Rising from the ashes after World War II, a newly rebuilt Japan quickly made a name for itself in the world of movies. Featuring films from Akira Kurosawa, Kenji Mizoguchi, and other legendary directors, this series explores a pivotal era in Japanese cinema, exploring how movies repaired a broken country and paved the way for the cultural powerhouse it is today. For more information, please contact the branch at 305-375-5572 or specialcollections@mdpls.org. Ages 19 yrs.+
About Woman in the Dunes
One of the 1960s’ great international art-house sensations, Woman in the Dunes (Suna no onna) was for many the grand unveiling of the surreal, idiosyncratic world of Hiroshi Teshigahara. Eiji Okada plays an amateur entomologist who has left Tokyo to study an unclassified species of beetle found in a vast desert. When he misses his bus back to civilization, he is persuaded to spend the night with a young widow (Kyoko Kishida) in her hut at the bottom of a sand dune. What results is one of cinema’s most unnerving and palpably erotic battles of the sexes, as well as a nightmarish depiction of everyday life as a Sisyphean struggle—an achievement that garnered Teshigahara an Academy Award nomination for best director. Description taken from the Criterion Collection.
About the Film Collection
The 16mm film collection has been part of the Library's holdings for over 55 years. It began in the 1960s, and its first films were part of the City of Miami’s public library before there was a county library. When MDPLS was formed, the County supplemented its local funding for films with Federal LSCA (Library Services and Construction Act) grants. Apart from leased feature films, all films were purchased for free exhibition for the life of the print. Subjects within the collection include experimental/avant-garde art films, non-narrated films, children’s films, Black history, Floridiana, and local history. Today, there are over 4,000 films within the collection.
About the Division of Special Collections & Archives
Miami-Dade Public Library System’s Division of Special Collections & Archives holds rare and irreplaceable historical documents for the benefit of the public and scholarly community. They oversee the Helen Muir Florida Collection, 16mm Film Collection, Cuban Collection of Rare Books & Ephemera, Genealogy Collection, Vasari Project, and rare & antiquarian books from as early as the 17th century. The Division's primary goal is to provide the public with the contents of the vault at their request. Its collections include rare books, original manuscripts, over 18,000 photographs, prints, artifacts, audiovisual resources, and electronic media.
AGE GROUP: | Adult (19+) |
EVENT TYPE: | Special Event | Special Collections | Movies | In-Person | History |
TAGS: | Special Collections |
| Mon, Feb 16 | Closed |
| Tue, Feb 17 | 9:30AM to 6:00PM |
| Wed, Feb 18 | 9:30AM to 6:00PM |
| Thu, Feb 19 | 9:30AM to 6:00PM |
| Fri, Feb 20 | 9:30AM to 6:00PM |
| Sat, Feb 21 | 9:30AM to 6:00PM |
| Sun, Feb 22 | Closed |