Film industry players look for more

Members of the local film fraternity gained invaluable insight into the area of documentary film-making at the recent creative session jointly staged by the Jamaica Film Commission and the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, which featured a panel comprised of members of the team behind the critically acclaimed documentary Fire in Babylon.

The event, which took place in the Main Conference Room at JAMPRO last Saturday, attracted 50 participants.

Among the panellists at the session were Fire in Babylon director Stevan Riley (Blue Blood), producers Charles Steel (The Last King of Scotland) and John Battsek (One Day in September), co-executive producer Peter Hargitay of international production company Hargitay and Hargitay Pictures in Motion (the football-based trilogy Goal), and Carlo Less, one of the Jamaican producers of the documentary RiseUp.

Battsek impressed on the gathering the importance of passion and commitment in the process of making a documentary, indicating that he has spent three years to complete a project on several occasions.

He also advised local film-makers to ensure that the stories they seek to tell are powerful enough to resonate with people on different levels.

"What makes the difference is that you have a story that is greater than the sum of its parts and ultimately transcends the basic story. This story [Fire in Babylon] was exactly that ... it's about an incredible cricket team but placed in a social and political backdrop, which makes it more complex. It only works as a film because it is about much more than the cricket team."

While declaring reggae as one of the most powerful musical genres in the world, Hargitay expressed the view that Jamaica's culture and track record of international achievement across various spheres represent a rich source for good stories that should be made into films by Jamaicans.

"In my opinion, Jamaican film-makers need to be much more liberal in showing up their culture in film. If there is anything that a film like Fire in Babylon can do is to serve as a catalyst in this area," he said.

Hefty financial costs

Following up on Hargitay's statement, Natalie Thompson, owner of Cinecom Productions, raised the issue of the hefty financial costs associated with procuring footage of major sporting events such as the Olympics, which often makes projects on that subject prohibitive for local film-makers. While admitting that the charges for such footage can be exorbitant, both Hargitay and Battsek agreed that the art of negotiation was essential in this regard, as well as creative options such as profit sharing.

Film Commissioner Kim Marie Spence noted that sourcing of financing was a point of major interest in the local film community, and the shared experience of the panel was extremely useful to the gathering.

"What was clear was that the film industry is not an easy ride anywhere. There is need to believe in the project, choose your team wisely and get people to literally buy into the vision," she stated.

The documentary film-making forum facilitated important connections between the visiting film professionals and the local fraternity, and several participants indicated their desire to pursue projects in the near future. Carlo Less disclosed that he was currently working on three documentaries.

"I am passionate about documentaries. I know that we all have the same concerns in terms of getting projects off the ground, but it is clear that we have the ingredients that we need to push these films out. We already have a niche of people who are interested in our content. We also have the technology, the stories, the capabilities and the music. I think the time is right now ... and we need to go out there and do it," said Less.