch,” the instinct was the same. (Can somebody help her with that laundry basket already? Maybe pull up a stool and let the woman rest for five minutes?) Her char- acters don’t feel written as much as fully lived in. Even the smallest moments feel connected to a real person whose story continues long after the show is over. Because of the realism she brings to her roles, you wouldn’t be sur- prised to run into one of Murray’s characters at Publix the next morning. BEST ACTOR IN A MALE ROLE Alex Weisman instagram.com/xelawuu “The Inheritance” is a very long play — as in, you’ve had two intermissions and realize you still have another play to go — which makes Alex Weisman’s performance in Zoetic Stage’s production all the more impressive. The South Florida native is onstage for most of it, carrying the emotional center of Mat- thew López’s sprawling drama through soar- ing highs and wrenching lows, showing vulnerability and the kind of stamina that should qualify as cardio. Weisman honed his chops on Broadway, making his stage debut in “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” and on TV as Frank, the first LGBTQ+ character on “Sesame Street.” Local audiences first saw him in Zoetic Stage’s “American Rhapsody” in 2023, but “The Inheritance” gave the Da- vie-raised actor room to fully stretch out as a performer. Good thing, because the play lasts about as long as a round-trip flight from Mi- ami to New York. BEST FILM RESOURCE Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Florida Moving Image Archives Miami Dade College, Wolfson Campus 300 NE Second Ave., Room 8406 Miami, 33132 305-237-7731 mdc.edu/archives/wolfson-archives Need footage of old Miami Beach tourists in cat-eye sunglasses? Long-gone motels? Hur- ricane coverage? Political scandals? A forgot- ten home movie somebody shot on Collins Avenue in 1957? The Wolfson Archives prob- ably has it, carefully preserved somewhere among its 23 million feet of film and more than 35,000 hours of videotape documenting Florida history. Founded in 1984 with do- nated footage from WTVJ, Florida’s first tele- vision station, the archive is one of the country’s largest collections of regional mov- ing images, including materials from Eastern Airlines, Miami Seaquarium films and de- cades of English and Spanish-language broadcasts. Footage from the archives has ap- peared in Billy Corben’s “Cocaine Cowboys” and ESPN’s “The U,” as well as Gus Van Sant’s Oscar-winning “Milk,” CNN documentaries and Ken Burns projects. Of course, nostalgia isn’t free and archival film licensing has its price, but if you’re trying to explain the strange, glamorous, chaotic history of South Florida, chances are the Wolfson Archives al- ready has the receipts — on film. BEST ART HOUSE CINEMA Cosford Cinema 5030 Brunson Dr. Coral Gables, 33146 305-284-4627 cosfordcinema.com Nestled within the University of Miami cam- pus in Coral Gables, Cosford Cinema’s mid- century decor makes it a wonderful setting for classic and new movies alike. Its bread and butter is recent releases and repertory showings of classic films, from arthouse clas- sics to Clint Eastwood westerns. Most screenings cost only $5 for the general public and are free for UM students and faculty. The theater also frequently hosts special events such as festival screenings and sneak pre- views of new movies. BEST FILM DIRECTOR Diana Larrea dianalarrea.studio This Peruvian filmmaker has spent more than a decade documenting Miami communities as they are reshaped and pushed to the margins. Using photography and other artforms to sup- plement her practice, she explores themes of migration and memory, as those relate to the individual and collective. Her debut, “Monar- cas,” earned a 2024 Emmy Award for Best Documentary (Diversity, Equity and Inclu- sion), followed by “Querido Pequeño Haití,” which moved from festival screenings to a na- tional PBS audience. Now at work on “Q’uñi Pacha,” Larrea turns her lens toward the pres- ervation of Andean traditions within Miami’s diasporic communities. BEST CINEMATOGRAPHER Sherman Johnson shermanjohnson.com Sherman Johnson has been in the film and television industry for decades. Born in At- lanta, the cinematographer relocated to Mi- ami in the early aughts. His shots are smooth, natural and always dripping with authentic- ity. He knows how to set the light for any mood and can swiftly capture any emotion on camera. Johnson has worked with brands from Bulova to Samsung and our very own Pollo Tropical; and the list of celebs he’s shot is too long to include (but features David Beckham and Marc Anthony). In addition to films and hundreds of commercials, Johnson is the cinematographer mastermind behind the upcoming feature “Wastelands.” Directed by Oolite Arts Cinematic Resident Michael Ruiz-Unger, the punk rock movie was filmed all over Miami and required the Atlanta na- tive to chase its star, Alex Nuñez, while bal- ancing an Arri Alexa Mini on his shoulder. BEST FILM SCREENING SERIES Miami Light Project’s ScreenDance Miami miamilightproject.com/screendance Some film festivals hand you a QR code for the program, march you past a step- and-repeat with a few B-list ce- lebrities and call it a night. ScreenDance Miami is far more interested in giant pro- jected dancers, experimental movement films and turning New World Center’s 7,000-square-foot projection wall into one of the coolest out- door screenings in the city. The Miami Light Project festival has carved out a niche all its own by focusing en- tirely on dance made for the camera — part film festival, part dance concert and part carefully choreographed visual experience. Curated by Miami choreographer and dancer Pioneer Winter, the 2026 festival stretched from the Miami Beach Bandshell to Sound- Scape Park and Pérez Art Museum Miami, and featured 24 films from six countries ranging from documentaries to surreal ex- perimental shorts. Some looked like contem- porary dance pieces. Others felt like the fully produced music videos MTV used to play at 2 a.m. before reality television took over. ScreenDance Miami stands out because it understands dance on film should feel cine- matic — not like somebody parked a camera in the back of a theater and hit record. BEST MIAMI DOCUMENTARY "River of Grass" riverofgrassfilm.com In 1947, conservationist Marjorie Stoneman Douglas’ book “The Everglades: River of Grass” inspired a generation to advocate for the world’s only ecosystem of its kind. Nearly 80 years later, artist and filmmaker Sasha Wortzel, director of “River of Grass,” contin- ues that work on the screen using Stoneman Douglas’ words as signposts throughout the documentary. The conceit here is that the filmmaker aims to learn more about Stone- man Douglas (“I knew she was a celebrated environmentalist, but I wanted to know more, so I went looking for her,” she narrates), but as the documentary progresses, the viewer meets today’s Everglades advocates, including Betty Osceola, a member of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, who reminds us that the term “River of Grass” was coined not by Stoneman Douglas, but by the Indigenous stewards of the land. We also learn about the many man-made issues that plague the fragile ecosystem. Some are longstanding, such as encroaching development and efforts to drain or alter the flow of its slow-moving waters, and others are more recent, like red tide and Burmese pythons that threaten native wildlife and throw off nature’s balance. The result is an impressionistic portrait of the Everglades, the late conservationist who fought to save them and the only people who can still pro- tect the Glades today: us. BEST FILM SERIES Intro to Surrealism (AV Club) Pulling from the Miami-Dade County Li- brary System’s collection of 16mm film prints, AV Club remains one of the best resources for Miami cinephiles to explore the history of cinema. One of their best programs from the past year was a series diving deep into the history of surrealism in film, hosted by film critic and New Times contributor Juan Barquin and inspired by the sad, premature passing of legendary director David Lynch. Films by Jean Cocteau, Luis Buñuel, Man Ray and Maya Deren were shown, and Barquin even printed an informative zine to accompany the series. BEST MOVIE/TV SHOW SHOT ON LOCATION "Ethan Bloom" instagram.com/ethanbloommovie You could think of “Ethan Bloom” as an af- fecting, beautiful coming-of-age film about grappling with grief, the human condition and navigating our way to meaning. Or, if you want to get very creative, you can think of it as a teaser for the heroic AC Icees biopic the world doesn’t know it needs — but definitely does. We kid, but the frosted lemonade truck that has served locals for nearly a half century makes an appearance in the film, along with David T. Kennedy Park and a slew of other perfectly captured, picturesque Coconut Grove locations. Both director Herschel Fa- ber and screenwriter Maylen Dominguez have deep roots in the area, so perhaps the love and care isn’t so much a surprise as a welcome affirmation. BEST MOVIE THEATER Le Jeune Cinema 6 782 NW 42nd Ave., #1 Miami, 33126 305-529-8883 oceancinemas.com Most blockbuster movies come with sticker shock these days. By the time you pay for parking, snacks, a soda and the actual ticket, you’ve blown half your grocery budget for the week. Ocean Cinemas, however (also known as Le Jeune Cinema 6 and located inside the Ocean Bank Building on LeJeune Road), of- Some film festivals hand you a QR code for AV Club remains one of the best resources for Miami cinephiles to explore the history of cinema. One of their best programs from the past year was a series diving deep into the history of surrealism Arts & EntertAinment
