Free and Open to the Public
Date: Saturday, Feb. 17
Time: 5:00 pm
Location: The Robin Theatre (Directions HERE)
Genre: Music Documentary
Language: English
Country: Puerto Rico 🇵🇷
Duration: 94 minutes
Presented by:
- Kiana Gonzalez-Cedeño, PhD Student, English Department
- Pedro Doreste RodrĂguez, Post Doc / Research Associate, Film Studies
ABOUT THE FILM
In 1973, the eleven-year-old Miguelito was discovered singing in San Juan airport by the legendary New York record producer Harvey Averne. Within a year, he went from the slums of Manuel A Perez to recording an album with the finest salsa musicians of the time, to finally performing with Eddie Palmieri at Madison Square Garden in front of 20,000 people. Every radio station played some of his tracks, like Payaso and Canto a Borinquen. A year later, he had disappeared from public life.
Reminiscent of Searching for Sugar Man, filmmaker Sam Zubrycki and legendary music producer Harvey Averne follow Miguelito’s steps to find him. Featuring incredible archival footage of NYC in the 70s’ and salsa performances from Papo Lucca’s La Sonora Poncena, Malo Malo and many others, this is a film that celebrates the musical and cultural depth of the Caribbean, as well as the music industry, but most of all, Miguelito’s life, music, and the world he inhabited.
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Sam Zubrycki is a filmmaker and musician based in Sydney, Australia, who has been working in the arts industry for most of his life. He has been involved in a range of local and international co-productions that have led to an array of collaborations with filmmakers from around the world. As a graduate of the Australian Film, Television, and Radio School (AFTRS), Zubrycki has completed a diploma in film editing. Zubrycki directed the short documentary L’Artigiano that was selected for competition at the Antenna Documentary Film Festival, Sydney and edited the short drama Driftwood Dustmites, which was selected for competition at the 65th Berlinale Film Festival.
Zubrycki has an extensive background and knowledge of music. He is a trumpet player who has studied at the Sydney and Tasmania Conservatories and studied under teachers from Juilliard and the Manhattan School of Music. Zubrycki co-hosts the radio show Bare Necessities and performs frequently around Sydney as a DJ. Zubrycki’s love and passion for both film and music are intertwined.
MSU Latinx Film Festival 