CaribPR Wire

CARIBPR WIRE, TORONTO, Canada, Fri. Mar. 20, 2026: Award-winning actor CCH Pounder is helping to spearhead the expansion of the Cross Continental Forum, (CCF), an international co-production platform connecting producers across Africa and the global diaspora, as the initiative moves its 2026 edition to KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

CCH Pounder, Award Winning Actor, and CCF Steering Group Member

“Creation, to me, is our most powerful act of connection. Expanding the Cross Continental Forum to South Africa allows us to turn shared heritage into shared enterprise – creatively, economically and strategically,” commented CCH Pounder, Award Winning Actor, and CCF Steering Group Member.

A Gateway For Global Collaboration

The move is being made in partnership with UMEDA, the economic development agency for the Pietermaritzburg Midlands, and South African production company Pambili Media. The partnership reflects growing interest in building stronger co-production links between Africa, the Caribbean and Diaspora markets as demand increases for globally relevant stories and talent.

“KwaZulu-Natal is ready to engage the global screen economy in new ways. Partnering with the Cross Continental Forum connects our region’s creative industries with international producers, while positioning the Midlands as a gateway for collaboration between Africa and the global marketplace,” stated Michael Newton, CEO of UMEDA.

CCF’s 2026 theme Bridging Markets, Building Futures focuses on strengthening Black authorship and Global South leadership in international co-productions, so that producers enter partnerships as originating partners and rights holders, and creative control and intellectual property remain rooted in the communities where the stories begin.

Sydney Masina, partner at Pambili Media.

“For us at Pambili Media, this partnership is about creating the conditions for meaningful collaboration – where projects can be developed locally while building the international relationships they need to travel globally,” said Sydney Masina, partner at Pambili Media.

“Creating strong business connections between Africa and the Diaspora will be the great success story of the 21st Century, one that will be increasingly rewarding and profitable as we move forward,” US-based Pambili partner Steven Adams, who has a long history of working between Africa and the United States

Launched by CaribbeanTales Media Group in 2024, the Cross Continental Forum brings together film and television producers from Africa, the Caribbean, Canada, Europe, and the Americas with potential co-production partners.

After two successful editions in Barbados, the 2026 program will begin with an in-person gathering in the Pietermaritzburg Midlands, KwaZulu-Natal, from July 20-26, presented in partnership with UMEDA and Pambili Media. The program will then continue during the Toronto International Film Festival Market (Sept. 8 – 13), followed by four weeks of virtual labs and curated B2B matchmaking sessions.

Driving South South Collaboration

With the recent co-production agreement signed between South Africa and Nigeria, and the continued growth of the African Continental Free Trade Area, (AfCFTA), cross-regional collaboration in the creative industries is entering a transformative phase.

The AfCFTA connects 55 African Union nations, forming the world’s largest free trade area by membership.

“We’re witnessing the potential of the AfCFTA to come to life through creative industry partnerships. South Africa’s dynamic screen industry, combined with its co-production infrastructure, positions it as a strategic gateway for South–South collaboration and creative entrepreneurship,” said Dr. Keith Nurse, Cultural Industries Specialist, Chair of CaribbeanTales Worldwide Distribution.

Dr Keith Nurse, Cultural Industries Specialist, Chair of CaribbeanTales Worldwide Distribution.

“The Cross Continental Forum was designed from the outset to move between locations across the Global South.  It is part of a long-term effort to build sustainable co-production pipelines linking African, Caribbean, and diaspora producers to the global screen marketplace,” said Frances-Anne Solomon, Founder and CEO, CaribbeanTales Media Group.

Frances-Anne Solomon, Founder and CEO, CaribbeanTales Media Group.

Applications are now open to Black producers and producers of Global Majority descent from Canada, the Caribbean, Africa, the U.K., Europe, and South/Latin America.

Applications close April 15, with a limited number of bursaries available.

About The Cross Continental Forum

The Cross Continental Forum, established by CaribbeanTales Media Group, is a co-production accelerator connecting Black and Global Majority producers across Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, Canada and the Americas. The hybrid program provides mentorship, training and industry connections designed to support sustainable and equitable global partnerships.

For more information and to apply before April 15, 2026, visit:  www.decolonisingcoproduction.com/apply/

About CaribbeanTales Media Group

CaribbeanTales Media Group (CTMG) is a Toronto-based media organization dedicated to the development, production, exhibition and distribution of film and television content from the Caribbean and its global diaspora. Founded by filmmaker Frances-Anne Solomon, CTMG builds international pathways for Black and Global Majority creators through initiatives including the CaribbeanTales International Film Festival, the CaribbeanTales Incubator and the Cross Continental Forum, connecting Global South producers to international markets and co-production opportunities.

About Pambili Media

Pambili Media is a South African film and television production company with a distinguished history of  record breaking  African stories for global audiences. Led by award winning filmmaker Mandla Dube and partners Sydney Masina and US based Steven Adams, the company is also  known for connecting African creators with international partners and expanding opportunities for co-production and global distribution.

About UMEDA

The uMgungundlovu Economic Development Agency, (UMEDA) is the official economic development agency for the uMgungundlovu District Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. UMEDA works to stimulate regional investment, support industry development and promote sustainable economic growth across key sectors, including the creative and digital industries, positioning the Pietermaritzburg Midlands as a gateway for international collaboration and innovation.

Creative Export Canada, part of the Creative Export Strategy, provides visibility and funding to help Canadian creative works achieve financial success abroad.

CCF2026 is funded by Creative Industries Funding from the City of Toronto, that supports organizations building skills for jobs in film, TV, music, and creative tech.

CaribPR WIRE, TORONTO, Canada, Thurs. July 24, 2025: The Cross Continental Forum 2025 was more than a gathering – it was is a blueprint in motion. At the core of the forum was one undeniable truth: the future of global storytelling is being rewritten by the Global South.

“There’s a depth and richness in our storytelling that often gets overlooked in traditional spaces. I’m excited to see what solutions emerge to help us produce these stories in ways that truly reflect the beauty, complexity, and brilliance already in the room,” commented Melanie Hoyes, Director of Inclusion at the British Film Institute.

Producers, funders, storytellers, and cultural strategists from across the world met for several days in Barbados in June at The Cross Continental Forum 2025 from The Caribbean Tales.

In mid-June producers, funders, storytellers, and cultural strategists from across the world met for several days in Barbados to not only discuss problems but find solutions to produce culturally relevant films by creatives who tend to be overlooked by the Global North (who generally decides who gets to tell their stories and how).

What Comes Next

CCF 2025 served as a real-time lab for creative problem-solving, cultural equity, and economic strategy. With over 30 producers directly participating and hundreds more reached through public events and screenings, the forum sparked new partnerships, reshaped how stories are valued, and laid the groundwork for future collaboration.

Key developments already in progress:

• The CCF Manifesto
  A unified declaration of intent and action – documenting concrete next steps from producers, partners, and collaborators, and signaling a collective commitment to move decisively from conversation to co-production.
• Cross-Continental Collaborations
  New cross-border alliances are taking shape from Lagos to Kingston to Port of Spain – grounded in equity, creative ownership, and cultural authenticity.
• Financing & Policy Shifts
  Funding strategies and policy shifts are already taking shape across public and private sectors, ignited by the ideas and commitments forged at the forum.

The Cross Continental Forum founder, Frances Anne Solomon, in red at l, with film producers and sponsors at CCF 2025 in Bridgetown, Barbados.

Stay Connected

This was the second staging of the forum, and the movement continues to grow.

If you’re a funder, commissioning body, or industry ally committed to equity-driven storytelling – we invite you to connect. Equity-driven storytelling needs bold partners. Join us as we shape a creative ecosystem where the Global South leads, owns and tells its stories on its own terms.

Visit the official site to explore more and express your interest or follow @crosscontintentalforum on Instagram or email [email protected]

This isn’t the end – it’s the shift.

Caribbean and Global South Leaders Demand Immediate Investment in Regional Film Ecosystems

Attendees of CCF 2025 in Bridgetown, Barbados on June 18, 2025. (Brian Medina image)

CARIBPR WIRE, Bridgetown, Barbados, Mon. June 30, 2025: Two filmmakers, Ife Alaba (Canada), and Kerel Pinder (Bahamas), walked away from the Cross Continental Forum (CCF) 2025 with grant funding to kickstart co-productions, thanks to support from the Inter-American Development Bank—marking a tangible outcome of a weeklong event that moved beyond conversation and into transformation.

The forum, presented by CaribbeanTales Media Group and the Department of Creative and Performing Arts at UWI Cave Hill, concluded its five-day convergence on June 18 with a bold message: The time to build is now. Producers and delegates from across the Caribbean, Africa, Canada, the UK, Europe, and the U.S. issued a united call to design, fund, and activate local film ecosystems without waiting for the “perfect” conditions.

Held under the theme Decolonising Co-Production, CCF 2025 brought together over 50 producers, industry delegates, and creatives to interrogate the systems that determine whose stories are told – and how. The forum challenged participants to shift their gaze from scarcity to opportunity. As Frances-Anne Solomon, CEO of CaribbeanTales and co-creator of the forum, emphasized: “It’s great to tell the story—we’re already good at that. The real question is: where will you get the money? Who can you collaborate with to make your project real? These two points must always be front and centre.”

Rather than reinforcing narratives of lack, the forum functioned as a live, collaborative lab – providing real-world opportunities for filmmakers to forge meaningful partnerships and begin building with what they have.

High-Profile Contributors Included:

• CCH Pounder – Guyana-born acclaimed actor, CCF Steering Group member, and activist.
• 
• Lorraine Toussaint – Celebrated Trinidad & Tobago-born actor, producer, and cultural trailblazer.
• Ava DuVernay – Renowned filmmaker, producer, and founder of ARRAY.

DuVernay’s virtual keynote was a standout moment. In a direct message to emerging creators, she dismantled the myth that big budgets make better films: “If your first idea moves you way outside your budget – pivot. Use what’s around you. The best films often happen in the smallest spaces.”

Global media powerhouses Fiona Lamptey, former Head of UK Features at Netflix; Joel Phiri, leading South African producer and distributor with Known Associates; Effie T. Brown, Gamechanger Films, USA, and celebrated Canadian content creator, Jen Holness, took center stage over five days – leading powerful conversations with producers in the room and helping to surface hard truths and tangible next steps.

The forum tackled structural barriers to equity across key pillars:

Day 1 – Decolonising Policy & Legislation: Reforming frameworks that hinder equitable content creation
Day 2 – Decolonising Financing: Disrupting traditional funding streams to centre Black and Global Majority creators
Day 3 – Decolonising Content: Preserving cultural authenticity while scaling reach
Day 4 – Decolonising Distribution: Building inclusive, sustainable distribution models
Day 5 – Decolonising Co-Production: Forging cross-border collaboration rooted in equity

Key stakeholders – including C15 Studios, Caribbean Creative Fund, and major partners such as the Inter-American Development Bank, Invest Barbados, Barbados Tourism and Marketing Inc., Barbados Film and Television Association, Canada Media Fund, Picture NL, and the KZN Tourism and Film Authority – joined the forum to offer funding insights and forge next-step pathways.

Felicia J. Persaud, CEO of Invest Caribbean, moderated a pivotal panel on financing and pointed to a lack of infrastructure: “Few Caribbean countries have usable tax incentives or co-production treaties. While a handful – like Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and Trinidad & Tobago – offer tax rebates, many, including Barbados, are still playing catch-up.”

What’s Next: Turning Vision Into Industry

With over 30 producers participating in intensive sessions, 20 industry delegates engaged, and hundreds more reached through public programming, CCF 2025 delivered more than discussion – it produced a working blueprint for regional film industry growth.

Key recommendations from forum attendees include:

• Establishing robust film tax incentive programs across the region
• Negotiating formal co-production treaties with countries like Canada, South Africa, and the UK
• Developing inter-island agreements to enable seamless Caribbean collaboration

As one of the few forums of its kind, The Cross Continental Forum is a real-time lab for creative disruption, and with next year’s application cycle opening soon, it continues to position Caribbean and Global South storytellers not on the margins – but at the center of global storytelling futures.

Thirty-one producers representing four continents will meet in Barbados for this transformative event.

CARIBPR Wire, BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, May 20,2025: The Caribbean is calling her children home.

In just 3 weeks, the Cross Continental Forum (CCF) 2025, hosted by CaribbeanTales Media Group, (CTMG), in partnership with the Department of Creative and Performing Arts, UWI Cave Hill,  will bring together leading film and television producers  from the UK, Canada, South Africa, the US, and across the Caribbean. They will join creatives, cultural entrepreneurs and the general public, for five powerful days in beautiful Barbados.

Under the theme “Decolonising Co-Production,” the Forum will explore innovative ways to foster collaboration through the empowering lens of the Global South.

“We’re creating a space where Global South producers from around the world can meet on our home soil to together shape new models of financing, storytelling, and ownership,” said Frances-Anne Solomon, founder of CTMG and the visionary force behind the Forum.

Producers will be joining from the following countries:

Canada will have the largest number of film producers at CCF 2025.

●     Canada  - (10)

○     Jennifer Holness

○     Floyd Kane

○     Jennifer Podemski

○     Andrew Burrows-Trotman

○     Nauzanin Knight

○     Gail Maurice

○     Virinder Singh

○     Ife Alaba

○     George Tamakloe

○     Yejide Emioladipupo

●     United Kingdom – (6)

○     Ameenah Ayub Allen

○     Jonte Richardson

○     Emma Grazette

○     Lauren Gee

○     Femi Oyeniran

○     Victoria Thomas

●     The Caribbean

Trinidad & Tobago – (3)

○     Sophie Walcott

○     Camille Abrahams

○     Shari Petti

Barbados – (4)

○     Penelope Hynam

○     Alison  Sealy Smith

○     Ryan Wilfred

○     Sheldon St.Clair

The Bahamas – (3)

○     Tabitha Ritchie

○     Karel Pinder

○     Maria Govan

The Dominican Republic – (2)

○     Eunice Levis

○     Jenna Cavelle

Guyana – (2)

○     Victoria Arjoon

○     Mason Richar

●     South Africa – (2)

○     Nhlanhla Mthethwa

○     SB Sithebe

A Forum For Cultural, Economic, And Creative Evolution

Now in its second year, CCF aims to become a vital platform for reshaping co-production norms and building lasting partnerships across borders.

For the Canada Media Fund, one of the Forum’s key funders, the sense of homecoming is profound. During the Forum’s online opening, CMF’s Joy Loewen remarked, “It’s long overdue. We need to build meaningful and sustainable bridges between our industries and our communities.”

The event addresses critical inequities in the global media production landscape. Agnieszka Moody, Head of International Relations at the British Film Institute, emphasized, “The old models of production and co-production disproportionately favor the Global North. The Cross Continental Forum offers a space to create a blueprint for new ones built on trust, equity, and shared legacy.”

More Than Culture This Is Economic Empowerment

South African producer Kethiwe Ngcobo reflected on the significance of this gathering, “We are here to work, to connect, and to create wealth from our stories. This is not just about culture – it’s about economics. And it starts with us, together.”

ABOUT THE CROSS CONTINENTAL FORUM

The Cross Continental Forum (CCF) 2025 is a production of CaribbeanTales Media Group in collaboration with the Department of Creative and Performing Arts (UWI Cave Hill). Support for the CCF is generously provided by numerous organizations, including the Canada Media Fund, British Film Institute, Mango Bay Group of Companies, Invest Barbados, Inter-American Development Bank, Picture NL, National Cultural Foundation of Barbados, Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc, Barbados Film and Television Association, Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago, Telefilm Canada, and many other international partners.

Guiding CCF 2025 is a Steering Group comprised of: Frances-Anne Solomon (CEO, CaribbeanTales Media Group), Andrew Millington (Head, Department of Creative and Performing Arts – UWI Cave Hill), CCH Pounder (Guyanese-born actor and activist), Dr. Keith Nurse (Founding Chair, CaribbeanTales Worldwide Distribution and President of COSTAATT), Zikethiwe Ngcobo (CEO, Fuzebox Entertainment, South Africa), John Reid (Former CEO of FLOW Telecommunications, Caribbean and Latin America), Agnieszka Moody (Head of International Relations, British Film Institute), Chloe Sosa Simms (CBC Senior Advisor, Acquisitions), and international events producer Diana Webley (Director of Events, CaribbeanTales Media Group).

CARIBPR WIRE, London, UK, Thurs. May 1, 2025: Caribbean heritage film maker and director, Frances-Anne Solomon’s seminal feature film ‘What My Mother Told Me,’ (1995), returns to the screen this May with special presentations at BFI Southbank and on CaribbeanTales-TV. Selected as part of ‘Black Debutantes: A Collection of Early Works by Black Women Directors,’ by the British Film Institute, the film is widely regarded as a landmark in Caribbean diasporic cinema. It explores identity, memory, and generational divides with a haunting poignancy that remains as vital today as when it first premiered.

Screening Dates at BFI Southbank:

Monday, May 5, 2025 – 14:50 (NFT3)
Wednesday, May 21, 2025 – 20:40 (NFT2)

Tickets available via BFI Southbank.

About the Film
‘What My Mother Told’ Me traces the emotional journey of Jesse, a young woman who travels from England to Trinidad to bury her father. Once there, she is forced to confront the mother who abandoned her, igniting a painful yet transformative reckoning with the past. Set against the lush backdrop of Trinidad, the film deftly navigates themes of loss, belonging, and reconciliation, capturing the personal costs of migration and cultural displacement.

What My Mother Told’ Me traces the emotional journey of Jesse, a young woman who travels from England to Trinidad to bury her father.

The film stars acclaimed actors, including BAFTA-nominated Adjoa Andoh, (Bridgerton), the late Jamaican theatre icon Leonie Forbes, Royal Shakespeare Company veteran Clarence Smith, and award-winning performer Nadine Williams. It features evocative cinematography and a rich, textured score that deepen its emotional resonance.

Completed in 1995, ‘What My Mother Told Me’ was a pioneering work in British-Caribbean independent cinema. Produced by Solomon’s company Leda Serene Films, the project was shot on location in Trinidad and the UK, combining both narrative storytelling and documentary
influences to portray the fragmented experience of the Caribbean diaspora.

The screenplay was developed through workshops at the National Film and Television School (UK) and supported by the British Film Institute’s Production Board. Upon release, the film was praised for its authentic voice and unflinching portrayal of intergenerational trauma within Caribbean families.

A scene from What My Mother Told Me

‘What My Mother Told Me’ was officially selected for major international festivals including:

● Toronto International Film Festival – Planet Africa Programme
● Festival of Black International Cinema (Berlin, St. Louis, Paris) – Best Film Depicting the Black Experience
● Urbanworld Film Festival – Producer’s Choice Award
● Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival – HBO Best Feature Award

About Frances-Anne Solomon

Frances-Anne Solomon is an award-winning director, writer, and producer recognized internationally for her work across film, television, and radio.

Frances-Anne Solomon is an award-winning director, writer, and producer recognized internationally for her work across film, television, and radio. Born in England and raised in Trinidad, her career has been shaped by a transatlantic sensibility that infuses her storytelling with global resonance. Solomon’s credits include multiple award-winning productions and the founding of CaribbeanTales Media Group, a pioneering platform for

● Africa Movie Academy Awards – Best Diaspora Feature
● Sony Radio Academy Awards – Best Feature
● New York Festivals TV & Film Awards – Gold Medal for Performing Arts

She is also a leading advocate for diversity in media, with initiatives aimed at training and supporting new generations of filmmakers from underrepresented communities.

Following its BFI Southbank screenings, What My Mother Told Me will be available for streaming globally via CaribbeanTales-TV throughout the month of May.

BFI Tickets: https://bit.ly/42VWldf

The Wonder Years Star is in discussions to play Jamaican-Canadian Community worker Harry Gairey

For Immediate Release

CaribPRWire, Toronto, Canada, Thurs. Nov. 11, 2021: Casting is underway for In the Black and popular American actor Richard Gant has been attached to the project to play the role of Jamaican-born Harry Gairey. Produced by CaribbeanTales Media Group and directed by Caribbean-Canadian Frances-Anne Solomon, the feature film is an adaptation of entrepreneur and activist Jamaican-Canadian Denham Jolly’s memoir of the same name.

In the newly re-imagined The Wonder Years (ABC), Gant guest stars as Granddaddy Clisby – the latest role for the 77-year-old actor who also plays grumpy Walter on CBS’s The Neighborhood. The veteran actor is known for his roles on Greenleaf (Percy Lee), The Mindy Project (Melville Fuller), Men of a Certain Age (Owen Thoreau, Sr.), General Hospital and NYPD Blue.

“I met Richard last year in Los Angeles at the premiere of Hero at the Director’s Guild of America Theater,” recalls Solomon. “So, when I was thinking about who would be the perfect actor to play the role of the legendary Harry Gairey, a Jamaican-born community leader and activist who worked as a railroad porter, Richard’s commanding presence and booming voice instantly came to mind. He will be phenomenal!”

In the Black focuses on Jolly’s journey from Jamaica to Canada, the enormous influence Jamaican political activist Marcus Garvey had on his life as well as Jolly’s fight to secure a license for a Black-owned Toronto radio station, Flow 93.5.

The film has received support from the Harold Greenberg Fund and Telefilm Canada. Producer Nicole Brooks has also recently signed onto the project. Brooks’ production work began with Frances-Anne as story editor for Lord Have Mercy (Vision TV/Showcase/APTN/Toronto One) and she has gone on to create and produce several critically acclaimed and groundbreaking television and theatre productions including Echo (SunTV), Divine Restoration (Vision TV/ TVOne), Obeah Opera and executive produced CaribbeanTales’ slate of international pilots through its flagship Incubator Training Program. Also on board are writer Andrew Burrow-Trotman - The Porter (CBC) Frankie Drake Mysteries (CBC) Utopia Falls (CBC/Hulu), Diggstown (CBC) and development executive Jamie Gaetz. Solomon’s recent feature film, Hero: Inspired by the Extraordinary Life and Times of Mr. Ulric Cross is now available on Showtime, Prime Video, Hulu and Cineplex Store.

Media Contact: Fennella Bruce | 647.290.7610 | [email protected]

CaribbeanTales Media Group (CTMG) is a multi-faceted group of media companies that produces, markets, and sells culturally diverse film and television content from the Caribbean and its wide Diaspora.  Founded by award-winning filmmaker and Academy Member Frances-Anne Solomon, CTMG includes: CaribbeanTales Inc, a registered Canadian Charity, CaribbeanTales Worldwide Distribution, a film distribution entity, CaribbeanTales International Film Festival; Caribbeantales-TV, a VOD streaming service; the Creatives of Colour Incubator, a year-round development and production hub, and CaribbeanTalesFlix, our production arm.

PHOTOS:

Actor Richard Gant, l, and CaribbeanTales Media Group founder and director  Caribbean Canadian Frances-Anne Solomon. (Photo courtesy of Caju Creative)

Actor Richard Gant (Courtesy: richardgant.com)

Director Frances-Anne Solomon’s Award-Winning Feature Film will be streaming in Canada, the US and the UK from May 21st

For Immediate Release

CaribPR Wire, TORONTO, Canada, Fri. May 21, 2021: HERO, the film inspired by the extraordinary life of Caribbean-born Mr. Ulric Cross, will be available exclusively in Canada on Premium VOD in the Cineplex Store and Prime Video in the U.S. and U.K on May 21^st, 2021.

HERO opened to rave reviews at the TIFF Bell Lightbox in Canada and played in cinemas across the UK on a 40 City tour covering England, Scotland and Wales prior to the pandemic. Following this successful tour, HERO went on to win multiple awards and was the Opening Night feature film for the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles.

HERO stars Trinidad’s Nickolai Salcedo in the title role, Peter Williams (Stargate SG1), Joseph Marcell (FreshPrince of Bel Air), Jimmy Akinbola (Holby City) and Ghanaian superstars John Dumelo, Adjetey Anang and Prince David Oseia.

Film and television industry pioneer, Frances-Anne Solomon has expertly lifted the lid on one of many untold stories of notable Caribbean professionals who made it their life’s mission to foster African independence. Film critic Mike McCahill of The Guardian called Hero, “Stimulating and provocative – filmed history to prompt debate.”

“It’s exciting to know that Ulric’s remarkable life will be shared on a global scale,” said Solomon.

Watch the official HERO trailer (33s)

STREAM NOW:

Amazon Prime UK:https://amzn.to/3bCX2gn

Amazon Prime US: https://amzn.to/3u2PXw7

Showtime U.S.: https://s.sho.com/3wj8GFg

Cineplex Canada: https://cinplx.co/3wnpAm9

PROMOTIONAL IMAGES AVAILABLE HERE AND HERE

*Note to editor: HERO is also available in the U.S on Showtime’s specialty channel Sho Next and its streaming platform Showtime On Demand.

Media Contact: Fennella Bruce | 647.290.7610 | [email protected]

For UK inquires: Evadney Campbell | 07716 289 717 | [email protected]

For Trinidad inquiries: Wendell Bompart |[email protected]

For screener requests and publicity materials, please contact: [email protected]

Twitter: Hero_Film Instagram: hero_film Facebook: HERO4ALLTIME Web: www.heroulriccross.com

CaribbeanTales Media Group

CaribbeanTales Media Group (CTMG), is a multi-faceted group of media companies that produces, market, and sells culturally diverse film and television content from the Caribbean and its wide Diaspora.

Imagine Media

Imagine Media International Limited is an award-winning, full-service, production Company, based in Trinidad and Tobago and South Africa. Founded by award-winning, Producer-Director & Media Personality Lisa Wickham, the Company creates content across all media platforms.

Republic Bank

Headquartered in Trinidad and Tobago, Republic Financial Holdings Limited (RFHL) is the registered owner of all of the banks in the Republic Group – Republic Bank Limited, Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited, Republic Bank (Barbados) Limited, Republic Bank (Grenada) Limited, Republic Bank (Suriname) N.V., and Republic Bank (Ghana) Limited, as well as Republic Securities Limited and other subsidiaries.

Capital Motion Picture Group

Capital Motion Picture Group is a distributor of world-class entertainment to audiences around the globe. As part of its diverse offering of independent cinema, Capital Motion aims to both entertain and engage with audiences with an appetite for discovery.

RICHMOND, Va., Dec. 28, 2020 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ – Soulidifly Productions, a film company with a mission to produce meaningful, uplifting stories that are entertaining and beautifully told, has partnered with TRIAL X FIRE, LLC, the distribution branch of Urban Home Entertainment, to release Joseph to audiences everywhere on video-on-demand starting December 24, 2020, on Amazon Prime and Vimeo.

“Joseph will bring viewers a deeper understanding of how the search for truth can be healing, especially during times of social and political unrest,” said BK Fulton, founding chairman and CEO, Soulidifly Productions. “This film aligns with 2019’s ‘Year of Return’ and the ‘Decade of Return’ currently being expressed by African leaders and global influencers as more people search for answers in the present by looking to clues from the past.”

Winner of the 2020 “Best Diaspora Narrative Feature” award at the Africa Movie Academy Awards, Joseph was shot on location in Ghana, Jamaica and Barbados and produced by Step by Step Productions with assistance from Soulidifly Productions. Joseph is a dramatic feature film about Joseph King, a young Jamaican doctor with a burning desire to re-connect to his family’s roots with the Ashanti tribe in Ghana. The quest to “go home” creates family conflict. Joseph’s curiosity about Africa is fueled even more by a friend from medical school, who would boast about his homeland Ghana. His stories contradict with what Joseph hears and sees about Africa in the media. A serious tragedy, a chance meeting and an unfulfilled promise drive Joseph towards an uncertain destiny.

Access trailer: https://www.soulidifly.com/joseph

Joseph has been endorsed and supported by the Governments of Ghana, Jamaica and Barbados and was included in the Ghana Tourism Authority’s “Year Of Return.” The film was released theatrically in Ghana, Nigeria, Jamaica and other Caribbean islands, and in the U.S. in select AMC theaters earlier this year.

Directed by Marcia Weekes and co-written by Weekes and Delphine Itambi from the Republic of Cameroon, the film includes Caribbean/African actors and artists.

About Soulidifly Productions
Founded in 2017, Soulidifly tells the stories of multiethnic, multigenerational people across various segments of life, experiences and eras. https://www.soulidifly.com/

About Trial X Fire, LLC
A distribution brand of Urban Home Entertainment, TRIAL X FIRE, LLC (TXF) is a privately owned company that specializes in Movies, Television, and Musical programming. TrialxFire.com.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1392380/Soulidifly_Productions_Joseph_Movie_Poster.jpg

Acclaimed Director Frances-Anne Solomon to spearhead

this historic new project

For Immediate Release

CaribPR Wire, TORONTO, Canada, Mon. Nov. 9, 2020: The pivotal role played by British-Trinidadian journalist and activist Claudia Jones in launching the world’s largest street festival, the Notting Hill Carnival, is the focus of a new Canada-UK co-production.

Leading the production is acclaimed Canadian director Frances-Anne Solomon (Hero: Inspired by the Extraordinary Life and Times of Mr. Ulric Cross). The film will be produced by Solomon’s CaribbeanTales Media Group (CTMG), in partnership with Nadine Marsh-Edwards’ UK-Based Greenacre Films and Lisa Wickham’s Trinidad and Tobago-based Imagine Media International Limited.

Set in London in 1958 as violent race riots ravaged the country, CLAUDIA tells the story of Jones, a Trinidad-born activist deported to England from McCarthyite USA, who comes up with an ingenious plan to unite Britain’s Black and white working classes.

“Claudia was a modern day superhero rooted in the real world, whose remarkable life and achievements straddled the USA, England and the Caribbean.”  says Solomon. “I could not be more excited to work with this global team of accomplished Black women to tell this inspiring story.”

“Greenacre Films is proud to partner with Frances-Anne and CaribbeanTales to tell the story of a remarkable Black woman whose achievements helped to shape the London we live in today,” says Marsh-Edwards, whose many acclaimed productions include Been So Long, starring Michaela Cole.

Imagine Media’s CEO Lisa Wickham believes that, “Frances-Anne’s film shines a much-deserved light on a Caribbean-born woman whose rich and beautiful legacy amplifies Black voices and experiences as a whole.”

Joining the team as co-creator and co-writer is British actress, writer and director Adjoa Andoh (Bridgerton, Dr. Who, Invictus) and rising British screenwriter Omari McCarthy.

“Claudia’s work promoting women’s rights,  Black rights and the rights of the poor and disenfranchised laid the seeds for so much that followed  – African and Caribbean independence, civil rights, Pan Africanism and inevitably, today’s Black Lives Matter movement,”  adds Adjoa Andoh.

CLAUDIA’s development has been funded by Telefilm Canada. The project is one of thirteen (13) films selected for the Attagurl Program, a unique year-long lab supporting the development and distribution paths of amazing projects by women and non-binary around the world.

Media Contact: Fennella Bruce | 647.290.7610 | [email protected]

CaribbeanTales Media Group (CTMG) is a multi-faceted group of media companies that produces, markets, and sells culturally diverse film and television content from the Caribbean and its wide Diaspora. It includes: CaribbeanTales Inc a registered Canadian Charity, CaribbeanTales Worldwide Distribution, a film distribution entity, CaribbeanTales International Film Festival, now celebrating 15 years; Caribbeantales-TV, a VOD streaming service; the Creatives of Colour Incubator, a year-round development and production hub, and CaribbeanTalesFlix, its production arm.

In 2014, Frances-Anne Solomon founded CineFAM, to amplify the voices of women of colour creators worldwide – that includes an annual film festival, an incubator and film productions. 2020 sees the launch of the inaugural Windrush Caribbean Film Festival, a UK-based charity that celebrates the impact of the Windrush generation on life on Britain and the world.

Recent award-winning CTMG productions include HERO – Inspired by the Extraordinary Life & Times of Mr. Ulric Cross by Solomon (Trinidad & Tobago/Canada 2019); Caribbean Girl NYC by Mariette Monpierre (Guadeloupe/Canada 2016); Battledream Chronicle – A New Beginning, by Alain Bidard (Martinique/Canada 2016); and Kingston Paradise by Mary Wells (Jamaica/Canada 2014).

Greenacre Films is an independent production company founded by award-winning producers Nadine Marsh-Edwards and Amanda Jenks. They bonded over their desire to create fresh, surprising stories with diverse voices. ​Working with great talent is the key to our success, we are an inclusive space that allows innovative ideas to be realised; where whether you are an award-winning writer or an exciting newcomer you feel able to be bold in your vision and creatively ambitious. Our television and film slate aims to connect with both the UK and global audiences and all, at their heart, are stories that explore the human condition in surprising and entertaining ways.

Imagine Media International Limited is an award-winning, full-service, production company, based in Trinidad and Tobago and South Africa. Founded by award-winning producer-director & media personality Lisa Wickham, the company provides content creation across all media platforms, event management, marketing & PR Services, graphic design and training & consultancy. Imagine Media has developed and coordinated projects in Europe, North America, Africa and several Caribbean countries.

For Immediate Release

CaribPR Wire, TORONTO, Canada, Thurs. March 19, 2020: Toronto-based CaribbeanTales Media Group has announced that it has begun work on a feature film based on the award-winning memoir In the Black by one of Canada’s most respected entrepreneurs, Denham Jolly. The feature development is supported by the Harold Greenberg Fund and the Telefilm Development Program. A short film based on Jolly’s early life is also being produced. His compelling memoir, that won the Toronto Book award in 2017, tells the inspiring story of his journey from Jamaica to Canada in the 1950’s, through his struggles to overcome racism and become an extremely successful businessman, activist, philanthropist, and publisher.

Solomon, the producer and director on this project, will work with screenwriter Andrew Burrows-Trotman and development executive Jamie Gaetz  to recreate the triumphs and trials of  Jolly’s life, the fabric of which is interwoven with Marcus Garvey’s ideals of economic self-empowerment,  music of the time, and the activism of several generations of Black Canadians who are also part of this remarkable story.

“Denham Jolly’s ten-year battle to win a license for Canada’s first black radio station, is the stuff of urban legend. In the Black shows Canada from a unique point of view. It’s the story of Canada herself, through a fresh and important lens. Our audiences are hungry for authentic stories about Canadian life: Real lives of real people who came to this country and made it their home.” says Solomon.

An icon of the Black community in Canada, Jolly is a founding member of the Black Business Professional Association, Harry Jerome Scholarship Fund, Harry Jerome Awards, Black Action Defence Committee and the Harriet Tubman Games, to name just a few organizations his hand has touched. A self-made millionaire, last year he paid off the mortgage for the Jamaican Canadian Centre and continues to be a philanthropist working behind the scenes to support numerous community causes.

“I cannot express how pleased and excited I am to know that my experiences in Canada and the building of the Black community in Toronto will be documented in film. Writing my memoir and receiving tremendous feedback for it has been both gratifying and humbling. Now, future generations will be able to watch my life story on the big screen,” says Jolly. “I trust Frances-Anne Solomon to tell this story with honesty, integrity and the directional creativity she always brings to every project she touches.”

Frances-Anne Solomon is an award-winning filmmaker, producer, curator and entrepreneur.  A 2019 Director member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, her  third feature film Hero Inspired by the Extraordinary Life and Times of Mr. Ulric Cross has received wide critical acclaim on its worldwide tour, that includes theatrical runs in both Canada and U.K. and the Opening Night sold-out screening at the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles.  She is the founder and CEO of the multi-facetted CaribbeanTales Media Group. In 2017 she founded CineFam, to support bold original stories by women of colour creators. Prior to returning to Canada in 2000, Solomon had a successful career as a TV Drama Producer and Executive Producer with the BBC in England.

Andrew Burrows-Trotman is an established Canadian writer. He has been in the writer’s room for Frankie Drake (CBC), Homicide Club (Bell) and Diggstown (CBC).  He is currently working on a dramatic pilot with executive producer and former NBA player Steve Nash called Hardwood, and he is developing a miniseries based on Lawrence Hill’s acclaimed novel The Illegal (Conquering Lion, CBC).

Jamie Gaetz is a story editor and development consultant with extensive experience in the Canadian media industries. As an analyst at Telefilm Canada, she worked with clients across Atlantic Canada and in Quebec., part of  the team that nurtured talent behind many award-winning films, including two shortlisted for Cannes, one Sundance selection, a winner of the Claude Jutra Award, several selected for TIFF and a top download on iTunes.

The CaribbeanTales Media Group produces, markets and sells Caribbean-themed film and television content for global audiences. It includes the CaribbeanTales International Film Festival, CaribbeanTales Incubator Program, CaribbeanTales Worldwide Distribution and CaribbeanTalesFlix.

The Harold Greenberg Fund/Le Fonds Harold Greenberg is a national funding organization that supports the development of Canadian dramatic feature films. Since 1986, it has invested over $85 million in the Canadian film and television industry, which is more than 4, 000 projects.

Peter Williams and Melanie Nicholls-King play Harry Gairey and Violet Williams, respectively, in the short film Violet's Story.

Denham Jolly

Director Frances-Anne Solomon

For more information:

www.caribbeantales.org

https://www.bellmedia.ca/harold-greenberg-fund/

Media Contact: Fennella Bruce|FKB Media Solutions|[email protected]|647.290.7610

More photos and B-roll available upon request.

For Immediate Release

CaribPR Wire, TORONTO, Canada, Thurs. Feb. 27, 2020: Following a sold-out Opening Night of the 28th Pan African Film and Arts Festival (PAFF), with more than 1,000 patrons at the Director’s Guild of America in West Hollywood,  and two subsequent packed screenings, Frances-Anne Solomon’s HERO was awarded the newly created Ja’Net Feature Narrative Award, renamed in honour of PAFF co-founder, Ja’Net Dubois.  The well-loved actress and songwriter, who sadly passed away unexpectedly  during this year’s  festival, was best known for her role as Willona in the TV series, Good Times.

“We are proud to be the recipient of this inaugural award in honour of Ja’Net. Hero is a film about a Pan African trailblazer and it  resonated deeply with audiences at  this festival,” says Frances-Anne Solomon, who wrote, produced and directed the film. “It spoke to the heart of what PAFF  is about, and connected the dots for many people who lived this history and were not aware of the pivotal role that many Caribbean professionals like Ulric Cross played in the Pan-African Liberation movements.”

PAFF is the largest Black film festival in the United States and the largest Black History Month cultural event in the nation. It ran from February 11th to February 23rd. A record-breaking 225 films were selected for screening, representing 52 countries in 26 languages – that is, 86 feature films; 128 short films and 11 new media selection. Plus, ArtFest featured more than 100 fine artists from around the world. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has designated PAFF as an official qualifying film festival for live action and animation short films.

HERO is inspired by the extraordinary life and times of Trinidad and Tobago citizen, diplomat and judge Ulric Cross, the most decorated West Indian of World War II. He was a member of the highly decorated group of Caribbean pilots who flew combat missions for the United Kingdom’s Royal Air Force (RAF) in World War II. After his service, Cross went on to play an active and important role in the Pan African Movement, which led to the Civil Rights movement in the United States, and the creation of the 28 modern Caribbean and 54 modern African nations.

Funded by Canada’s Telefilm and Trinidad’s Republic Bank, HERO boasts an all-star international cast that includes Trinidad and Tobago’s Nickolai Salcedo , in the lead role of Ulric Cross, alongside Canada’s Peter Williams ( Stargate SG1 ), UK stars Joseph Marcell ( Fresh Prince of Bel Air ), Fraser James ( Resident Evil ), Pippa Nixon ( John Carter ), and Ghanaian superstars John Dumelo, Adjetey Anang and Prince David Oseia. HERO’s Opening Night screening at PAFF, was supported by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago’s Ministry of Community Development, Culture and the Arts; Imagine Media; CaribbeanTales; and California Pictures.

A trailblazer in the film and television industry , Frances-Anne Solomon is an  award-winning filmmaker, writer, producer, curator and  entrepreneur. She is a  2019 Director member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. HERO is her third feature film and has received critical acclaim on its worldwide tour, that has included a theatrical run in the U.K. Following a successful career as a TV Drama Producer and Executive Producer with the BBC in England, Solomon launched the CaribbeanTales Media Group in Canada and Barbados that includes an international film festival and distribution company. Full bio: www.francesannesolomon.com

Media Inquiries:

Fennella Bruce|647.290.7610|[email protected]

Follow HERO on Social

Facebook: @Hero4Alltime

Instagram: @Hero_Film

Twitter: @Hero_Film

Visit the HERO Website

About CaribbeanTales:

CaribbeanTales (CTMG) is a group of media companies that producers, markets, exhibits and distributes Caribbean-themed films from around the world, including CaribbeanTales Inc. – a registered Charity in Canada and CaribbeanTales Worldwide Distribution.  Activities include The CaribbeanTales International Film Festival (CTFF), now in its 15th year; the renowned CaribbeanTales Incubator Program (CTI) – a year-round development and production hub for Caribbean, Diaspora, and diverse Producers; CaribbeanTales-TV, a VOD streaming service; and CaribbeanTalesFlix, its production arm. More at www.caribbeantales.org

About California Pictures:

California Pictures was originally founded in 1944 by Howard Hughes and Academy Award winner Preston Sturges and reincorporated in 2008 by Steven Istock.  The company is focused on creating great movies and television content with dynamic characters, strong and personally identifiable themes and powerful journeys for a worldwide audience. California Pictures is an international production and distribution company, exhibiting and selling independent films across the world.  They produce and sell films at the Cannes, American, Berlin and Hong Kong film markets and represent a diverse group of filmmakers and projects from around the world including England, China, India, Jamaica, Mongolia, Canada, Denmark, Australia, South Africa, Scotland, Nigeria, Russia, Barbados, Columbia and Cambodia.

About Imagine Media

Imagine Media International Limited is an award winning, full-service, production company based in Trinidad and Tobago and South Africa. Founded by award-winning Producer-Director & Media Personality Lisa Wickham, the company provides content creation across all media platforms, event management, marketing & PR services, graphic design and training & consultancy.  Imagine Media has developed and coordinated projects in Europe, North America, Africa and several Caribbean countries.

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