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REY PARLÁ
Artist · Filmmaker · Photographer · Editor · Writer · Studio Director
Born 1971, Miami, Florida
Lives and works in Brooklyn, New York
reyparla.com ·
Education
• B.A., English Literature, Florida International University, 2007
• B.A., Interdisciplinary Studies, Florida International University, 2019
• Certificate in Film Studies, Florida International University
• 1-Year Directing Program Lab, The Barrow Group, New York City
• Independent Feature Project (IFP Involve NY), Scholarship Recipient
Additional Training:
– Robert McKee’s Story, Genre, and Storynomics
– Guy Magar’s Action Cut for Film/TV Directors
– Kodak Emerging Filmmakers Program
– Valencia College Acting & Theater Program
– Prometeo Theater Program, Miami Dade College
Artist Statement
Rey Parlá is a Cuban-American multidisciplinary artist whose practice spans experimental film, photography, installation, documentary, and editorial publishing. His work explores memory, urban abstraction, diasporic identity, and perception. Parlá’s creative process often involves analog film, distressed surfaces, and improvised editing. He has collaborated extensively with his brother, painter José Parlá, contributing to books, films, and exhibitions as an editor, co-director, and photographer. His work is included in international exhibitions, museum collections, and publications across New York, Miami, Paris, and Tokyo.
Solo Exhibitions
• EXTREMES, Benrubi Gallery, New York, 2020
• Multiplicities, Benrubi Gallery, New York, 2018
• Intentions, Clear Edition & Gallery, Tokyo, 2017
• Borderless, Happy Lucky No.1 Gallery, Brooklyn, 2016
Selected Group Exhibitions and Screenings
• Material: Espíritu Siboney, Maysles Documentary Center, Harlem, 2023
• Tribe Tales & The Mystic Writing Pad, Baxter St. at CCNY, 2023
• To Jonas With Love, Ki Smith Gallery, NYC, 2020
• Paris Photo, Benrubi Gallery, Paris, 2017
• ONE: Union of the Senses, Brooklyn Academy of Music, 2017
• The Creative Process in Art & Filmmaking, White Box Lab, NYC, 2016
• Belong to This Non-Place, Breeze Block Gallery, Portland, 2013
• The Wrinkles of the City: Havana, Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery, 2012
• Parlá Frères: U.T.O.P.I.A., Colette, Paris, 2012
• Sights Unseen, Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery, 2011
• The New Grand Tour, Hong Kong, Beijing, and NYC, 2007–2010
• It Ain’t Fair, OHWOW Gallery, Miami, 2010
• Scratch | Graphs, Frost Art Museum, FIU, 2009
• The No Show, Fredric Snitzer Gallery, Coral Gables, 1997
• Pictography, The Marlin Hotel, Miami Beach, 2005
• Sporadic Germination, 12th Miami International Film Festival: The Avant-Garde Returns, 1994
• Rumba Abstracta, The Anti-Film Festival / Alliance Cinema, 1996–1997
• Cinema Vortex, Alliance for the Media Arts, Miami Beach, 1994–1998
Film and Video Works
• ONE: Union of the Senses (2017) – Co-Creator, Producer, Editor
• Wrinkles of the City: Havana (2012) – Co-Director of Photography, Producer
• The New Grand Tour (2007–2010) – Co-Director, Editor, Producer
• Diablo (1998, 16mm) – Co-Writer, Co-Director (Milano Int’l Film Festival)
• Controlled Hallucination (2018)
• Lux in Tenebris (2016)
• Rumba Abstracta (1996–97, 35mm hand-painted)
• Sporadic Germination (1994)
• The Revolution of Super 8 Universe: A Self-Portrait (1995)
• An Experimental Introduction to a Segmented Reality (1993)
• The Painted Paradise (2007)
• Erasing Memory (2004, with Natasha Tsakos)
• Empujando un Botón (2002, with Vanessa Gocksch)
Publications, Monographs, and Editorial Contributions
Books by José Parlá (Roles: Editor, Essayist, Photographer, Artistic Director, Proofreader):
• Phosphene (2023) – Essay, Photography, Editorial
• Ciclos: Blooms of Mold (2022) – Essay, Proofreading, Production
• Polarities (2022) – Studio Photography, Editorial
• It’s Yours (2020) – Visual Research, Photography
• Segmented Realities (2014) – Studio Collaboration
• Roots (2019) – Archive Support
• In Medias Res (2014) – Editorial Assistant
• Walls, Diaries, and Paintings (2011) – Proofreading, Archive
• Broken Language – Editorial & Photo Contributions
• Reading Through Seeing – Editorial & Photo Contributions
• Character Gestures – Editorial & Photo Contributions
• Adaptation/Translation – Editorial & Photo Contributions
• Cityscapes – Editorial & Photo Contributions
• Memory Documents – Editorial & Photo Contributions
• The New Grand Tour – Multiple editorial, photographic, and essay contributions
Monographs by Rey Parlá:
• Scratch~Graphs (2015) – eBook publication
• Borderless (2016) – Exhibition monograph
Photography Features
• Forbes
• Brooklyn Rail
• NY Daily News
• Champ Magazine
• Cultured Magazine
• Whitewall
• Atlanta Journal-Constitution
• 12oz Prophet
• VICE
• Mass Appeal
Lectures and Speaking Engagements
• INSPIRE Conference, SCAD Museum of Art
• ASJA Writers Conference, NYC
• Guest Lecturer, Barrow Group Performance Lab
• Savannah College of Art & Design – Time-Based Media & Photography
Theater Direction, Dramaturgy & New Play Development
• The Barrow Group – Directors’ Lab Program & Student Playwriting Festival (2023–2024)
Directed two staged productions as part of a year-long directing lab led by Seth Barrish and Lee Brock. Provided full dramaturgical support, performance analysis, and rehearsal leadership. Developed beat breakdowns, character arcs, and collaborative staging with professional actors and emerging playwrights.
• The Brotherhood by Jason Leal – Directed script-in-hand public reading with full cast. Delivered deep dramaturgical support including character diagnostics, scenic architecture, and a critical review to shape the work’s development.
• The Tarantino Variation by Seth Kramer – Directed stylized short play with actors J.T. Thorne, Noah Gold, and Kevin Qian for culminating performance. Created character backstories, sonic cues, and minimalist blocking inspired by Tarantino’s early films. Led casting, rehearsals, and final performance with focus on tone, rhythm, and ensemble tension.
Professional Affiliations & Advisory Roles
• Member, Art Advisory Committee, Baxter St at the Camera Club of New York (2024–Present)
https://www.baxterst.org/art-advisory-committee
Collaborations and Initiatives
• Co-Founder & Studio Director, Parlá Studios
• Founder, Miami Underground Film & Video Festival (1999–2001)
• Theater: Dental Floss Theater, Prometeo, Valencia College
• Collaborators include: José Parlá, Natasha Tsakos, Vanessa Gocksch, MERCE (Maria Chavez & Shelley Burgon), Michael Betancourt
Collections
• Nancy A. Nasher & David J. Haemisegger Collection
• Various private and institutional collections in NYC, Miami, Tokyo, and Paris
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