April 15, 2012
Unfinished Spaces Screens in China with Sundance Film Forward

Co-director Benjamin Murray traveled to China this month with the Sundance Institute's FILM FORWARD program. At Unfinished Spaces screenings in Beijing and Kumming, audiences responded with openness and emotion.

Xuequn Bao, a Kumming resident, said, "The unfinished space in the film is a holy temple for beliefs and passion of artists." Read more of Xuequn's testimonial as well as Murray's filmmaker diary on the Sundance website to get more details about the cultural exchange.

FILM FORWARD connects contemporary films and filmmakers with diverse global audiences and features documentary and narrative films. FILM FORWARD underscores the importance of mutual understanding and respect for other cultures and traditions that is at the heart of cultural exchange.

April 1, 2012
Festival Jury Awards in Miami, Montreal, Salem & San Diego

Co-directors Nahmias and Murray, with Architect Roberto Gottardi, attended the Miami International Film Festival where the film won Honorable Mention in the Knight Documentary Competition. The film also won the Documentary Jury Prize at the Salem Film Fest, the Documentary Special Jury Prize at the San Diego Latino Film Festival, and the award for Best Reportage at the Montreal Festival of Films on Art (FIFA).

March 8, 2012
Miami Premiere - Standing Ovations

The Miami International Film Festival is presenting Unfinished Spaces this week for three sold-out screenings throughout the city. Co-Directors Alysa Nahmias and Benjamin Murray and architect Roberto Gottardi, subject of the film, attended the long-awaited premiere on March 3rd at Coral Gables Art Cinema. The Q&A discussions, led by Thom Powers of MIFF, were emotional, and the reception has been powerful by Cuban-Americans and film lovers in Florida. Roberto received standing ovations from the audiences! Many young members of the audiences approached Roberto after the film to thank him for his contribution to Cuban culture and to ask him to sign a copy of the film's postcard.

Nahmias and Murray participated in a master class panel discussion at Miami Dade College with Roberto Gottardi, Prof. Eberto Garcia Ebreu of the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana, and visual artist Felipe Dulzaides, who appears in Unfinished Spaces. Dulzaides' brilliant project about the Cuban National Art Schools, Utopia Posible, is also now on exhibition at the Freedom Tower in downtown Miami. The filmmakers also presented Unfinished Spaces to an audience of four hundred public high school students from Miami-Dade School District. These students' insightful questions demonstrated how eager American audiences are to connect with Cuban culture and to hear stories about the importance of art in society.

January 15, 2012
Unfinished Spaces Wins Prestigious "Jameson FIND Your Audience" at Independent Spirit Awards 2012

Co-Directors Alysa Nahmias and Benjamin Murray were awarded the 2012 Jameson FIND Your Audience Award from the Los Angeles-based organization Film Independent on Saturday, January 15, 2012. The Award is accompanied by a major grant to help expand the film's reach. The Award will be announced during the Film Independent Spirit Awards, to broadcast live on IFC on February 25, 2012.

November 15, 2011
Havana Premiere in December 2011

Co-Directors Alysa Nahmias and Benjamin Murray, and architects Roberto Gottardi and Vittorio Garatti, subjects of the film, will attend the long-awaited Cuban premiere.

After years of anticipation, we've heard the fabulous news that Unfinished Spaces (Espacios inacabados) is an official selection of the Festival de Nuevo Cine LatinoAmericano de la Habana. The film will screen in the section "Hecho en Cuba (Made in Cuba)" and the "Puentes y MMas as Puentes (Bridges and More Bridges)" program hosted by Latino Public Broadcasting. Hope to see you there!

November 9, 2011
Sundance Film Forward in 2012

Unfinished Spaces among 10 films selected to participate in the prestigious Sundance FILM FORWARD program to advance cultural dialogue.

FILM FORWARD is an initiative of the Sundance Institute and the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services. FILM FORWARD connects contemporary U.S. and international films and filmmakers with diverse global audiences and features documentary and narrative films. FILM FORWARD underscores the importance of mutual understanding and respect for other cultures and traditions that is at the heart of cultural exchange.

November 1, 2011
Unfinished Spaces wins Jury Prize at Valladolid Int'l Film Festival in Spain

A Documentary Jury Prize at the Semana Internacional de Cine (SEMINCI) was awarded to Unfinished Spaces: "for being such a human and well-constructed film. Through its architecture we discover the cultural, political and social history of a country. We would specially like to mention the splendid narrative, and the idea that life gives one a second chance, even though it seems impossible."

Co-Director Benjamin Murray was in Spain to accept the award and to acknowledge our incredible crew and the subjects of the film - architects Porro, Garatti, and Gottardi - who have inspired this story over the past ten years.

September 26, 2011
Around the World at Film Festivals

This fall, Unfinished Spaces will be screening at Film Festivals from Spain to San Francisco and from Maine to Hawaii. Check out the list of upcoming screenings.



July 6, 2011
DocuWeeks screenings in NY & LA to
qualify Unfinished Spaces for Oscars

NY PREMIERE: AUGUST 12 @ IFC CENTER

Following a critically acclaimed world premiere at the LA Film Festival, we are pleased to announce that Unfinished Spaces will screen at the prestigious DocuWeeks™ at IFC Center in New York City (Aug. 12 - 18), and Laemmle’s Sunset 5 in Los Angeles (Aug. 19 - 25), making it Academy Award® eligible. Screening and ticket information available here.



May 3, 2011
Unfinished Spaces: World Premiere at Los Angeles Film Festival 2011



It's official! We are very proud to announce that Unfinished Spaces has been selected for the Documentary Features Competition at the Los Angeles Film Festival 2011! Check out the full lineup here. Tickets available here.

We are in the midst of preparing for our WORLD PREMIERE in LA in June. In the mean time, we've set up a newly re-designed website, and we've posted a trailer for you to enjoy and share with others.

Please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to help us complete post-production this month and bring Unfinished Spaces to the LA Film Festival, as well as many more festivals and theaters near you this year.



December 1, 2010
Latino Public Broadcasting selects Unfinished Spaces for PBS in the U.S.

Unfinished Spaces has been selected by Latino Public Broadcasting for screening on public television (PBS stations) in the United States.

Latino Public Broadcasting (LPB) is funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Every year LPB invites independent filmmakers to submit proposals for its Public Media Content Fund initiative.

Edward James Olmos, LPB Chairman, said of this year’s films, including Unfinished Spaces: “Now more than ever, these stories are crucial to helping us understand each other, across generations and geographies, beyond culture and class. We are proud to support such a wide range of important topics. These stories will touch viewers’ hearts.”