Make a Film in 24 Hours Competiton

NEW FEATURE OF REGGAE FILM FESTIVAL EXCITES INTEREST

Jamaicans are expressing excited interest in a competition to make a film in 24 hours that will be a feature of the second Reggae Film Festival being held February 23-27, 2009.  The competition will challenge local filmmakers to create an original short film (5 minutes max) in just 24 hours and give amateur and professional individuals and groups the chance to showcase their film making skills and win prizes.

The competition has become the most talked-about aspect of the programme announced by the Jamaica Film Academy for the Reggae Film Festival, that includes Premieres of two feature films and several documentaries, a Childrens Day featuring the Spike Lee/Babelgum Film Festival winner "UNDER MY GARDEN", a Reggae Film Seminar hosted by noted UWI Professor Carolyn Cooper and a Retrospective Honour of Ted Bafaloukos 1978 comedy "ROCKERS" starring a host of reggae greats.

The Make-a-Film-in-24-Hours Competition will be managed by young Jamaican film director Storm Saulter ("BETTA MUS COME')  and entrants will be invited to register 3 weeks before the Film Festival begins.  On the morning of February 23, 2009, they will gather at the Emancipation Park venue to get the green light to begin, then return 24 hours later to hand in their finished film.  The competition is an opportunity to stand out as a filmmaker, as one of the prizes comes from the Creative Production and Training Center (CPTC) film production house which is giving the winning director a chance to make a full-length production for their CTV channel. 

The Reggae Film Festival is an annual event highlighting the many films that have been made about Jamaica's most famous cultural product and export -- reggae music. The film festival provides proof that Jamaica has produced a new genre of films unique to the island and that people from all over the world not only love listening to, but also making films with and about reggae.

The Reggae Film Festival is produced by the Jamaica Film Academy, a project of the Ministry of Information, Culture, Youth & Sports.