Culture
JAM | Mar 25, 2023

JAFTA ‘Shot List’ to create international exposure opportunities for local filmmakers

/ Our Today

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The Jamaica Film and Television Association (JAFTA) is set to host ‘Shot List’, an unprecedented cultural showcase on Sunday (March 26) at the Hope Botanical Garden’s Sunken Gardens. 

The all-day short film showcase, which commences at 2:00 pm, is a collaboration with the British Council and United Kingdom-based arts and film exhibition company, We Are Parable.

“’Shot List’ is about showcasing creativity in filmmaking and sensitising both filmmakers and film enthusiasts about the countless possibilities and business opportunities that exist within the Caribbean and the diaspora when we collaborate through sharing effective business practices and technical expertise,” said Saeed Thomas, president of JAFTA.

(Photo: Twitter @jaftaonline)

“We are excited to partner with We Are Parable, who will be showcasing works of black filmmakers in the UK and we also get to expose our patrons to Jamaican filmmakers who have had success internationally with writing and pitching their films for television and other distribution channels,” Thomas continued.

The event will showcase two workshops commencing at 2:30 pm. One workshop features Adjani Salmon, Jamaican British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) winner and international Emmy-nominated writer/actor/director of Dreaming Whilst Black, who will be leading the conversation of writing for television; and the other by Opal Levy, strategic planner and business transformation specialist, who will be giving her insights on how to effectively pitch films for funding and distribution.

Subsequent to the workshops, there will be three blocks of short film screenings from filmmakers in Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and the United Kingdom. Each block will feature three films.

The Jamaican block will showcase three short films from the 2022 JAFTA Propella Programme – Parolytic, Time to Go and A Shade of Indigo.  Parolytic directed and produced by Nadean Rawlins and written by Maylynne Lowe is a psychological thriller about coming to your senses by going out of your mind.

Time to Go directed and written by Gemmar McFarlane and produced and written by Brandy Royal is a story about how a young woman’s reality begins to unravel when a young woman claiming to be her daughter arrives on her wedding anniversary. A Shade of Indigo directed and written by Hanif James and produced by Tanya Batson-Savage explores the issues of beauty and trauma.

Jamaican short film ‘Absolute Power’ producer Julene Kenyon and director Gemmar McFarlane. (Photo: UNICEF)

‘Shot List’ represents a great opportunity for filmmakers across the Diaspora to communicate with each other via their work. We Are Parable is enthused about this collaboration with JAFTA and British Council to achieve this goal and through the UK Showcase we hope to give even more exposure to the filmmaking talent from Jamaica and Trinidad,” said We are Parable co-founder and director of operations, Teanne Andrews.

Co-founders Teanne and Anthony Andrews (second and third from left) and the We Are Parable team share lens time with Saeed Thomas (extreme right), president of the Jamaica Film and Television Association (JAFTA) on Friday, March 24, 2023, ahead of the ‘Shot List’ cultural showcase in Kingston this weekend. (Photo: Twitter @weareparable)

This year’s staging of Shot List will also feature videos and a conversation with Jamaican music video directors Damaniac Visualz, Jay Will (Game Over), RD Studios and Xtreme Arts.

“Music videos are a vibrant element of our creative culture here in Jamaica. It is how the world immerses in our dances, and the visual aesthetic of our music genres. It is also a unique art because music videos tell a story in an even shorter time frame than a short film. Essentially, it is where two cultural genres (film and music) converge for added business opportunities,” said Lesley-Ann Wanliss, business development and initiative chairperson at JAFTA.

Patrons will also have the opportunity to interact with filmmakers and directors in addition to enjoying films, music videos and performances. Dancehall recording artiste Stalk Ashley, whose music video was a part of the 2022 video screening of Shot List will perform live at this year’s event.

Shot List was previously held by JAFTA in April 2022 at Jangas in Kingston.

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