At premiere of ‘Till I find a Place’…
PRIME Minister Samuel Hinds attended the premiere of the movie ‘Till I Find a Place’, at the National Cultural Centre (NCC), in Georgetown Wednesday night, as Guyana entered the movie industry again.
He remarked that cinema plays an important role in the developed world and expressed the hope that the screening would be the start of sustained film making in this country.
Performing the functions of the Office of President, Mr. Hinds lauded the pioneering team for the achievement while enumerating the virtues of cinema, citing the generation of revenue, employment, entertainment and a tool for education.
Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr. Frank Anthony hailed the occasion as a “new cultural chapter”.
Echoing Mr. Hinds, he agreed that creative industries contribute to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of developed countries.
He lamented that Guyana has a lot of talent but has not been able to move it to the next level.
Anthony said he hopes the Wednesday night occasion was not only the launch of ‘Till I Find a Place’ but an entrance into the Caribbean movie industry.
Executive Director, producer and star in the movie, Mr. Mahadeo Shivraj provided much laughter for the audience as he regaled the crowd with tales of his early attempts at getting into movies.
He, too, praised Guyanese talent and criticised the use of foreigners to play Guyanese in local movies.
Shivraj thanked Mr. Ronald Hollingsworth, the man whose fertile mind spawned ‘Till ah Find a Place’, the name of the original play which inspired the movie, for trusting him with his script.
Hollingsworth, himself, a man of few words for the night, said: “This is the step for Guyana to take its place in the movie industry.”
CAMEO APPEARANCE
Head of the Government Information Agency (GINA), Mr. Neaz Subhan, who was Master of Ceremonies (MC) and made a cameo appearance in the movie, appealed to the business community for their continued support.
Chief Financial Officer of Guyana Telephone & Telegraph Company (GT&T), Mr. Yog Mahadeo added his praise of the cast.
He declared that no sum of money could meet their level of sacrifice and acknowledged his pleasure at playing a part in the corporate sponsorship of the movie.
Previous movies made in Guyana include ‘If wishes were horses’ and ‘Aggro Seizeman’.
Stealth Productions worked along with Shivraj on the movie along with promotion from the Dramatic Arts Committee.
Nine songs, done by Guyanese, were also recorded for the movie and the singers include DJ Dutty Flex, Nadeer Bacchus, Rick Ramdehol, Eva Blazing and Rory Jagdeo.
Background music is by Avirodh Sharma.
‘Till I find a Place’ will go for showings in New York and Florida, also in the U.S., and Canada, among other places.
It will continue at NCC until tomorrow, then move to New Amsterdam on July 3 and Skeldon, Corentyne, also in Berbice, July 4; LICHAS Hall, Linden, on July 10 and Essequibo, July 11.
Making his debut in Guyana at the NCC, Shivraj has, since beginning his long career, acted, professionally, in some 90 plays in Guyana and the United States (U.S.) and directed 30, doing to set design for all.
He is the creator and director of the hit stage series ‘Laff till yuh belly bus’, now in its seventh year and is set to make a new film, entitled ‘My Brother, My Wife and I’, in October.
Shivraj wrote the screenplay for it, based on another Hollingsworth work, in which he will be starring as well as producing and directing.
Shivraj is also in preproduction for the first local soap opera ‘Full Moon Dulahin’ in which he will also star and be the producer and director. Shooting for it will begin February/March 2011.