CaribPR Wire

CaribPRWire, Toronto Canada, Sat. Sept. 9, 2017: Three new, original Caribbean TV pilots have their world premiere screenings at the 12th CaribbeanTales International Film Festival (CTFF) in Toronto, Canada, this September. BattleDream Chronicles, an Animated TV Show, HEAT, and CaribbeanGrlNYC are the result of an ongoing partnership between the CaribbeanTales Media Group, the world’s largest distributor of Caribbean audio-visual content, and Flow, the Caribbean’s leading telecoms and media content provider.

Produced by CaribbeanTales for Flow, the three pilots will air exclusively on Flow’s flagship entertainment network, Flow 1, later this year across the Caribbean.

The pilots focus on Caribbean themed content: BattleDream Chronicles is the Region’s first Afro-futurist Animation series created by director, producer and writer Alain Bidard; HEAT is a steamy Bajan drama written and directed by internationally acclaimed Barbadian/British director and writer Menelik Shabazz; while CaribbeanGrlNYC by Guadeloupean creator and director Mariette Monpierre, — best known for her award-winning 2011 film, Elza — is a female-driven sitcom set in the Big Apple.

All three directors are alumni of the renowned CaribbeanTales Incubator Program (CTI), which is now in its eighth year. From its inception, the CTI has been a training and development platform and launch pad for over eighty Caribbean-themed projects and producers. And since last year, the CTI has partnered with Flow to produce three (3) original series Pilots a year and develop homegrown content for Caribbean audiences.

“We are rewriting the script on support for local and regional content,” said John Reid, CEO of Cable & Wireless, operator of Flow and lead sponsor of the CTFF and CTI. “The Caribbean has always had talented filmmakers; what it has lacked is a support system that enables skills development, assistance in production and distribution, and ultimately the opportunity to monetize content. Through our partnership with CaribbeanTales, we are changing this, helping to transform the Caribbean film industry and showcase its talent to the world,” he said.

BattleDream Chronicles made its world debut on September 6, 2017 at the Gala Opening of CTFF2017, featuring legendary St. Lucian actor, Joseph Marcell, best known for his role as Geoffrey the Butler in The Fresh Prince of Bel Air; Barbadian Queen of Soca, artiste Alison Hinds; Sheldon Shepherd, star of the award-winning 2010 Jamaican drama, Better Mus’ Come; Leonie Forbes, Jamaica’s multi-award-winning actress and icon; Nickolai Salcedo, prominent Trinidadian actor and musician; and Guyana’s up-and-coming star, Nuriyyih Gerrard, in the show’s leading role.

HEAT will be screened on September 13 at the CTFF 2017 special Menelik Shabazz Tribute, sponsored by the Consulate General of Barbados, Toronto. The evening’s special guests will include Menelik Shabazz, and TIFF’s Artistic Director, Cameron Bailey.

And, on September 20, 2017 at CTFF2017’s CINEFAM: Women Creators of Colour Night, the spotlight will shine on women of colour directors, creators and actresses with the screening of CaribbeanGrlNYC.

The theme of the 12th Annual CaribbeanTales Film Festival is Legacy

Actor Joseph Marcell, best known as “Geoffrey” the butler from Fresh Prince of Belair, will be part of the 12th annual CaribbeanTales International Film Festival (CTFF).

CaribPRWire, TORONTO, Canada, Mon. August 21, 2017: As Canada delights in all its diversity this year, the CaribbeanTales International Film Festival (CTFF) marks its 12th annual festival with a street party celebrating the legacy, people and beauty of the Caribbean. On September 6, 2017, Clinton Street at College Street in Toronto will be magically transformed with the sights and sounds of the Islands, co-hosted by the Consulate General for the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. International Caribbean stars of film and television will greet their many fans there — at CTFF’s Opening Gala and Film Premieres.

Music Superstar Machel Montano; actor Joseph Marcell (best known as “Geoffrey” the butler from Fresh Prince of Belair); Barbados’ soca queen Alison Hinds; Jamaica’s Sheldon Shepherd and Trinidad and Tobago’s Nickolai Salcedo are among the luminaries who will attend the College Street party and Talkback after the screening. They will also attend the Encore Screening slated for September 7, 2017 at Cineplex Morningside Cinema, 785 Milner Ave, Scarborough.

“After twelve years, we can look back to our most humble beginnings –  as well as look forward – to the great narratives that are still to be explored through the power of film for audiences in Canada and worldwide,” said Frances-Anne Solomon, Executive Director, CTFF. “It was hard to pick this year’s program — but those we’ve chosen will not only entertain, but also challenge our audiences to consider our legacy as Caribbean peoples here and throughout our Diaspora. We need to think about what we’re leaving now for future generations.”

This year’s Festival boasts fourteen feature films and thirty short films, from eighteen countries – all featuring stories centering on Caribbean legacy. Throughout the two-week event, audiences will enjoy themes including Bajan Excellence, Legacies of Race, Roots of Culture, Legacies of the Land, #BlackLoveMatters, CineFAM (Women in film), and #INTERSECT – Queer and Trans People of Colour.

As the street party winds down, fans will be welcomed at The Royal Cinema, 608 College Street, Toronto, to see two films: the world premiere of Battledream Chronicles and Machel Montano: Journey of Soca King.

The short film, Battledream Chronicles, is an animated pilot voiced by Caribbean stars. It tells the story of Syanna, a young slave in a futuristic world where plantations are video games. She and her team of rebels must hack the system to gain their freedom. Marcell, plays arch-villain Zeus Thunderking, while Jamaica’s queen of stage and screen Leonie Forbes voices Kerberia, the computer generated servant. Salcedo plays the rapacious Torquemada, Hinds plays Leto, Syanna’s mother, Jamaica’s Sheldon Sheperd (known for his lead role in Better Mus’ Come) plays the role of the charismatic Teacher. The central character of Syanna is played by talented Guyanese newcomer Nuriyyih Gerrard.

Machel Montano: Journey of Soca King chronicles Trinidadian soca artist Montano’s growth from a child star to his reign as the world’s Soca Monarch, collaborating with Grammy Award-winning songwriters and producers like Angela Hunte and Diplo.

“We are proud to be co-hosting the Canadian Premiere screening of this extraordinary film at the CaribbeanTales International Film Festival,” said Ms. Cherrone Mokund, Acting Consul General for the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in Toronto. “Machel Montano is known internationally and by sharing his story, we all learn more about what he has done to uplift and showcase our Caribbean cultural legacy to the world.”

Tickets and information for CTFF 2017’s Opening Gala and Festival Launch — as well for all Festival films — are on sale now at www.caribbeantalesfestival.com.  Follow us on Twitter #CTFF2017, Facebook and Instagram.

Media Accreditation: http://caribbeantalesfestival.com/media-contact-accreditation/

Media Resources: http://caribbeantalesfestival.com/2017-festival-media-resources/

To confirm media attendance, arrange for screeners, interviews, photo opportunities or for more information please contact:

Dayo Kefentse
DAYO Media & Communications

[email protected]

The winning pitch from the CaribbeanTales incubator of 2016. (CaribbeanTales image)

CaribPR Wire, TORONTO, Canada, Weds. Feb. 1, 2017: CaribbeanTales, a multi-faceted group of film production, marketing and distribution companies, has announced its annual Call for Submissions for the Film Festival and Producer Incubator programs that will take place in September 2017 in Toronto, Canada.  Applications for both programs will be open until March 31, 2017.

CTI Presented by Flow – Get Your Original Caribbean TV Series Made!

The renowned CaribbeanTales Incubator Program (CTI), now in its eighth year, has hosted over two hundred producers from across the Caribbean. Sponsored by Flow, the Caribbean’s leading telecommunications company, the CTI serves as a funnel for the creation of original TV Series.

CTI offers selected producers the opportunity to hone their creative and business skills within an international marketplace environment, producing compelling and sustainable content that increases the Region’s pool of world-class indigenous television content destined for the global market.

The CTI includes seven weeks of online tuition, and an intensive five-day workshop in Toronto that culminates in a Caribbean Pitch Breakfast at the TIFF Bell Lightbox attended by high-profile industry delegates.

There are several lucrative awards, including up to $30,000.00 USD in production funding for each of three (3) successful TV series pilots, that will be broadcast on Flow’s TV networks across the Region.

CTFF – Your Caribbean film on the international screen!

The CaribbeanTales International Film Festival (CTFF), now in its twelfth year, showcases diverse, shared stories and cultures, and celebrates the talents of established and emerging Caribbean filmmakers.

The Festival will hold its Media Launch and Screening in early July, and a series of community screenings throughout August. The Festival’s main juried program of feature films and shorts will be held between September 6 and September 20, 2017.

CTFF will program films of all lengths and genres.  Please note that films considered for programming must be Toronto Premieres.

For more information about the two programs, email [email protected].

To submit your films and projects visit the CTI website, and CTFF website.

For media inquiries contact [email protected].

ABOUT THE CARIBBEANTALES MEDIA GROUP:

CaribbeanTales is a group of companies that produces, markets, and sells Caribbean-themed film and television content for global audiences.

It includes CaribbeanTales Inc. a registered Charity based in Canada; the CTI; the CTFF; CaribbeanTales Worldwide Distribution (CTWD), the largest  full-service distribution entity dedicated to the monetisation of Caribbean content; CaribbeanTalesFlix, our production arm, and CaribbeanTales-TV, a video on demand platform.

ABOUT FLOW:

About C&W Communications

C&W is a full-service communications and entertainment provider and delivers market-leading video, broadband, telephony and mobile services to consumers in eighteen countries. Through its business division, C&W provides data center hosting, domestic and international managed network services, and customized IT service solutions, utilizing cloud technology to serve business and government customers.

C&W also operates a state-of-the-art submarine fiber network – the most extensive in the region. Learn more at www.cwc.com, or follow C&W on LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter.