By Venessa Deosaran
In November 2010, former President Jagdeo created a small grant to stimulate a film making industry in Guyana.
He appointed Dr Paloma Mohamed, director of the Centre for Communication Studies at the University of Guyana, to manage the project, which was named ‘The President’s Film Endowment Project 2011’. Between January and July 2011, the experimental project has grown exponentially in its reach and potential through the collaboration of several other formal and informal partners – HED, USAID, Ohio University, the University of Guyana, The Theatre Guild of Guyana and several other private organizations.
The project, which was originally designed to fund 5 short films by five independent filmmakers, morphed into a larger 8-film project that took the filmmakers from conceptualization through script design, through production planning, shooting, editing and post production, to a world premiere July 2, 2011, and which former president Bharrat Jagdeo lifted the curtain.
There were no limits except those of cost placed on the filmmakers, 6 of whom have never made a film before.
In total, each film had a cast and crew of at least 30, all of whom went through a rigorous 3- month training programme, a course which would visually take about 3 years- of at least 12 hours a day including weekends.
The training was designed and delivered by award winning American film maker Brian Zahm MFA of Ohio University.
The result is an interesting mix of themes and genres, all of which are expected to reflect a rich and often minimized Guyanese culture back to Guyanese and hopefully to the wider world under the CineGuyana brand.
Since they premiered in Guyana in July 2011, the films have also premiered in New York, Washington, and London. Also, three of the films were shown at international films festivals in Barbados and Nigeria.
About the films
‘Hope’ is a 12-minute drama of the son of a Hindu priest who falls in love with a destitute Afro- Guyanese dancer.
‘The Backyard’ is a 14-minute film about a pop star that moves next door to a reclusive geek who makes her fall in love with him on Facebook. When she discovers this duplicity, sparks fly.
A family drama, ‘Three Cards’ tells of how far a father would go to save the life of his ailing daughter and how help can sometimes come from the most unexpected places. It is a 12-minute short film.
‘Tradition’, an 11-minute cultural fiction, looks at a family battling with personal loans, and the anger this brings while a young boy is trying to hold on to the traditions of his father and the yearnings of his heart.
A story of love and redemption, ‘Beached’ is a 10-minute drama of a man grappling with the loss of his wife following a fire that claimed everything from him.
‘Luck Beat Handsome’ is an 11-minute comedy of a ‘rastaman’ who is down on his luck. He plays the numbers of his bad events and is able to win and turn around his life and that of his family’s.
‘The Encounter’ is a 10-minute cam horror- comedy. A love starved murderess haunts a hotel room looking for redemption in her love of a living man.
‘The Bottle’ is a 9-minute fable. The daughter of a poor farmer finds the enchanted bottle which contains the Bacoo. The wily creature will grant the father any wish except he must have the young girl’s hand in marriage.
The total running time of all the movies is about 2 hours.
‘Guyana Tour’
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