No matter the season, South Beach is always an adventure. From the beach to the bar to the world-class cuisine, South Beach offers a flavorful mixture of tastes, sights, and sounds. The spicy infusion of clubs and cafes blends beach time and nightlife into an unforgettable experience. The wacky locals and tourists make Miami Beach a people-watching paradise, and the Art Deco buildings embellish the skyline and light up the evenings with a hot neon glow. Dance the night away at Club Cameo, the Mansion, and Automatic Slims, or settle in at a quaint café, the city will capture your heart. Whether seeking excitement or a quiet escape, both can be found in this tropical mecca.
The Miami Beach Convention Center is celebrating the 26th annual Winter Music Conference from March 8-12. It is one of the most publicized yearly music gatherings in the world and an important symposium for the impetus of the industry. The conference features seminars and panels about a wide variety of topics including music and industry, innovations in DJ and production technology, radio exposure, artist development, and many more topics, as well as the international dance music awards, a DJ spin-off contest, club events and parties, a VJ challenge, networking events, and remix and editing workshops. Enjoy any of the 400 plus events in the five days of the conference and meet thousands of industry delegates, artists and DJs, and industry guests and speakers. There are events for any flavor of sight and sound that you may enjoy; in fact, this year the Winter Music Conference and the Miami International Film Festival are joining forces to form an alliance between music and motion pictures, a passport that provides discounted tickets to those who wish to attend both of the exciting entertainment venues.
The Miami International Film Festival, one of the most prominent Ibero-American film festivals in the US, presents the best developing and established films to the world, as well as various American and world premieres. From March 4-13, a variety of both American and international films will be shown at different screening venues in Miami and Miami Beach. Chico & Rita, a film marking one of the greatest eras of creativity in Cuban-American jazz, is the first animated Opening Night film in the history of MIFF. Multiple award-winning films and films featuring Oscar winning actors and directors are being shown, including In a Better World, The Last Circus, If A Tree Falls: A Story About the Earth Liberation Front, The Whistle Blower, the story of the discovery that humans and chimpanzees can communicate through sign-language, Project Nim, Magic Trip: Ken Kesey's Search for a Kool Place, and The Greatest Movie Ever Sold. The World Competition encompasses movies from all around the globe, including the Kurdish film Mandoo, the Chinese film The Piano in a Factory, the ground-breaking true story of a deaf Ultimate Fighting Championship gladiator in Hamill, the winner of the 2010 Jerusalem Film Festival, Intimate Grammar, Serbian Tilva Rosh, and many other films from across the planet.
Food & Wine is presenting the Food Network's 10th Annual South Beach Wine & Food Festival, a national, four-day event featuring the talents of the world's most renowned wine and spirits producers, as well as chefs and culinary personalities. Each year the Festival dedicates a pavilion to highlight a country's spirit and culinary contributions. For the 10th anniversary, "Experience Italy" will showcase some of the premium wines and specialty food creations. There are many events, some of which are the Wine Spectator Trade Tasting, showcasing the best beverages from 150 of the world's premium wine, spirits, water, and coffee producers and the 4 Orange Premium Vodka Classic Cocktail Competition; the Wine Spectator Wine Seminar Series, including tastings from the most prestigious House of Champagne, Krug; a retrospective tasting of Chateau Ste. Michelle's Canoe Ridge Estate Wines; and a tasting of Napa Valley's organic and biodynamic Grgich Hill Estate wines. The Whole Foods Market Grand Tasting Village is a celebration of the good life, presenting some of the legendary culinary masters. Participating restaurants include 1500 Degrees, Bertoni Brick Oven Pizza and Lounge, Waxy O'Connor's, Eden, Blue Door Fish, Caffe Da Vinci, Truluck's, Brio Tuscan Grill, and the Mercadito.