2018 CTFF shows changes in Caribbean culture through the history of the islands

BY: JELANI GRANT 

Torontonians and touring moviegoers attended the 13^th Annual CaribbeanTales Film Festival from September 5^th to 20^th, with Dancehall’s Asian Ambassadors screening as the feature film on September 19^th. The Royal Cinema, on College St, filled with guests excited to see films developed within Jamaica by Jamaican production crews. The genre of films varied each day, guaranteeing an entertaining night for all attendees. The night included three productions ahead of the feature film, Asian Ambassador.

Abeeku and the Maroons is an animated short set in the 18^th century, in Jamaica. The story follows an escaped slave who tries to free his pregnant sister from a cane plantation. However, they become separated and Abeeku must enlist Jamaica’s freedom fighters, the Maroons, to help him rescue his sister. This story not only illustrates the heroism and desperation of slaves during the time but shows the important role the Maroons had in the freeing of enslaved people. Directed by Kevin Jackson the short was played throughout different days in the festival, concluding on closing night.

Kinto, directed by Joshua Paul, examines life on the streets of Kingston, Jamaica, through the eyes of a 14-year-old boy named Kinto. He’s a squeegee kid who uses his knowledge of the streets to survive the day and though he did not speak throughout the film, his actions gave viewers a clear understanding of the constant challenges of being a homeless youth in Jamaica. CTFF host for the night Carie Mullings related this emotional story to a documentary, which explained a historic moment that surely left a mark on Jamaican people.

A showing that garnered the most discussion and emotional response was The Incursion, which documented the aftermath of Jamaican police and military focused on capturing notorious drug lord Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke in 2010. Director Sasha Gay-Lewis spoke with a number of survivors in the inner-city community of Tivoli Gardens, years after ‘The Incursion’. Viewers were shown the perspective of the residents who recounted the things they saw and heard during the attempted capture of Dudus and the repercussions of the deadly clash between law enforcement, residents of Tivoli Gardens and Coke’s supporters.

The Shower Posse drug cartel was known to have members living inside Tivoli, including Dudus. Supporters of the drug lord created makeshift barricades to keep police forces out, escalating an attempted arrest into a deadly gun battle. The documentary explained that the chaos made it difficult for police to differentiate between supporters of Dudus and regular civilians living in Tivoli. In addition to the shooting of civilians within the community, the military used mortar shell bombs in efforts to scare out or kill Dudus, though civilians attest that the drug dealer and his fellow gunmen had already left the neighborhood. When it was over, the death toll was counted at 69 but members of Tivoli, who shared their story, said they were not given the bodies of their loved ones who were killed and to this day still don’t know the details of their deaths. A member of the audience said he was living in Tivoli with his mother during ‘the incursion’ and spoke on his first-hand experience. “The forces came in and unfortunately a lot of my friends who were not gunmen were killed. Some were taken out to remove dead bodies from the road.” As a living example of the terror created during ‘The Incursion’, he said the police kicked in his door but his government job saved him from death or further trauma and he was able to show his ID to prove who he was.

Asian Ambassadors also inspired discussion due to its subject matter, which wasn’t examined in as much detail as the film. Directed by Gayle, the documentary presented the stories of four Japanese women, whose lives were changed by the Dancehall movement, inspiring them to move to Jamaica and immerse themselves into the music and overall lifestyle of Dancehall. “There were talks about the Asians and how they want to take over Dancehall, and they’re becoming more prominent within the space, so this was about telling the story and giving them a voice,” Gayle said. The Japanese artists include Rankin Pumpkin, Yumiko Gale, producer Bad Gyal Marie, and dancer Kiss Kiss, who have each brought a unique feel to Dancehall.

The film begins the discussion of cultural appropriation, but Gayle successfully dispelled this criticism by showing the women’s love for Dancehall culture and the overall admiration of Jamaica. “This film has been exposed and each of these women’s social media has just sky-rocketed. People are following them because of their pride for Jamaica being non-Jamaican and having such a strong pride,” said Mullings. Gayle points out in his narrative that once the Japanese master the moves, the music industry no longer needs to hire locals including sound systems and reggae performers. 

Consulate General of Jamaica Lloyd Wilks was in attendance as well as director of the feature showing. Wilks spoke on the importance of CTFF contributing to Caribbean culture and the significance of the communities’ support of the festival each year. “Our culture will continue to spread, become, and remain as a part of this cultural mosaic,” he said.